Mild and Delicate Guava White Tea

This guava white tea has a simple and elegant flavor profile, with mild guava and subtle yet fruity white tea and floral honey in perfect harmony. I added a little lemon juice to make all the flavors pop just a little bit more, but this sure is a thirst quencher everyone in the family will love.

 

 

If you've been here for a while, you may have noticed my love for iced teas. This is my first white tea on the blog, but you could also enjoy this green grapefruit mint tea, black ginger lemon iced tea, or herbal hibiscus iced tea, rooibos is also a new favorite of mine, like this rhubarb raspberry iced tea.

 

If you want even more iced tea ideas, I recommend trying my new cookbook '99 Summer Drinks' where 13 of the recipes are delicious iced teas. There are also many other things like iced coffees, lemonades, and cocktails. Not to be missed!

 

Health benefits of guava

 

Guava actually has more vitamin C than oranges which is great for the immune system. But it also has more benefits like improving digestion because of the high fiber contents and it can help you to de-stress due to the magnesium. Guava is also packed with antioxidants, iron, potassium, vitamin A and calcium.

 

All these nutrients have various health benefits, which include fertility (and it's good for pregnant ladies!), regulating metabolism, skin health, and eye health. It is heart-healthy because it lowers the bad cholesterol and regulates blood pressure, and it is a brain booster because of vitamins B3 and B6. All in all, it sounds like magic in a fruit. 

 

Do keep in mind that guava contains sugar, which is not good for your body, but that is why it tastes so good too! Everything should be eaten in moderation anyway, so I'm not worried about that at all. 

 

 

Do you peel guava? How to cut it

 

Let me just start by saying that the entire guava is edible, the rind, the seeds, the flesh, everything. But even though guava rind is edible, not everyone likes it. It tends to be bitter, especially if you blend the entire thing. 

 

However, it is especially the rind that is packed with vitamin C, so I recommend having it on if that is important to you. 

 

To cut guava, you can simply cut it in half and then in wedges. Like an apple! Only that the seeds are edible. For this recipe, I cut the guava in half, and the wedges also in smaller cubes. Keep the pieces small, and you can blend the juice faster, but it doesn't matter.

 

 

Making guava juice

 

When I'm eating guava, I like to make it into juice. You can peel it like I prefer to, chop it into pieces and add it to your blender along with water (or coconut water).

 

You need a lot of water to make it liquid enough to blend, although it may vary depending on how powerful your blender is. I found that 1 ⅓ cup of water is perfect to blend in one guava.  

 

Your guava may also be sweeter or tarter and for that reason, the amount of sweetener may vary. I had to add about 5 tablespoon of honey to this guava white tea, so you should just taste and adjust as per your taste. You can add the sweetener to the blender, or you can mix it with the white tea. Your choice.

 

When making guava juice, it's important to not over-blend because that may grind the guava seeds which can turn your juice bitter. So blending for 30 seconds should be just the right amount.

 

Now strain this mixture through a cheesecloth or fine-mesh sieve and you've got yourself lovely guava juice!

 

 

Ingredients

 

This guava white tea has just a handful of ingredients and they all work so well together, but I of course have some variations for you as well. 

 

• White tea: white tea has a very delicate flavor, with a sweet, floral, and fruity hint to it. It's no problem to use another tea if that is more your thing, it's hard to ruin this delicious guava iced tea! White tea is less processed than other teas, which means it also has the most antioxidants. 
• Guava: Guava has such an intriguing flavor, and some say it is like a cross between strawberry and pear. It is mild and delicate, and slightly floral. Hence why I love to pair it with lavender honey as well! You can use either white or pink guava, I used white. You should look for ripe guavas which yield to your fingers when you lightly press them. 
• Water or coconut water: I originally planned to use coconut water for this recipe, but I actually could not taste the coconut mixed with all the other ingredients. It is however really healthy and extremely hydrating, so I would add it if I have it, but don't expect a prominent coconut flavor.
• Honey or lavender honey: You don't need a sweetener if your guava is very sweet. Or you may need more or less than what I'm using here. You should taste and adjust. However, I like to use lavender honey here. You can super easily make that yourself, just follow the recipe in this Lavender Bee's Knees. That little floral hint is perfect in a summery drink! Honey is also rich in antioxidants, so even though it's sugar, it also brings some health benefits to the table. 
• Lemon juice: lemon juice is mainly there to bring out the other flavors. It can be a very muted flavor without it, but you can leave it out if you find it tastes enough without it!

 

 

How to make this white iced tea

 

In all its essence, this is just sweet guava juice mixed with cold white tea. Simply brew white tea and let it cool completely. White tea should not have boiling water, but rather around 180F (82C).

 

I just boil water and let it chill for about 5-10 minutes before adding the white tea leaves or tea bags. 1 tea bag or 1 teaspoon leaves per cup of water is usually a good bet. Add honey to the hot tea so it dissolves more easily.

 

 

Blend guava with water and strain it. The strained mixture can now be mixed with the chilled white tea. Pour in glasses filled with ice cubes for a refreshing summery drink. Enjoy!

 

Did you like this refreshing drink? Here are more non-alcoholic drinks I think you would like:

 

• Watermelon limeade
• Elderflower cordial
• Hibiscus iced tea
• Brazilian lemonade
• Mango pineapple smoothie
• Roasted oolong milk tea
• Grapefruit and calendula tea hot cider

 

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Comment below or tag me @thegingerwithspice on Instagram. And don’t forget to Pin it for later! To make sure you’re never missing another recipe, please feel free to subscribe to my newsletter. As thanks, you will receive a free e-cookbook Travels Through the Seasons, with many delicious recipes from around the world that suit different seasons of the year. 

 

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