Tea and Cakes for a Rainy Day

It's a rare cloudy day here in Colorado, so I thought I'd share my recipes for Chai tea and lemon bars. I've seen some key limes in the stores lately, and for 10 for $1 it's a great excuse to make something tasty! They are a pain in the ass to juice, but well worth it! Look for limes with thin skins that give when you squeeze them to maximize your juice yield.

Enjoy!

Marcie’s Yogi Tea (Chai)

1 Tbs Ground Cardamom
1 tsp Ground Cloves
1 or 2 inches of Cinnamon Stick
1 Tbs Fennel Seed
1 Tbs Fresh Ginger (peeled and grated)
Sugar or honey to taste (I use about ¼ C sugar, but I know others use upwards of a cup so really, to taste!)
2 Tbs Loose tea or about 6 tea bags (I use a Ceylon mix, so black)
2 Cups Milk (2%, or whatever you have)
1 Cup Water

Boil Everything together in a pot, simmering for about 5 minutes. Strain and pour into cups. Serves about 4, and will store well in the fridge for about a week- morning iced chai!


Grampa’s Lemon Bars

For Crust:
1 C Butter
½ C Powdered Sugar
½ tsp Salt
2 C Flour

For Filling:
4 Eggs
1 ¾ C Sugar
½ tsp Baking Powder
¼ C Flour
¼ C Lemon or Key Lime juice (some pulp okay)
Finely chopped/ grated zest from 1 lemon (~ 1 Tbs)

Preheat oven to 350

Cream the butter, powdered sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Add the flour and mix until combined. Press the dough into a 9”x13” brownie pan and poke holes all over it with a fork. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until just starting to get golden.

While the crust bakes, beat the eggs with a fork or a whisk, then add in the sugar, baking powder, flour, lemon, and lemon zest.

Pour the filling over the lightly golden crust and bake for another 20-25 minutes, until the topping is just firm.

Sift some powdered sugar on top and enjoy!