First, wash the cherries well, discard the stems and chop them. Throw away the seeds.
In a thick bottomed saucepan add 2 cups of water, cherries, lemon juice, mint leaves, star anise, and vanilla extract. Bring to a boil.
Reduce the flame and let it cook for 15 minutes. Then mash the cherries while cooking. Take it off the flame and let it cool down completely.
Strain the mixture and transfer to a bottle or bowl. Allow it to cool down completely.
In the same saucepan, add 2 cups of water and sugar. Bring to a boil and wait till the sugar dissolves.
Take the saucepan off the flame. Add the tea bags and steep the tea for 10 minutes, then discard tea bags.
Allow the tea to come to room temperature, then transfer to a large pitcher filled with ice cubes. Stir in the cherry juice and set in the refrigerator. Garnish with lemon slices and mint leaves and enjoy!
Notes
You can use loose tea or tea bags to make Iced Tea. I tried making it with both and ended up liking the tea bag version more.For basic iced tea, calculate one tea bag per one cup water.Use filtered or bottled cold water to begin with.You can use agave nectar or simple syrup instead of sugar.Do not steep the tea for longer time. If you brew longer, the tea will develop a bitter flavor or become too strong. Steep for 5-8 minutes and then taste every 30 seconds to ensure your desired flavor.Don’t add raw sugar into a chilled iced tea. Always add the sweetener while the tea is still steaming so it dissolves fully.For added indulgence, add a dollop of vanilla ice cream to each glass before pouring the iced tea on top.Add ice to the tea right before serving.