MENU dorset issue 16 MENU16..dorset pdf issue 16 | Page 45

Jo Davies opened the
Gilded Teapot in 2010
and has been a tea
specialist for 10 years
CHAI TEA LOAF
Tea and cake is a match made in heaven. What better
way to enjoy them than with a warming, fragrant chai
tea loaf from the Gilded Teapot’s Jo Davies…
{
}
Chai has been enjoyed by tea drinkers for nearly 9,000
years, dating back to the ancient Indian royal court as
an ayurvedic infusion. It has developed through time
with the introduction of black tea cultivation to India in
the 1800s. The shout of the chai wallah is heard all over
India, as they serve their sweet, milky spiced chai in
small clay cups.
There are few things better than enjoying this freshly
baked, buttered slice of chai loaf still warm from the
oven with a good mug of tea.
Chai Tea Loaf
Ingredients Method
150g unsalted butter
50g walnuts
180g muscavado sugar
1 tbsp loose leaf chai tea
100g chopped stem ginger
1 tbsp stem ginger syrup
100g chopped dates
1/2 tsp salt
Pinch of cinnamon
Pinch of ginger
200g self-raising flour
2 lightly beaten eggs
TIP
Add an extra something to
your tea loaf. Try soaking
a handful of sultanas in
chai tea overnight before
baking and add them to
the mixture along with the
nuts, dates and ginger.
Pre-heat oven to 180°C / Gas Mark 4
1. Line a baking tray with baking paper and roast the walnuts in
the oven for 5 - 10 minutes.
2. While the walnuts are roasting, brew 1 tbsp of loose leaf chai in
100ml of just off-boiling water for 5 minutes, then strain into a small jug.
3. Leave the nuts to cool, then chop into small chunks.
4. In a mixing bowl, mix the butter and sugar together until fluffy.
5. Slowly add the tea to the butter and sugar, stirring well.
6. Add the eggs and mix (it might start looking a little wet and
lumpy, but don’t worry - forge ahead!).
7. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, a pinch of cinnamon, and a
pinch of ginger together.
8. Slowly add the flour to the chai mixture until smooth.
9. Add the chopped nuts, stem ginger, dates, and stem ginger
syrup.
10. Pour the mixture into a greased or lined loaf tin, and bake for
45 minutes to one hour until golden brown.
11. Leave to cool a little in the tin for 5-10 minutes.
www.menu-dorset.co.uk
45