Hazelnut Iced Chai Latte {Dairy-Free}
A naturally sweetened chai tea concentrate, with tons of spicy flavor, blends perfectly with homemade hazelnut milk. Adapted from Gimme Some Oven's Homemade Chai Tea and OhSheGlow's Coffeeshop Worthy Caramel Vanilla Hazelnut Milk.
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 242kcal
Ingredients
Chai Tea
- 3 cups water
- 8 white peppercorns
- 8 whole cloves
- 8 cardamom pods (slightly crushed)
- 4 cinnamon sticks
- 3 star anise
- 3 black tea bags (I used English breakfast)
Hazelnut Milk
- 2/3 cup hazelnuts
- 1/3 cup cashews or almonds (both are good!)
- 4-8 small dates (I used 4, but it wasn't very sweet. Add more if you like your drinks sweet.)
- 1 teaspoon alcohol free vanilla
- pinch of sea salt
Instructions
Chai Tea
- Add all the spices to a sauce pan with 3 cups of water. Bring to a low boil, then reduce and let simmer for 5 minutes.
- Turn heat off, and add tea bags. Let steep for 3 minutes, then discard.
- Remove the spices from the tea, and let cool.
Hazelnut Milk
- Soak the nuts and pitted dates in water in the fridge overnight.
- Rinse and drain the nuts and dates, and add them to a blender with 1 cup of water. Process until the nuts are broken down, for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the other 2 cups of water, plus the sea salt and vanilla. Process for another minute.
- Pour the milk through cheesecloth (I use a thin cloth bag that hooks around the edge of a pitcher), and let the milk drain through.
- Squeeze as much liquid out of the nut pulp as possible.
Iced Chai Latte
- Mix the hazelnut milk and chai tea together over ice. I prefer about 1 part tea to 2 parts hazelnut milk, but it's a preference!
Notes
Both hazelnut milk and chai tea can be bought prepared at the store.
If you'd prefer to buy hazelnut milk, sweeten the tea with dates. After you've removed the tea bags, add the dates into the tea to soften. Put the dates and ½ cup of tea into a blender and process until smooth. Strain through cheesecloth to remove any pieces of skin left.
If you'd prefer to buy chai tea bags, you can brew the tea, let it cool, and pour it over ice with homemade hazelnut milk.
The spices are suggestions, and the ones I like the best. I tried it with a bit of fresh ginger, and thought the flavor was overwhelming. If you only have a few of the spices, it's okay- cinnamon is the key player here! It will still turn out well.
Look for whole spices at a store like Whole Foods that sells spices in bulk.
Nutrition
Calories: 242kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 12mg | Potassium: 337mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 120mg | Iron: 3mg