Is it Fall yet?

It is no secret that I LOVE fall. In fact, since moving to California, I have become rather obsessed with it. I think it is because I am denied a proper fall season. Don't get me wrong, I love living where I live, but the main downside to being in such a temperate climate is that there are not really distinct seasons. Winter is simply a slightly cooler version of Summer. September and October in San Diego don't bring beautiful colors of gold, amber, and rust. I don't get to hear the crunch of dry leaves under my feet as I walk through the crisp, cold air. I don't smell the scent burning leaves or of an impending snow fall (those are real smells). It is just... the same.

Consequently, I try to create fall as much as possible in the land of eternal summer. My house pretty much looks like fall all year round (proof) and I love baking pumpkin type of things (my favorite) and I make my annual pilgrimage to Bates Nut Farm to pick out a pumpkin. I do what I can to convince myself it is fall when it clearly isn't. Some people would call that delusional... but I don't listen to those people.

Last week I was so badly wanting it to be fall that crocheted a hat (when am I ever going to wear a hat?!?) and I made homemade chai tea mix. The chai turned out perfectly, which is awesome since shelling out $3.50 for the drink at Starbucks is just lame and I don't do it very often. Chai is fall in a cup, I LOVE it. In fact, after I finish posting this blog I am going to make a cup and turn the fan on me so I get really cold and have to wrap up in a blanket. It WILL be fall, darn it! (Don't even get me started on Christmas in So Cal!)

Chai Tea Mix

Ingredients:

1 cup dry milk powder
1 cup powdered non-dairy creamer

1 cup french vanilla flavored powdered non-dairy creamer

2 1/2 cups vanilla sugar

1 1/2 cups instant black tea

2 tsp. ground ginger

2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. ground cloves

1 tsp. ground cardamom

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine milk powder, non-dairy creamer, vanilla flavored creamer, sugar and instant tea. Stir in ginger, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. In a blender or food processor, blend 1 cup at a time, until mixture is the consistency of fine powder.

To serve: Stir 2 heaping tablespoons of chai tea mixture into a mug of hot water.

Note:

To make vanilla sugar scrape the seeds out of a vanilla bean pod. Add the seeds and the scraped pod to 3-4 cups of sugar. Let sit for about a week, shaking mixture daily to infuse the vanilla flavor into the sugar.