Chai Tea ....... Spicy Chai Molasses Cookies

                       

Chai Tea and Spicy Soft And Chewy Chai Molasses Cookies

Chai Tea

Make a cup or make a large amount.  The spices can be a personal taste or as suggested.  The milk you add can be nut milk or dairy.

I especially love the green cardamom pods. So here is a starting point for you but feel free to improvise and fine-tune to your own taste.

Suggested Ingredients:

These are the chai spices used the most in India:  

Fresh ginger
Cardamom pods

Whole cloves
Peppercorns
Star anise
Cinnamon stick

Directions:

Combine spices in amount you choose.   With a mortar and pestle crush the spices.  Place in 1 cup water and gently simmer to infuse flavors for 5 minutes.  Add the tea.  Then immediately turn off the heat and let it steep for 10 minutes.  Boiling the tea will make it bitter, so just bring it to a boil, then turn the heat off.  

The next component of Masala Chai is the sweetener. Sugar is typically used. I prefer sweetening Masala Chia with maple syrup or honey instead of sugar. But any sugar, or sugar alternative will work here.  Sweeten to your own taste.  For a large 8-ounce serving, I use about 2-3 teaspoons of maple syrup – to balance the spices and black tea. Perhaps this seems a bit much, but to me it tastes perfect.
Find your own balance 😉 If it tastes overly bitter, it needs more sweetener.

To Serve: Strain and serve.  It is very typical to serve chai in a glass, leaving some room at the top to hold the glass. But a cozy mug is perfect too.

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Spicy Soft And Chewy Chai Molasses Cookies

Spicy Chai Molasses Cookies are soft and chewy on the inside, crispy on the outside! Seasoned with chai spices, these take old-fashioned Molasses Cookies to another level. These require 2 hours refrigeration time.

Ingredients: 

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature ( don’t melt, let it come to room temp naturally)
2/3 cups granulated (white) sugar
2/3 cups packed brown sugar
1 extra large egg
1/3 cup molasses
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups (370 grams) of all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
3 teaspoons baking soda
3 teaspoons ground ginger, plus 1 for more spicy
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon cardamon
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon salt
Coarse sugar for rolling

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350*F
Cream butter and sugars together in a stand mixer or large bowl. Whip until light and fluffy. Add egg, molasses and vanilla, and whip until combined.

Whisk flour, baking soda, and ginger, cinnamon, cardamon, cloves, nutmeg, pepper and salt together in medium bowl, whisk until well combined. If you can weigh the flour, do so, otherwise fluff up the flour with a fork, before measuring.

Gradually add flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix well. Refrigerate 2 hours or overnight, so you can easily roll them into balls.

Roll into small, 1 inch wide, walnut-sized balls and coat all sides with coarse sugar or turbanado sugar.

Place on a parchment-lined sheet pan, 3 inches apart. ( Or use a silpat!)

Bake 8-12 minutes, until edges crisp and tops, begin cracking. They will puff up a bit, then flatten out, and this is what creates the beautiful crackling. Cool on a wire rack. They will crack more as they cool.

Soft and chewy with crispy edges, to me, the perfect cookie!
Notes
Use naturally softened butter- don’t melt. Weigh the flour if you can. Dough will freeze for future baking.