Strawberry Basil Iced Tea

Clearly I'm obsessed with strawberries right now. Ever since they made their appearance at my local farmers market I've been buying 2-5 pints a week. They top my morning granola, get baked into many crumbles, the lonely sad looking ones get juiced (which sometimes turn into popsicles!), and my husband has been muddling them into some spectacular cocktails.

This iced tea is delicious. I would really recommend filling your glass completely with ice when serving because it tastes a tad sweet/strong until it gets a bit diluted. And of course it tastes that much more amazing when it's really ice cold.

Adapted from Martha Stewart

1 cup water (plus more for steeping tea)
3/4 cup sugar*
1 cup basil leaves
1 pound strawberries (trimmed and quartered)
8 tea bags (or equivalent amount of loose tea)

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a saucepan and add tea bags. Remove from heat and steep for 10 minutes**. Meanwhile bring 1 cup of water to a boil in another saucepan and add sugar. Stir to dissolve, remove from heat once boiling and add basil. Let sit for 10 minutes.
Place strawberries in a bowl and once basil syrup is ready pour it over the berries. Toss them to coat and let sit until cooled.
Combine strawberries (with syrup) with tea in a large pitcher and refrigerate until cold. Serve over ice and garnish with fresh basil.

*I didn't steep mine for quite this long but instead used more loose tea to make it stronger.

**I think next time I might try this with only 1/2 cup of sugar.