When we got a note from One Stripe Chai Co.’s founder, Farah, in our inbox we knew we’d found a kindred spirit. Immediately we hopped on a call full of laughter and stories about how we all love pairing puzzles and tea time, and thus our dream collaboration was born. Below she shares a recipe for a “from scratch” Chai blend, in case of emergency if your bag of Gulab City runs out. – Echo + Tre

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As suspected, there's nothing more comforting for me than a cup of chai. It’s one of those drinks where the recipes are endless, and they can be different from home to home, region to region, and family to family. A simple chai I love to make at home uses a masala (mix of spices) of just cardamom, clove and ginger. It's delicious, and fills your entire body with warmth and joy! — Farah Jesani

Masala Chai

Use a mortar and pestle to slightly crush the cardamom pods and cloves.

Add crushed spices, grated ginger, and water to a saucepan and bring to a boil.

After 2 minutes, add black tea and bring back to a boil for 5 minutes.

Add milk and bring back to almost a full boil. Be very careful to make sure the chai does not boil over! Allow it to get close to boiling over, but turn the heat down as soon as it gets close. Don’t take your eyes off the pot! Stir once or twice to make sure the ingredients are moving around.

Allow the chai to come almost to a boil one more time and then reduce the
heat to low.

Add sweetener and give it all a good mix.

Strain through a fine mesh strainer directly into your mug.

Enjoy!