Homemade Chai Concentrate

I can weave the story of chai through much of my life, a flavor that has reappeared in new ways every few years as I've grown older. In high school, before the magic of coffee entered my life, sweet chai concentrate from the box was definitely my number one source of caffeine. In college, after traveling to India with a Tibetan Buddhism class and drinking chai day in and day out, I regularly made the simplest form of chai - sweetened milky black tea steeped with cardamom - just as the sweet man in a little hole in the wall chai shop taught me. 

These days, I am entering a new realm of chai which involves my own homemade version of that stickily sweet boxed chai concentrate - packed with ginger and cardamom, and only lightly sweetened! Having this simple 30 minute chai concentrate in the fridge means that chai is always one quick step away, and for that I'll never be sorry. Daylight savings time has arrived, meaning it got dark before 5pm today... warming my world with a little chai seems like the perfect way to welcome the quickly approaching winter season. 

So this Sunday morning, my sweetie and I sat down to big old mugs of warm chai (and I recruited him to be my model - he's hardly ever home when I'm shooting recipes, and it's so nice to have someone in the images!). This time around, we used homemade hazelnut milk made with hazelnuts from the sweet vendors at our neighborhood farmers market. If you haven't ever made your own nut milk before, it is incredibly easy! Just blend the nuts of your choice with some water and strain through a nut milk bag or a fine dishtowel. Search online to get the best ratios for each nut, though in my experience winging it usually works! 

The best thing about making your own chai concentrate? You can personalize it to your tastes! Consider this recipe a blueprint - somewhere to start. The spices can be altered to suit your tastes, and the sugar can be adjusted to your preferred sweetness level! 

Homemade Chai 

Making the Concentrate: 

5 cups water

1/2 cup sugar

3in piece of ginger, thinly sliced 

1 Tbsp cardamom seeds (more if you're using pods) 

1 tsp whole peppercorns 

1 tsp whole cloves

3 whole star anise

1 tsp whole allspice 

1 cinnamon stick

5 bags / 2 Tbsp black tea

2 tsp vanilla

• Combine water, sugar, and spices (everything but the tea!) in a saucepan and bring to a boil. 
• Lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat. 
• Add tea and let steep off of the heat for about 8 minutes. 
• Strain the concentrate with a fine sieve if using tea bags and a coffee filter if using loose tea. Stir in vanilla. Store in the refrigerator. 

Making the Chai: 

Hot Chai: In a small saucepan, combine chai concentrate with the milk of your choice, using about a 1:1 ratio. Slowly heat over medium until it just barely begins to simmer, stirring occasionally. If you want to give it a little froth, blend on high in a blender for about 30 seconds. 

Cold Chai: Combine chai concentrate with the milk of your choice, using about a 1:1 ratio. Pour over ice and enjoy! 

Salted Caramel Dip, two ways

As a self-proclaimed sugar-fiend, caramel is one of my biggest downfalls. Something about that nutty creamy perfection makes it very hard for me to stop myself... despite knowing full well the amount of sugar, butter, and cream that went into making it. Once the jar is out of the fridge, I can eat it by the spoonful. To make matters worse, I've perfected not one, but two ways to make this goodness!

The first is a classic method that starts by melting and caramelizing white sugar (I like to use baker's sugar which is finer, making the sugar less likely to burn before it's all fully melted). It really isn't very hard, but it can be intimidating and burns quickly if not carefully watched.

The second method uses brown sugar to imitate the nutty flavor of caramelized sugar, and is 100% foolproof. While the classic method definitely makes a superior caramel, this one is still completely crave-worthy and has that added benefit of being easier than easy. 

You may have seen my caramel recipes before as I love to incorporate this favorite of mine into recipes (drizzled on apple cake or tucked into brownie ice cream sandwiches), but today we're focusing on caramel as a dip for fall's fresh crisp apples. 

This is definitely my favorite season for caramel! 

When I was a kid, I always begged my mom to buy the caramel dip grocery stores so geniusly placed alongside the apples in the produce section. It was my favorite treat in the fall. So when I first learned to make my own caramel at home, I knew countless batches would find themselves atop apple slices. Caramel and apples just go, ya know. While there is something magical about caramel apples, I'll never get over my love for the simplicity of dipping. 

