One of my favorite drinks year round is a good chai latte. When I lived in Chicago I had a favorite coffee shop, but after relocating to LA, I have yet to find my go-to. Brewing a batch at home makes the kitchen feel extra cozy and full of good spices, and I truly enjoy the act of making this drink both hot and cold.

I did a lot of research while searching for the perfect recipe and my favorite by far has been this recipe by Jee of the Oh, How Civilized blog, who is quite a tea expert! You can check out her recipe or try my slightly simplified version below. There are a lot of ingredients but the outcome is worth it, and once you have them stocked you can continue to brew up large batches to be ready for a latte at any time :)

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp (6 bags) black tea (assam or darjeeling are great options)

• 1 cinnamon stick

• 10 cardamom pods

• 10 whole cloves

• 1 star anise

• 1/4 tsp black peppercorns

• 2 tsp ground nutmeg

• 1/4 tsp ground ginger

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 3 tbsp brown sugar

• 2 1/2 cups milk (any kind)

• water

Instructions:

1. Chop the star anise, cardamom pods, and cloves

2. In a pan add all the dry ingredients

3. Add 2 1/2 cups water and simmer for ten minutes

4. Remove it from heat and filter out the spices using a mesh strainer

5. Add the vanilla extract

6. Now your chai concentrate is ready and you can prepare your latte. Fill your mug halfway with the chai

7. Warm up milk for the latte on the stove by simmering, but avoiding boil. Stir to avoid sticking to the pan

8. Add the milk to your mug until full and enjoy coziness!

If you like this drink I recommend checking out Jee’s Iced Chai Latte or some of her other amazing tea recipes!

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