Chai-Pistachio Muffins

I love tea; any flavor, blend, color, loose or bagged. I especially love Chai tea. I came across a recipe for a Chai cupcake and tried it last summer. I absolutely loved it. When I spied this muffin recipe, I had to try it. This recipe comes from the May 2011 edition of Cooking Light. I found that I substituted some things when I made this recipe the first time and I used a chai concentrate blend instead of opening up some tea bags. The muffins were delicious so I figured I post the original recipe for you to try.

Family Secrets Bakery will be closed from Feb. 17 until Feb. 26 so if you place an online order, it won't be processed until Feb. 27, the earliest. It also means there won't be any postings of recipes later this week or the next. Maybe I'll come back from Honduras with some new ideas or recipes to pass along to you.  Enjoy this recipe, I sure did.

Ingredients: 1.75 c flour, .5 c brown sugar (packed), 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda, 1/4 tsp salt, 2 chai blend* tea bags, opened, 1 c buttermilk, 1/4 c butter, melted, 1.5 tsp vanilla extract, 1 large egg, lightly beaten, cooking spray, 1/3 c shelled dry-roasted pistachios, chopped, 1/2 c powdered sugar, 1 TBSP water

Instructions: (1) Preheat oven to 375 and prepare a 12-c muffin pan with liners or with cooking spray. If using liners, spray the liners with cooking spray. (2) Spoon flour into measuring cups and level with knife. Combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl and whisk to blend. Add tea to flour mixture and stir well. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. (3) Combine buttermilk, butter, 1 tsp vanilla, and egg in a bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Add buttermilk mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until moist. (4) Divide batter evenly among prepared muffing cups. Sprinkle with nuts evenly over batter. Bake for 15 minutes or until tops are golden brown and toothpick comes out clean. Cool for a few minutes before transferring to wire rack. (5) Combine remaining .5 tsp vanilla, powdered sugar, and 1 TBSP water in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Drizzle evenly over muffins.

*Twinings and Tazo have a nice Chai tea and can be purchased in most supermarkets. I like to get a loose-leaf chai from a local tea shop along with other loose-leaf teas.