During those warm summer months, there’s nothing like a refreshing glass of Fresh Strawberry Thyme Sun Tea to quench your thirst. This classic summertime drink is brewed by the sun and flavored with fresh thyme and strawberries.

During these challenging times, it’s so important that we take the time to enjoy and appreciate the small things that bring us joy. For me, one of those things is tea.

I know, I know … tea doesn’t seem that exciting or special, but growing up, my sisters and I would get super excited when our mom made a fresh pitcher of sun tea. For us, this meant that summer was near, and it was time to play and enjoy the great outdoors.

Fresh Strawberry Thyme Sun Tea. (Andrea Mathis / Beautiful Eats & Things)

I loved when my mom made sun tea and I loved watching it brew. The sun seemed to give the tea that magic touch that made it taste so good.

Now that I’m a mom, I’ve decided to pass along these traditions to my kids, so we headed to Sprouts Farmers Market to gather everything that we needed to make sun tea.

Since my kids love strawberries, we decided to make Strawberry Thyme Sun Tea. The boys wanted to use some of the fresh thyme from our herb garden. They have been watering that garden every day, so they were really excited to benefit from their hard work.

Fresh Strawberry Thyme Sun Tea. (Andrea Mathis / Beautiful Eats & Things)

Fresh Strawberry Thyme Sun Tea

Click here for a printable recipe.

Serves: 16

Ingredients

• 6 quarts water
• 6 tea bags
• 2 cups fresh strawberries, sliced in half
• Fresh thyme
• Optional: ½ cup sugar or more, if desired

Instructions

1. In a large pitcher, pour in water and add in the tea bags and thyme.
2. Cover and place tea in the sun for about 4 to 5 hours to steep.
3. Using a muddler or a wooden spoon, mash 1 cup of the strawberries to release the juice.
4. Combine with the remaining strawberries, cover, and set in the refrigerator until the sun tea is done.
5. Stir the tea with a wooden spoon and add in the strawberries and sugar, if desired.
6. Serve over ice and enjoy.

Andrea Mathis is a registered dietitian and owner of Beautiful Eats & Things. For more great recipes, visit beautifuleatsandthings.com.