DIY tea-scented heat bag

Heat bags can be easily made with rice or corn, and their dry heat provides comfort and relief for sore muscles. You can add flowers, herbs or essential oils and enjoy an aromatherapeutical experience too! This is why we thought of using Wild Rose, a blend of White Peony and pink rosebuds: the gorgeous scent of rose has calming and uplifting properties!

You’ll need a soft cotton fabric for the inside pouch. Fill it with the rice and Wild Rose and sew it closed. Don’t overfill it, as it should mold itself around your body. We also made a removable cover using felt. The removable cover can be made and decorated with any material you like, as it won’t go in the microwave.

To use your heat bag, microwave the inside pouch for one minute. Make sure that you put a cup of water next to it to add moisture, and do not microwave any other fabrics that aren’t cotton. Do not overheat and don’t leave it unattended. Before you place it on your skin, check that the temperature is OK. Enjoy!

P.S. We love it with Spice Chai too!

Spice Chai Hot Chocolate

Hot chocolate and Chai Latte are arguably the ultimate comfort drinks, each in their own way. For these winter days in which choosing just one seems almost impossible, this drink should be the perfect solution. Combining the richness of hot chocolate and the sumptuous flavour of Ayurvedic spices, this creamy hug-in-a-cup couldn’t be more satisfying.

Ingredients:

• 4 hot chocolate buttons
• Hot water
• 225ml milk
• 1 tsp Lahloo Spice Chai

 

Prepare some cold infused Chai milk, using 2 teaspoons of Spice Chai per half a litre. After at least four hours (depending how strong you like it), strain the tea out.

To prepare the hot chocolate, place four chocolate buttons in a mug and pour hot water to cover them until they start to melt. Remove the water and stir. Add hot Chai infused milk  to cover and keep stirring until the chocolate melts. Top up with more Chai milk and grate some chocolate on top. Garnish with a cinnamon stick.

Spice Chai and pear loaf

The warming blend of Chai spices suits well the autumn weather, and when it gets darker and colder outside we can’t help but feeling like baking all the time! Emily, the head chef at Lahloo Pantry, has shared this Spice Chai and pear loaf recipe with us.  With a moist texture that oozes autumnal flavours, it’s easy to understand why it’s being a huge sucess at the Pantry!

Ingredients:

Pear topping:

• 1 pear
• 1.5 tbsp Lahloo Spice Chai
• ¾ cup sugar
• ¼ cup water

Loaf:

• 265g butter
• 265 caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp mixed spice
• 265g plain flour
• 1.5 tsp baking powder
• 115ml full fat milk

For the topping:
Peel and slice the pear and combine with Spice Chai, sugar, and water. cooking down in a saucepan. Save the sugar syrup to moisten the cake and line the bottom of the loaf tin with the fruit.

For the loaf:
Beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add in the eggs individually. Combine all dry ingredients and add, then slowly pour in the milk.  Pour into the loaf tin on top of the fruit and bake for 20 minutes at 170c. Cover and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes. Once cooled, remove from the tin. Trim top and flip over so fruit is on top. Poke with a knife and drizzle with sugar syrup.

Our tip: try using apple instead of pear. Have it with a cup of Spice Chai! 

 

 

Spice Chai and Pumpkin Crème Brûlée

Nothing says autumn like pumpkin spice! Our favourite spice blend here at Lahloo is chai spice. One of the pleasures of autumn is drinking a cup of the warming, comforting and invigorating Spice Chai by the fireplace -but it’s even better when you have something sweet to go with it! This recipe has it all: the warm, incredibly comforting flavour of our famous Spice Chai, the seasonal flavour of pumpkin and the creaminess and sweetness of a classic dessert. Ingredients

• 330ml double cream
• 20g pumpkin puree
• 1 inch of ginger julieved
• 1 vanilla pods
• 6 egg yolks
• 50g caster sugar
• chopped pistachios
• granulated sugar for brulee

Heat the cream in a saucepan, but don’t let it boil. Make sure it doesn’t burn. Remove from heat and add the spices and tea. Cover it with cling film and allow it to infuse for a few hours, or preferably overnight.

Sieve out the tea and spices and put the cream back on the heat. Whisk together the egg yolks and sugar, then pour the boiling cream and the pumpkin puree into the mixture and whisk. Place it back onto a low heat. Whisk constantly until the custard reaches ribbon stage. Immediately remove it from heat, pour into a cold bowl and continue to whisk for 3-5 mins until it has slightly cooled.

Pour into ramekins and refrigerate.

Just before serving, sprinkle sugar evenly over the surface of each crème brûlée, then caramelise using chefs’ blow-torch.