happy chai :)
chai tea is the perfect beverage for chilly days, late nights with friends and early i stayed up way too late
last night mornings. not only do i find the flavor of chai to be a tasty alternative to coffee but it also seems to leave me feeling more alert
and less jittery than other caffeniated concoctions.
i first fell in love with tea in the fall of 1999 when i was living in south kensington
and was asked by my new flatmate if i wanted milk in my cup of earl gray, poor uncultured american girl, i had never even heard of putting milk in
tea! one cup was all it took, from that moment on i was a milk tea enthusiast. adding a bit of cream, milk or soy milk to
any tea helps to cut the bitterness of the tea and enhance the aromatic flavor. i am particularly fond of chai tea because not only does it call for black tea
and milk but it incorporates a spice mixture as well which adds a whole new depth to the drink.
over the past few years chai has become increasingly
popular to the point where it can be found in the majority of coffee houses and is even avaliable in premade boxes and bags at the grocery store.
i have tried many different takes on the tea from the tea bags where you add your own milk and sugar, to the milk carton like boxes of premade mix that you heat
and serve, but none of them knocked my socks off. some were too sweet others too dull so i decided to play around in the kitchen and make my own. after
a month of consulting fellow tea enthusiasts, reaserching recipie books and webby sites and conducting taste tests with friends and family i have come up with
this delightful combination of spices. most of these spices are readily avaliable at farmers markets or organic grocery stores. indian-american
grocery stores and asian markets also have an outstanding selection of hard to find spices. if you can't locate all the ingredients don't worry the mixture will
still be delightfull even if it is missing a few spices. This recipie yeilds about 5 cups of spice
mixture which makes it perfect for packaging up and sharing with friends.
ingredients for spice mix
1/3 cup fresh ginger, thinly sliced
the peels of three oranges, dried and broken into small chunks
1/3 cup whole all spice
1/3 cup whole star anise
1/3 cup whole black and/or white pepercorns
1/3 cup whole coriander
1/3 cup whole cardomon pods
1/4 cup whole cloves
4 dried bay leaves
1/3 cup Tbsp powdered nutmeg
8 cinnamon sticks broken in half
4 or 5 vanilla beans
small glass jars(home canning jars work well)
ingredients for tea
loose black tea (darjeeling works best)
milk or soy milk
sugar
making the spice
put all the ingredients except the vanilla into a large bowl and mix well
transfer mix to the jars being careful to include a good mixture of the chunky and loose spice in each jar
cut vanilla bean into enough peices that there is one bit of bean in each jar of spice
decorate the jars with ribbon or loving notes and directions for how to make happy chai (bellow) and give to friends
tea time: making happy chai
combine 2 1/2 cups of water and 2-4 spoonfulls of spice mixture (depending on how spicy you like it) in a medium sized sauce pan
bring to a boil, cover and let simmer for 15 minutes until mixture is golden brown
remove from heat and add a 2 heaping spoonfulls of tea leaves
cover and let tea steep for 2-3 minutes
add prefered amount of sugar and 1 cup of milk or soy
stir and reheat but do not boil
strain mixture and poor into cups
enjoy your delicious tea :)
other tea related points of interest
indian foods co: hard to find spices and yummy recipes
the enthusiast's online chai resource: history of the spicy drink as well as some great recipes
mountain rose herbs: oraganic spices and tea
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