A fabulous tea drink is not difficult to create and the Sweet Adeline is a perfect example. This non-alcoholic drink recipe is warm, comforting, and a delight on those cold winter afternoons when you're stuck inside.
The Sweet Adeline recipe is quite easy and it's actually the perfect drink for the day you get to make fresh grenadine. Fresh pomegranates come into season for only a few months and it typically runs around the holidays. This gives you a very short window to create the freshest grenadine syrup of the year and it is worth all the effort.
To mark this special occasion, the Sweet Adeline can become your little reward for ripping out all those delicious, juicy seeds. It's fabulous to mix up right before the fresh pomegranate juice is sweetened and reduced to a syrup. Simply skim a couple ounces off the top and steep a cup of blended black tea with citrus and spice.
The drink is fabulously easy and it will fill you with warmth as you enjoy baking all those goodies for the holidays.
Ingredients
-
1/4 cup fresh pomegranate juice
-
1 tablespoon cinnamon syrup
-
1 teabag black tea blend with orange and spice
-
1/2 to 3/4 cup hot water, to taste
-
Cinnamon stick, for garnish
Steps to Make It
-
Gather the ingredients.
-
Pour the pomegranate juice and cinnamon syrup into a warm mug.
-
Add the tea bag and fill with hot water.
-
Allow to steep for 2 minutes (or according to the tea's recommendation), then remove the tea bag.
-
Garnish with a cinnamon stick.
Tips for Making the Sweet Adeline
The Pomegranate Juice. Removing the seeds from a pomegranate is the most time-consuming process of making this drink. It is worth the effort and once you have them, there are two ways to get the delicious juice.
-
One method uses hot water to extract the juice from the seeds and is commonly used when your final intention is to make grenadine. This creates a juice that is slightly watered down, but still warm and inviting.
-
The other method is a cold extraction of the juice and it will create the purest pomegranate juice because there is no water added.
When creating the Sweet Adeline, I used the hot method and the diluted juice. It remains very flavorful and I would actually recommend it because straight pomegranate juice can be a little thick.
If you opt for the cold juicing method, add a little water to the juice: about 2 parts juice to 1 part water. This will give it a nice consistency for the drink and it also saves a bit of your precious juice!
When it is not pomegranate season, feel free to use your favorite pomegranate juice. You can also add water to grenadine and stir it until you get a juice-like liquid.
The Tea. You can use any tea you prefer, but the best Sweet Adeline will come from a blend of black tea with orange and spices. There are many fantastic blends around that fall into this category.
A recommendation for an easy to find spiced tea is Bigelow Constant Comment. It's available in many grocery stores and is a fantastic, affordable spiced tea for winter.
Buy Bigelow Constant Comment at Amazon
No matter which tea you choose, brew it according to the recommendations of the tea company. Brewing times and temperatures are a critical piece of making a great cuppa and you really should not be steeping all of your teas the same. Constant Comment recommends 2 minutes and many black teas fall in line with this, but you will want to double check your tea of choice.
The Cinnamon Syrup. Cinnamon is one of the easiest homemade simple syrups you can make. All you need to do is toss a cinnamon stick in the syrup, let it steep for a few hours and you're done! It's a fantastic way to sweeten your coffee and tea and is very useful in a number of cocktails as well.
Want to Spike the Drink?
This drink was created as a mocktail, but that should not stop you from adding a little liquor if you like. If you want to spike the Sweet Adeline, consider an aged rum or a good brandy. Even flavored brandies like apple or apricot will make a nice addition here because they are always just a little better when warmed up.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) | |
---|---|
73 | Calories |
0g | Fat |
19g | Carbs |
0g | Protein |
Nutrition Facts | |
---|---|
Servings: 1 | |
Amount per serving | |
Calories | 73 |
% Daily Value* | |
Total Fat 0g | 0% |
Saturated Fat 0g | 0% |
Cholesterol 0mg | 0% |
Sodium 13mg | 1% |
Total Carbohydrate 19g | 7% |
Dietary Fiber 1g | 3% |
Total Sugars 17g | |
Protein 0g | |
Vitamin C 0mg | 1% |
Calcium 25mg | 2% |
Iron 0mg | 1% |
Potassium 140mg | 3% |
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice. |
Recipe Tags: