Spiced Pear Iced Tea

This iced tea uses a pear syrup simmered with cinnamon, ginger, and cloves, then blended with chilled black tea and served over ice with fresh pear slices.

By Julienne

Cook time: 15 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 240 ml water divided
• 1 large ripe pear peeled, cored, and diced; plus thin slices for garnish
• 60 g granulated sugar for syrup
• 2 g ground cinnamon for syrup
• 6 g fresh ginger peeled and thinly sliced
• 4 count whole cloves for syrup
• 20 ml lemon juice freshly squeezed
• 4 count black tea bags for brewing
• 720 ml water divided
• 480 g ice cubes for serving

Instructions

1. Make the spiced pear syrup: combine 240 ml water, the diced pear, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then reduce to low and cook for 8 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the pear is soft and the syrup smells strongly spiced. The pear pieces are soft and the liquid is lightly syrupy and fragrant.
2. Strain the syrup into a heatproof bowl or measuring cup, pressing the pear gently to extract liquid. Stir in the lemon juice and let the syrup cool for 5 minutes. You have a smooth, aromatic syrup with no solids.
3. While the syrup cooks, brew the tea with the remaining 720 ml water in the heatproof measuring cup or a separate vessel. Steep the tea bags for 5 minutes, then remove them and cool the tea briefly. The tea is dark and fully brewed without tasting overly bitter.
4. Fill the pitcher with the ice, add the cooled tea and the spiced pear syrup, then stir well. Add the pear slices for garnish just before serving. The drink is cold, evenly mixed, and lightly diluted by the ice.