I know that everywhere else in the world spring is here (I know, I know, I'm exaggerating). It's still winter here in Montana..... still the season of warm beverages! This concentrate will make this "in between" season a bit more pleasant.
I love to have a chai tea in the afternoon. But at 170 calories and 34 g sugar (for 12 oz with nonfat milk), it doesn't fit into my food plan everyday. But this homemade concentrate makes it a much nicer fit! It also reduces the cost by about $3 per beverage! If you shop in the bulk section of your grocery for the spices, they will cost you about $1 for all 8 servings.
The best part? It tastes INCREDIBLE! And your house will smell of the spices all day.
Homemade Chai Tea Concentrate
Serves 8
6 cups water
10 black tea bags
1/2 whole orange
1 tsp ground cardamom
1 cinnamon stick
10-12 whole cloves
1- 4" piece of fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
Bring water to a boil in a saucepan. Remove from heat and add tea bags and spices. Squeeze 1/2 orange into water, then place the orange into the steeping tea, peel and all. Allow to steep for 20 minutes.
Whisk in sugar, honey and vanilla. Pour mixture through a fine strainer (to remove ginger, cloves, cinnamon stick and orange) into a glass beverage container for storage. Refrigerate until used.
I love to have a chai tea in the afternoon. But at 170 calories and 34 g sugar (for 12 oz with nonfat milk), it doesn't fit into my food plan everyday. But this homemade concentrate makes it a much nicer fit! It also reduces the cost by about $3 per beverage! If you shop in the bulk section of your grocery for the spices, they will cost you about $1 for all 8 servings.
The best part? It tastes INCREDIBLE! And your house will smell of the spices all day.
Homemade Chai Tea Concentrate
Serves 8
6 cups water
10 black tea bags
1/2 whole orange
1 tsp ground cardamom
1 cinnamon stick
10-12 whole cloves
1- 4" piece of fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
Bring water to a boil in a saucepan. Remove from heat and add tea bags and spices. Squeeze 1/2 orange into water, then place the orange into the steeping tea, peel and all. Allow to steep for 20 minutes.
Whisk in sugar, honey and vanilla. Pour mixture through a fine strainer (to remove ginger, cloves, cinnamon stick and orange) into a glass beverage container for storage. Refrigerate until used.
To prepare beverages, combine 3/4 cup concentrate with 1/2 -3/4 cup skim milk, depending on desired concentration. Serve hot or cold!!
Nutrition Info per 10 oz beverage (3/4 cup concentrate with 1/2 cup skim milk): 67 calories, 0.1 g fat, 6.5 g sugar
I absolutely love chai tea (and spend too much money getting them from starbucks!) Thanks so much for sharing!!! Hope spring comes to you soon!!!
ReplyDeleteYou are literally my favorite person in the world right now. (I found my way here from Tasty Kitchen!). I'm easing excess sugar out of my diet, as I've seen its detrimental effects on my parents, and have been craving a Chai tea latte like nobody's business. But apparently no one in NYC believes in carrying the sugar-free mixes because I can't find any. As an alternative I was just brewing chai tea bags and using nonfat milk, I'm a little suspicious about whether even that tea bag has some kind of sweetener in it. So, thank you!
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