Plus... doing a photo shoot for this recipe basically meant sitting around all morning eating caramel dipped apples. Thank you food blogger life! 

Classic Caramel Dip 

1 cup cane sugar (I like to use baker's sugar)

3oz / 6 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into cubes 

1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp heavy cream 

2 tsp coarse sea salt 

• First, put your sugar in a heavy bottomed saucepan. I love to use my calphalon chef's pan for this, the even heating is really helpful. Heat the sugar over medium heat until it has fully melted, being careful not to burn it. the trickiest part here is not over or under stirring it. Stirring too much causes the sugar to clump and makes it hard to melt it fully, stirring to little causes it to burn. I like to swirl the pan occasionally to keep the sugar moving. if you're nervous, you're better off over-stirring as you can strain out any clumps at the end of the process. 
• you're ready for the next step when the sugar is completely melted (or melted with a few clumps remaining from your stirring), and smells a little nutty, but not burnt. if it does burn slightly, it isn't a big deal. burnt caramel is a popular flavor for a reason, and it's all great practice!
• Add the butter and whisk constantly until it starts to combine, keeping the heat on while you do this. Once it starts to combine with the sugar, pour in the cream and continue whisking until totally combined. Let the caramel bubble for about 30 seconds once combined, then remove from heat. 
• Strain the caramel through a fine mesh sieve to remove any sugar clumps. I usually do this directly into a glass jar for storage. Stir in the salt, and let cool completely before using. 

Foolproof Brown Sugar Caramel

1 cup brown sugar

4 Tbsp unsalted butter

1/2 cup heavy cream

a few pinches of sea salt  

• Combine sugar, butter, and cream in a small saucepan over medium heat and whisk to combine as the butter melts. 
• Continue stirring and cooking until the mixture starts to boil lightly. Let it boil for a few minutes, stirring constantly. 
• Remove from heat and stir in the salt. Pour into a glass container, and let cool completely before using. 

Banana Coconut Cashew Popsicles

Have you ever had chocolate-dipped frozen bananas? When I lived in Ecuador, you could buy them for the out-of-control tiny price of 10 cents in the banana growing regions of the country, and I very very quickly fell in love. If you haven't had them before, this is the time to try it out! 

This time around, I decided that it was time to dress up the simple chocolate covered frozen banana into a popsicle and these are what I settled on. With rich, creamy coconut milk, vanilla, and a coating of cashews, these popsicles and a perfectly creamy take on those classic bananas with a nice exterior crunch. 

While making these beauties, I kept the melted chocolate off my clothes with my Nomadic Wares apron. My friend Andrew (ironically, from my time in Ecuador where I fell in love with frozen chocolate banana treats) makes these aprons by hand with incredible fabrics for a durable, functional, and beautiful apron that treats me well at home and in professional kitchens. 

I'll leave it to that! It's summer, we're all busy, and it's time to start making some popsicles. Get these sweeties in the freezer so you can go have fun (and know there's a cold treat waiting for you when you return)! 

Banana Coconut Cashew Popsicles 

makes about 8 medium popsicles, depending on your popsicle mold size

3 very ripe bananas 

1/2 tsp vanilla 

14oz can of coconut milk 

2 Tbsp honey (optional or to taste) 

10oz chocolate

1/2 cup cashews, chopped

• In a blender, combine bananas, vanilla, coconut cream, and honey (if using). Puree until the mixture is smooth. 
• Pour the mixture into popsicle molds, insert the popsicle sticks, and put into the freezer. 
• Once the popsicles are frozen (I just wait until the next day, to be sure they're solid), melt the chocolate in a double boiler, or a heatproof bowl over a pot with a little water in the bottom. 
• When the chocolate is melted, remove the popsicles from the freezer (as few at a time as possible!). Quickly cover each one in as thin a layer of chocolate as possible and roll in the chopped cashews. 
• Place the popsicles on a baking sheet, and return to the freezer until the chocolate has hardened. Transfer into an airtight bag or container for storage.