Strawberry-Basil Sweet Tea

Place strawberries, sugar, and 2 cups water in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high. Boil, undisturbed, 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium. Simmer, stirring often, until strawberries are very broken down and mixture is thickened and slightly reduced, about 15 minutes. Carefully skim any foam that rises to top of saucepan, and discard.

Pour strawberry mixture into a blender. Secure lid on blender; remove center piece to allow steam to escape. Place a clean towel over opening. Process until smooth, about 30 seconds. Pour mixture into a heatproof bowl; stir in basil, and let stand 10 minutes. Pour mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a separate bowl; discard solids. Cover; chill until ready to use (or up to 2 weeks).

Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high. Remove from heat. Add tea bags to water, and let steep 5 minutes. Remove and discard tea bags (do not squeeze bags). Stir lime juice and 2 cups strawberry-basil syrup into tea. (Reserve remaining syrup for another use.) Pour mixture into a pitcher. Cover and chill at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours. To serve, pour chilled tea into ice-filled glasses, and garnish with strawberries and basil sprigs.