A Snow Day Favorite: Chocolate Chai Latte Mix

 

Spiced Tea Mix has been a wintertime staple most of my life. It's definitely a product of the 1960s: Among the ingredients is Tang, the orange drink that was advertised as the drink of astronauts to us kids watching Major Astro after school in the 1960s. 

My mom had a jar of homemade Spiced Tea Mix in our kitchen Lazy Susan, and we often warmed up with a steaming mug of the tea mix, fragrant with warming spices. I usually make a large recipe of mix near Christmastime and put some in my own cabinet, as well as filling jars for Christmas gifts. Brent always gets some in his Christmas stocking.

Hot chocolate mix was another popular mix during my childhood. This year, before Christmas, I saw a recipe for Chocolate Chai Latte Mix. It was intriguing enough that I decided to give it a try. I made some and liked it well enough that I also made extra batches to give away in gift bags this holiday season.

It has some similar ingredients to a hot cocoa mix, but it also includes instant tea and several spices, including cardamom. I had some cardamom in my cabinet, but it's not a spice I use frequently. So I bought a new jar before trying out the mix.

Wednesday's snowy day had me pulling the jar from the cabinet for a tasty warm-up.  Even though it's great on its own, I've also used the Chai Latte mix to flavor my coffee. That's tasty, too!

 

Chocolate Chai Latte Mix

From The Kitchen Is My Playground Blog

1 c. nonfat dry milk powder
1 c. powdered nondairy creamer

1 c. French vanilla powdered nondairy creamer

1 1/2 c. granulated sugar
1 1/2 c.unsweetened instant tea 

1/2 c. unsweetened baking cocoa powder
2 & 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
2 & 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 & 1/8 tsp. ground cardamom

1 & 1/8 tsp. ground cloves

In a food processor, combine all ingredients; cover and process until powdery. Store in an airtight container in a cool dry place for up to about 6 months. 

 

To prepare 1 serving: Dissolve 3 T. of mix in 1 cup boiling water; stir well. Add more or less to taste.

Spiced Tea Mix

I start my day with coffee - and lots of it. I'm not sure whether the raging headache I had early this week was a side effect of a pesky 24-hour stomach virus or caffeine withdrawal, since coffee didn't have its usual appeal. Maybe it was a bit of both.

But, on these cold afternoons and evenings, I switch to other hot drinks. Among my favorites is Spiced Tea. It's a concoction I've been drinking since I was a child.

My Mom used to concoct the mix each winter. When I'd get home from school, I'd go to the Lazy Susan and spin it until the glass jar of mix was revealed. A little hot water and a little mix: Pure perfection on a cold winter day.

The recipe is from an old Byers United Methodist Church Cookbook, where the names attached to the recipes provide a flashback to the ladies who sat in the church pews each week. My cookbook is literally held together with a rubber band. Through the years, I've multiplied the recipe so I would use a whole jar of Tang and lemon-flavored tea.

My mom used to share the mix as gifts for teachers and other special people during the holidays. This year, I included some in my grab bag gift for the Moore family Christmas for a touch of nostalgia. I also poured some in a decorative tin and sent it to my Christmas in the Country pal. Sometimes, decorated jars have a place on the goody sale table at our annual church bazaar.

Cinnamon and cloves are the fragrances of wintertime. It's the perfect beverage to drink while burrowing under a fleece blanket reading a book and trying to forget there's snow on the ground and a north wind blowing. Enjoy!

Spiced Tea

From the Byers United Methodist Church Cookbook

1 jar Tang (19.7 oz.)
1 jar lemon-flavored instant tea (4.4 oz.)
5 1/4 cups sugar (or equivalent amount of sugar substitute)
4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground cloves

Mix all together in large bowl. Store in covered jars. Use 3 heaping teaspoons full per mug of hot water (or more or less to taste).

Note:  The ounces in Tang and tea change throughout the years, but it's not like baking a cake. This mix isn't an exact science.