Recipe(tried): Mama's Sweet Tea and suggestion re: cloudy tea

Hi kellygirl:-) Iced tea will become cloudy if you squeeze the tea bags. Also, I read somewhere that if you refrigerate tea before it is cool it will become cloudy. I have made this Iced Tea recipe from Debbie D., AL many times. It is the BEST recipe I have ever found. Everyone in my family likes to sweeten iced tea to their own taste so I do not sweeten it as the directions suggest. I just omit the sugar. We use Sweet and Low since it dissolves quickly and sweeten to our own liking but you could also make simple syrup to sweeten the tea, or use extra fine sugar. I always serve it with lemon wedges.

MAMA'S SWEET TEA
from Debbie D. in Alabama

2 family-size LIPTON Tea Bags--It's the only kind of tea that we ever use
3/4-1 cup of sugar
2 cups boiling water (definitely use boiling water)
(My addition to the recipe is 6 cups cool water - that makes the half gallon)

Put the tea bags in a half-gallon pitcher. Add the sugar and the water. Stir the sugar, tea, water mixture until the sugar has dissolved. Let the tea "steep" for 10-15 minutes. When the tea has steeped, fill the half-gallon pitcher with cold water. (That would be 6 more cups of cool water) Stir this mixture and taste. Remove the tea bags. If it's too sweet, add the juice from one fresh lemon. If it isn't sweet enough, add 2 T. sugar until it is sweetened to your liking. Serve the tea in tall glasses with ice. I always add my lemon slice to the glass before pouring the tea. Pouring the tea over the lemon slice - lets it have a nice, robust flavor. (Another note for Roxie - Do not wring or squeeze the tea bags when you remove them. That's what causes the tea to become cloudy. Refrigerate when completely cool. Adding the 6 cups of cool water really cools the tea quickly so it can be used right away.)