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Russian Tea Recipe

by Mary 50 Comments

Russian Tea titleI know we’ve discussed my love of mason jars, right? Have we ever discussed the love of my husband? Well, I love him, and to prove it I make him Russian Tea.

Wait, what’s that? That’s not speaking volumes of the love I have for him? Then you must not have the whole story. Let’s chat for a second, shall we.

There’s an important ingredient up there in that picture. That ingredient is single handedly expressing my love for my husband. That ingredient…cinnamon.

I have this strangely strong aversion to cinnamon. The smell of it is cherished among so many people around the world! For me, it is extremely strong and if I’m around those spicy Autumn aromas too long I get a massive headache. And the taste, oh man, I can’t handle the taste. I can taste cinnamon in a recipe, even if no one else can! I don’t know what it is about that spice, but I can’t handle it.

Yet I do for my family. I have to hold my breath and I even leave the room until the powder settles if I’m sprinkling it on top of things. I may even give the kids snacks containing their beloved cinnamon, but then I have to disappear for awhile until the cinnamon smell dies down.

No, I’m not over reacting. I wish I were! I wish up on all wishes that I could enjoy the gooeyness of a cinnamon roll. Or that I could fill my home with the scent of Fall! But, with scent, comes taste. If anyone knows how much scent affects taste, it’s me. When I smell cinnamon, I taste it. While other people are enjoying this phenomenon, I’m holding my breath hoping I can find fresh air as soon as possible.

So, back to how much I love my husband. Sure, he could mix up this fantastic orangey, cinnamon spiced tea all on his own. He does on occasion. However, he’s in the military. He travels…a lot. He’s busy, he’s not always home, but I like to bring a little home to him. When he is home, I like to give him a little bit of the season in a hot cup of Russian Tea and hope it gives him a little bit of time to destress.

If you’d like to do that for someone you love, or even just to indulge in on your own. I’m sharing the recipe my husband grew up on for Russian Tea. Just look at how beautiful it is in the jar. It makes the patterns on it’s own as you pour it in the jar.

That right there is love.

Russian Tea Striations

Ingredients

  • 2 cups Tang
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup instant tea
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Combine all ingredients together and store in a container with a tight fitting lid.  For us, this fits perfectly in a quart sized mason jar. To serve, add 2 heaping teaspoons per cup of hot water (more or less to taste).

That’s it. Super simple and it makes a great gift for the holidays!

What is your favorite hot drink to enjoy when the weather gets cooler? Tell me in the comments.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Sarah Day

    at

    My mom used to make this for us! Brings back memories

    Reply
    • Mary Juett

      at

      We found out it also makes a sweet, refreshing iced tea in the summer! Did you guys ever try it that way? I’m really thinking about changing up the spices and making it for myself sans cinnamon.

      Reply
      • Sarah Day

        at

        We usually drank it hot but I can see how it would be good iced.

        Reply
  2. Nicole

    at

    No way is that stuff good. really? It’s good? Instant tea and tang and cinnamon?

    Reply
    • Mary Juett

      at

      Hey, the family seems to like it 😉 Who doesn’t like tang! Instant orange drink, yum!

      Reply
  3. Cristina

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    Really Tang? I never would have thought. But I loves some Tang, and Tea!

    Reply
    • Mary Juett

      at

      I remember drinking Tang when I was a kid, but I’d forgotten about it until my husband presented me with this recipe he grew up with. Now we buy one container of Tang every year just to make a stock of Russian Tea, lol

      Reply
  4. Theresa @DearCreatives

    at

    Love this idea & sounds delicious. I haven’t had Tang in years.

    Reply
    • Mary Juett

      at

      I was the same way! However I don’t like cinnamon, so I might have to create a non-spiced version and see what I can come up with.

      Reply
      • Ashley

        at

        I love cinnamon but also find it’s smell and taste ridiculously strong. I found out a handful of years ago that I actually am allergic to it. Not like stop breathing and die, just that it was noted on my allergy panel. It’s possible maybe your heightened senses towards it are the reflection of an allergy perhaps? If I am around it too long I get itchy. And if I consume too much I get a sore throat or mouth blisters. So I don’t really eat it unless there is something absolutely amazing I can’t live without!

        Reply
      • melanie

        at

        Just try different spices. Cloves are good. Allspice is nice. Nutmeg. Cardamom.

        Reply
  5. Barb V

    at

    I think I’m going to have to mix up some of this for Christmas gifts. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Mary Juett

      at

      YES!!! This makes a great Christmas gift. So easy to decorate the jars too. Maybe even tie a red ribbon with some cinnamon sticks stuck in it.

      Reply
  6. Erin

    at

    Oh my goodness this sounds good! I love tea 🙂

    Reply
    • Mary Juett

      at

      You’ll have to try it and let me know what you think of it. It makes great gifts in jars too!

      Reply
  7. Candi @ A Day in Candiland

    at

    I am a tea junkie, so I click right over to this recipe from Learn to Blog hangouts. I also love mason jars. Very cute.

    Reply
    • Mary Juett

      at

      Tea and mason jars! You can’t get any better than that!

      Reply
  8. Cindy

    at

    The balance of the ingredients was not what I expected. This came across as a highly orange-flavored drink. My daughter commented that it tasted like Metamucil.

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      Interesting. My husband LOVES this recipe. It’s the one I make for him every year, and the one his mother made for him. I’m sorry it wasn’t something you cared for, but I’m glad you gave it a try and shared your experience. If you decide to try it again and adjust the ingredients please let me know so I can give it a go for my husband. Maybe he’ll like a new recipe even better!

      Reply
      • Heather

        at

        Where do you find instant tea? Do you find it in a certain brand?

