Salted Caramel Chai Tea Latte

Salted caramel tastes delicious all year round, but I find that it works its way into more drinks as the days get shorter and the weather gets cooler. When we’re cold, having a cup of something warm and comforting to drink is a great way to treat yourself – and caramel is always a treat. There are lots of salted caramel coffee drinks out there, but you don’t see it paired with tea quite as often. The smooth, buttery sweetness of caramel is a great match for many different kinds of tea and it makes an amazing Salted Caramel Chai Tea Latte.

This easy to make tea drink uses prepared salted caramel sauce as its main sweetener. I used a salted caramel sauce from Trader Joe’s, but there are many brands out there to choose from these days. The important thing, when choosing a caramel sauce, is that you pick one with high quality ingredients (real sugar, vanilla, salt and milk/cream/butter), since quality ingredients are going to give you a better tasting caramel. To make the drink, simply brew up a strong cup of your favorite chai tea and stir in a couple of tablespoons of caramel sauce. The salt in the caramel is going to keep the drink from tasting too sweet, so you’ll taste more of the buttery richness of the sauce than its sweetness. It’s a great way to tame the spice in some more aggressive chai teas. I topped mine with a little bit of steamed milk, but there is no reason that you couldn’t dress up this drink with a dollop of whipped cream, if you wanted to make it a bit more indulgent!

Salted Caramel Chai Tea Latte
8-oz strong chai tea, hot
2 1/2 tbsp salted caramel sauce
2 tsp sugar (optional)
3-oz steamed milk

Combine hot tea and caramel sauce in a large mug, and stir to dissolve caramel. If salted caramel is not available, use regular caramel sauce and add in a small pinch of salt. Steam milk, or heat it in the microwave and whisk until very frothy, and pour it into the sweetened tea. Serve immediately.

Makes 1.