Chai Tea Bread

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This is a keeper. It was easy to make, didn’t take long, and tastes just wonderful, with a soft fluffy crumb and a mix of spices that come together beautifully and provides an array of flavors for your taste buds to savor. I did make a few changes, and I didn’t bother with the glaze; it’s perfect as is.

I was supposed to cream a half cup butter with with 3/4 cup sugar, but instead I used 1/4 cup butter and about 1/8 cup of low fat vanilla yogurt. It was probably just a little more than that. I was running out of cane sugar, so I used half a cup of that and a quarter cup of white.

sugars and butter and yogurt

creamed butter sugar yogurt

It looked okay, sort of, so I added the egg, the milk, and the vanilla, beating after each addition. (I was also killing time trying to cool the tea, which I forgot to brew beforehand.)

vanilla

And while I was doing that, and trying to get the tea to cool more quickly, Nathaniel took on the task of grating the nutmeg.

Nathaniel starts grating

Nathaniel concentrating

Nathaniel smiling

I added Nathaniel’s nutmeg, along with cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon. I used a little extra cinnamon, a full (but even) teaspoon instead of a half.

spices in bowl

And then it was time for the tea. I used Twinings English Breakfast tea, which I’ve been drinking since I was a teenager.

adding tea

Once all the wet ingredients were mixed, it was time for Juliet to step in. She’s a champion flour measurer these days.

Juliet measuring flour

Juliet doing her job

Juliet with flour

Serious business.

We added in the flour (whole wheat white), baking powder, and salt, then mixed, just until incorporated. I poured it into a loaf pan, then sprinkled a little bit of chai spice across the top.

batter in pan

The recipe said to bake for 50 minutes, but mine was done at around 40. It smelled great. I let it sit in the pan for ten minutes, then took it out.

This is the best thing I’ve made in a long time. The only problem with it is portion control, which goes out the window once you taste it.

CHAI TEA BREAD (original)

My version of Chai Tea Bread (adapted from Making Memories With Your Kids blog)

ingredients:

1/4 cup butter
1/8 cup low fat vanilla yogurt (plain yogurt would be fine too)
3/4 cup cane or white sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/3 cup milk
1/2 cup prepared Twinings English Breakfast tea, cooled
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon cloves
3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups whole wheat white flour
Chai Spice Blend (optional; use a pre-prepared one or make your own)

directions:

Brew the tea, to give it time to cool. Heat oven to 350 degrees, and grease or spray a loaf pan.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter, sugar, and yogurt. Add in the eggs, beating after each one, then the milk and vanilla. Beat on low to medium speed. Pour in the tea, and beat, then add in the spices. Mix.

Add in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix just until incorporated.

Pour into a loaf pan. If you like, sprinkle the top with some more chai spice. Bake for 40-50 minutes. Let cool in the pan for another ten minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

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