        Reply
        • Mary

          at

          We’ve always used NESTEA® Unsweetened Iced Tea Mix for this recipe, it’s a powdered ice tea. I think Lipton has an instant tea too. There might be other brands.

          Reply
  9. Holly T

    at

    My mom used to make this when we were kids. She added red hot candies which melted in the hot water. So tasty. I found your recipe looking for a replacement recipe as we’ve lost her handwritten recipe along the way.

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      I hope this comes close. I had never heard of this recipe until I met my husband. I’ll let him know about the red hots! We have a jar of them in the pantry. I’m sure he’ll be excited to give it a try. Thanks for the tip!

      Reply
  10. Cathy

    at

    My grandmother used to make this. Haven’t had it in years. Nice memories.

    Reply
  11. Deann Schmidt

    at

    Thank you so much for sharing this, I also grew up with this tea and love it and the memories that it brings.

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      Enjoy! It wouldn’t be the winter season around here for our family without it. 🙂

      Reply
  12. Jasmin

    at

    What is Tang?

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      Tang is a sugary orange flavored powdered drink mix. It might be something in the USA only, I’m not sure. You might be able to substitute another orange drink powder for this if you have any where you’re at.

      Reply
      • Wendy

        at

        I have bought the other off brand orange powder and it didn’t work!!! It tasted like kool-Aid instead of Tang

        Reply
  13. Pat Johnson

    at

    I make this with a slightly different recipe – no sugar, but some lemonade mix. You ask what my other soothing hot drink is. I like a cup of milk heated with 2 drops of vanilla mixed in. Tastes like tapioca pudding!

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      Yum!! We call those vanilla steamers in our house, they’re fantastic! We’ll have to try our tea mix with lemonade. It will sort of be a type of Arnold Palmer.

      Reply
  14. Melanie

    at

    I have been making a similar version of this for the past 49 years. My great aunt in Wisconsin made it for us with a slightly different recipe. Our version is 1 can Tang equal amt of unsweetened instant ice tea mix. Dash of salt 2 teaspoons cinnamon. Mix together 8 oz hot water with 2 teaspoons mix. It’s theonly hot tea that my daughter will drink!

    Reply
  15. Cheryl

    at

    Cinnamon. .. you may be allergic to it. My DIL & Grandson both are. They avoid places like Hobby lobby or JoAnns in the fall…

    Try using CARDAMUM in place of Cinnamon in your recipes.

    Thanks for the recipe. Brings back fond memories of ife in Alaska snow! I have seen an Inatant Tea in BJS now I will get it just to make this!

    Reply
  16. Stacy Seligman Staat

    at

    I substitute country time lemonade for some of the tang. Then I make it powdery and more consistent by putting it in a food processor. I am glad someone else shares my fondness for this.

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      Sort of like a powdered Arnold Palmer that way!

      Reply
  17. Tatyana Pashnyak

    at

    P.lease don’t call it Russian Tea, though. Russians drink real tea. 🙂

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      I have no idea how it got that name, LOL. I drink real tea too though. This recipe is all for my husband.

      Reply
  18. Kim

    at

    My mother made this and I followed. We called it Spiced Tea. Loved it.

    Reply
  19. Gloria

    at

    What and how would you triple the recipe and could you put it into smaller jars for like selling at a farmers market? I lost my job so I am selling homemade items at our summer farmers market.. just need some advice

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      You could absolutely triple the recipe. Just multiply all the amounts by three and go from there. I don’t know the home cooking rules for Farmers markets, but I know I have divided this recipe into smaller jars for gifts.

      Reply
  20. Rebekah

    at

    I love hot tea, I also make hot rum punch, it’s
    Great when you have a few friends over and
    and it’s cold outside. Making myself thirsty
    now.

    Reply
  21. Mavis

    at

    We used half orange and half lemon. Also try it in 7up. Cold of course. It foams up and is great.

    Reply
  22. Marsha Dennis

    at

    Where do you find Tang these days? I thought it was obsolete! I’ve made a batch of once or twice, a long time ago.

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      I never get it unless we’re making this recipe, lol. I usually find it at some grocery stores and occasionally at Walmart. I think it depends on the store and the area. If all else fails, you can always order it online!

      Reply
  23. Elyce

    at

    I love Oregon Chai (available at many stores or on Amazon.com) mixed with warm milk. It’s delicious & soothing, easy to make & warms me all over!
    When making Russian Tea, I don’t use Tang, but put in real orange slices with the peal on them. Quite delightful & reminds me of Wassel.

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      I love adding real orange to tea. It really does add a beautiful flavor and aroma.

      Reply
  24. Deb

    at

    First had Russian Tea over 50 years ago in college! Our recipe was very similar: 1 C Tang, 1 6-oz pkg Wyler’s lemonade, 1/2 C instant tea, 3/4 C sugar, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp cloves. Use approximately 2 tsp per cup of hot water. Thanks for reminding me of this! Think I’ll make some for gifts (using Countrytime lemonade to avoid artificial sweeteners).

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      I love making this for gifts! It creates such beautiful striations, even when mixed!

      Reply
  25. Diane

    at

    You may be allergic to the cinnamon.

    Reply
    • Mary

      at

      It’s a possibility, but there are a few things I can eat with cinnamon in it and I’ve never had any type of allergic reaction to it. I think it’s more of a flavor thing since it’s such a strong spice.

      Reply

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Hi, I'm Mary. Positive inspiration lifestyle blogger living in Nebraska. Check out the blog, get to know us, and find a little inspiration along the way. Please comment on the blog posts or shoot me an email if you have anything to share. We'd love to get to know you too! You can send an email to Mary@livingasunshinelife.com

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