Venting Gets Me Good
Posted by terrepruitt on January 31, 2013
I go to Starbucks when I have a gift card. I like Starbucks Chai Tea Lattes. When I first started getting them they were almost too spicy for me. Then they seemed to change a bit. They got less flavorful. Then one time I got one at a store I don’t normally frequent and I thought my teeth were going to fall out. It was soooooo sweet. Yes, I know that the fancy drinks at Starbucks and other coffee houses are a huge source of sugar. That is ONE reason why I don’t buy them. I DO have them on occasion when I am blessed with receiving a gift card. To me they are a nice treat. But this one hurt my teeth and my stomach. I chalked it up to this store making them different. But then I went to the store I usually go to and it was the same thing. Ugh. I posted a Facebook status asking if they had changed their recipe. I know places and manufacturers do that all the time. One of the responses I received was to make my own Chai. The response even included the recipe.
A few days after that I was in the grocery store and I actually remembered while I was in the spice aisle that I needed cardamom to make the chai. I looked and looked and when I finally found it I almost choked. It was $12.99. I didn’t realize it was that expensive.
So, again, I posted on Facebook, I said that I would stick to using my gift cards at Starbucks instead of spend $13.00. And again the replies were awesome. People near and far reminded me that I live in an area rich with many cultures and that I could find cardamom at Indian Spice stores. The major benefits to that would be that it would be cheaper and more than likely better.
But before I could remember to get to a store one of my amazing friends brought me a little box of it. She is awesome like that. She frequents an affordable spice shop so she picked me up some.
Here is the recipe that Danielle Woermann (a Nia Black Belt) posted for me on Facebook. I am unaware of where she got it.
Masala Chai. Serves four.
Boil 3 cups (.7 liters) of water with
4 cloves
2 pinches ground nutmeg
2 pinches ground cinnamon
2 pinches ground cardamom
1/2 inch (1.27 cm) piece of grated fresh ginger
Add 2 tea bags (black, green, redbush, etc.) and simmer for 2 minutes. Add 1 cup (.2 liters) almond milk or milk of your choice, and heat until hot, but not boiling. Add sweetener of your choice. Serve and enjoy!
I decided to measure my “pinches” so that I could have a more accurate measure and adjust accordingly. I used an 1/8 of a teaspoon as a “pinch”. I think that I need to work on it a bit. Either the person doing the pinching who created this recipe has REALLY LARGE pinches or they like a more mellow tea. I think that this might be really good if I made it ahead of time and let all the flavors really seep into the water. The time that is stated in the recipe didn’t seem to do that. Also it does help if, when you are drinking it, you actually get some of the spices in your mouth . . . . which also makes for an oddly textured and a bit chewy tea. But I’m ok with that.
I think I might experiment with chopping the ginger. For some reason I don’t might little tiny chunks of fresh ginger as opposed to what came off my grater . . . . it was odd.
That is a GREAT thing about recipes though, right? I love to try them the way they are then adjust them to my tastes. Maybe this is one that you can make and enjoy — either adjusting or not.
Do you like Chai Tea? Do you have a recipe? Doesn’t this one sound yummy?
Terre Pruitt's Blog 
onmywaytohealth said
I work for Starbucks and I don’t like the Chai there either, or in general really. But if you do go to one in the future, you can always ask them to make it less sweet. A grande usually has 4 pumps of Chai in it. Try it with 3 or 2 and see if that’s better. Also, they dilute it with water and then add steamed milk. So it’s half water, half milk. It tastes 100 times better if you order it without water.
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terrepruitt said
Well, I went to a different store (a third one) . . . . and I actually asked and what SHE said was that it is supposed to be half water but sometimes people get “lazy and they don’t make it right”. She didn’t say anything about “pumps” (which someone else had mentioned). She said she would make it the way it was supposed to be made and I could taste it and then we could go from there. I was actually there to get a friend something and completely forgot about trying the tea BEFORE I left. So I took my order, jumped in my car, was sitting at a traffic light and realized I forgot to taste it before I left. It was ok. So I don’t know how many pumps it had, but I do know that it had water in it. It was better than the uber sweet ones I had gotten.
So if they don’t add water is it all milk and Chai pumps? I can see milk and 2 or 3 pumps sounding about right. I bet it was the four that was so icky!
I think my gift card is used up so it will be awhile before I go again. 🙂
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onmywaytohealth said
Yeah, if there is no water, it’s all Chai and milk.
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terrepruitt said
Thanks. Just wanted to clarify that. That sounds like the yummier version, but I was told the recipe was partly water. Maybe each store does it the way they learn their customers like it. 🙂
Thanks for the info. Now, I know what I am working with when I get back to a Starbucks. Also gives me ideas on this recipe!
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onmywaytohealth said
The recipe is partly water, we are supposed to make it with water unless the customer asks. All the drinks are customizable.
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terrepruitt said
See, I don’t go that often to know that much. Thanks for the info. Do you know what the sweetener is?
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onmywaytohealth said
It’s a Chai concentrate, it has black tea, spices and I think cane sugar? I don’t remember off the top of my head. I know the kind that Starbucks uses is organic though. Another option is to get a Chai Latte and ask for the tea bag instead, and that way, it’s unsweetned. Then you can add honey or agave to it, or plain sugar or artificial sugar. Starbucks now has Agave which I’m really excited about!!!!
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terrepruitt said
You are a wealth of information. Thank you so much. Lucky me you caught my blog post and can fill me in!!! Thanks!!
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onmywaytohealth said
Haha no problem!!!
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simonscotland said
It does indeed sound yummy. I may try to make it for Superbowl Sunday (or Monday morning as it is over here)
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terrepruitt said
Superbowl Monday! Ha! Whenever you make it I am sure you will enjoy it. It is yummy.
(And Hello, there, Simon!!!!)
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Angelia Sims said
Good for you! Now you can have Starbucks minus the sweet any old time. 🙂 My husband loves tea.
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terrepruitt said
Ha! Well, I still like som esweet just not THAT sweet. Plus I’ve got the scoop now!
And I love tea too!
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Chai Tea Latte For Me « Terre Pruitt's Blog said
[…] in my post Venting Gets Me Good I explain how my complaint about Starbucks’ Chai Tea Latte landed me a great Chai Tea recipe […]
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