Homemade Chai

Today I attempted to make chai for the first time, hoping to end up with something akin to the Tazo Chai that they sell at Starbucks, but perhaps a little spicier, like my absolute favorite chai: Dragonfly Chai.

Unfortunately, my end product isn’t spicy and tastes a bit earthier than I would have liked. Ugh. Maybe I’ll try again sometime, but now I’m feeling a little defeated.

Here’s the recipe I tried, does anyone have any suggestions as to how I could better it?

Homemade Chai
Adapted from Green and Clean Mom

Ingredients
12 cardamom pods (the big green ones) You can also just use cardamom seeds if you can’t find the pods.
4 sticks of cinnamon
1 star anise, broken into pieces
1 teaspoon whole cloves
2 teaspoons fresh ginger, grated
10 whole black peppercorns (more for spicier tea)
1 scant teaspoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon orange peel, grated (fresh or dried)
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup black tea leaves
4 cups skim milk
1/4 cup honey

Method
Fill a saucepan or stock pot with 4 cups of water and add all of the spice ingredients except the tea leaves. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for 15 minutes (longer for stronger flavor). Add the tea leaves for the last five minutes.

Strain, add 4 cups milk, reheat for a minute and then add the sweetener. Makes about 8 cups of tea.

Spices!

One of the great things about having friends that travel interesting places is that they bring you foodie gifts from where they go! In this case I got some amazing spices from Africa, courtesy of a friend who studied abroad in Kenya and Tanzania! From the top going clockwise there are bay leaves, turmeric, cinnamon sticks, cloves, peppercorns, and vanilla beans. I am such a lucky girl, now I get to dream up what to do with them!

Suggestions?

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas (and Happy Hanukkah)! May you and your families have a joyous holiday filled with togetherness and (of course) delicious food and drink!

Also, I have a preview for you! Here are all the recipes I have laying in wait to be blogged about:

Panettone

Meatballs

Chicken liver pate

Torta mil hojas (an amazing Chilean cake)

So, lots to look forward to here at Kitchen Life, hope to see you here in the New Year!

Quirky Product

Instant Success is a brand of yeast I encountered in a Chilean grocery store. I’m sure it does glorious things to bread, but I got dreaming about how amazing my life could be if it were actually instant success.

Pomegranate Dreams

If I were in the Northern Hemisphere right now (T-minus 4 weeks and counting!) I would be thoroughly enjoying the beginning of pomegranate season. Alas, I am stuck in 90 degree heat, so allow me to leave you with these gems that fuel my dreams, as taken last winter break.

::swoon::

Be still my beating heart, you will be reunited with your pomegranate loves soon!

Hello world!

Welcome to the newest food blog on the block! I’m a 20 year old college student who is currently studying abroad in Santiago, Chile but will be back stateside in December and back to her beloved Portland, OR in early January. Until then posts will be a little sparse, but I will use this blog to chronicle my trials, tribulations, triumphs, etc, in the kitchen (and sometimes out as well, food related of course).