Make Your Own Chai Latte Mix!

I am cheap.

Well, there are some things I am less cheap about (Like paying for race fees or running shoes), but in general, I don't like to spend a lot of money on "extra" things. I often feel like I'm getting ripped off when I buy convenience or gourmet things, because I think to myself, "I could make this." (I think part of the cheapness comes from the early years of being a housewife, when we truly had NO money. My friend Aimee- also a housewife- and I often refer to this time as the "time when we didn't have enough money to buy trash bags")

Such is the case with the recipe for this mix. Really, with all of the recipe collection sites, and people blogging their tried-and-true recipes, you can make nearly anything yourself!

This makes a great gift- I made it for Christmas this last year- but we love having it in the afternoon, or in the morning instead of coffee!

Here's what you need to make a batch:

• 1 cup nonfat dry milk powder
• 1 cup powdered non-dairy creamer
• 1 cup French vanilla flavored powdered non-dairy creamer
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened  instant tea
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground cloves
• 1 tsp ground cardamom (If you've never bought cardamom before, it is EXPENSIVE, so just be prepared. I paid $13 for a jar. My friend Kim said you can buy cardamom pods at Asian markets and grind them in a coffee grinder. I will totally do this next time. Or, if you have a friend who bakes a lot, ask her to have a tsp of her cardamom, and tell her you'll give her some tea!)

Dump everything into a huge bowl and stir it with a whisk until it's all blended. The recipe said to blend it in a blender, but that seemed like a hassle to me, and it turned out AWESOME. So I say that isn't necessary. To make a Chai Latte, stir 2 Tb of the mix into 8 oz boiling water. 

This recipe made enough for 6 gift-sized Ziploc containers, or a big huge container for our family to use.

I got this recipe from allrecipes.