Cleaver Coffee Chai Recipe
The inspiration for this drink...
I first went to India in my twenties and quickly got addicted to the wafting scent of freshly made chai served on street corners and eateries. I remember the coffee too – sweet and weak - it was a constant disappointment to my strong coffee loving boyfriend at the time! This is somewhere between the two; a sweetly spiced cleaver coffee drink, with a little caffeine and all the warming and uplifting benefits that spices bring.
As a forager I love to use locally growing weeds, find out all about this plant and where it grows in my blog about how to make cleaver coffee.
Sweetly Spiced Cleaver Chai recipe
Made from locally harvested, roasted and ground cleaver seeds and blended with Indian spices. A perfect pick-me-up in the afternoon or a sweet way to end a meal.
Serves 2
Ingredients
- 2-3 tbsp roasted and ground cleaver seeds
- 8 cardamom pods, crushed
- 6 cloves, crushed
- ½ a large cinnamon stick
- 4 cm piece of fresh ginger, chopped
- 600 ml water
- 200 ml milk of your choice, or water
- Honey to taste (optional)
Place the ground cleaver seeds and spices in a small saucepan and add the water and milk. You could add the milk later, if you prefer or not use at all.
Bring to the boil and simmer over a medium heat for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, cover and leave to sit for a further 5 minutes, strain and sweeten to taste.
Want to learn more?
I teach about cleaver seeds from late summer through to winter on my foraging courses. Fresh green cleavers are also one of my top 5 spring wild foods.
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Tags: Cleavers, coffee alternative, coffee-substitute, edible weeds, Galium aparine, goosegrass, wild coffee
[…] my Spiced Cleaver Coffee Chai recipe. If you prefer, omit the spices and just enjoy this as a mug of cleaver […]