Chai Spiced Gingerbread

I love chai in anything spiced, so when the mood to make gingerbread struck last week I thought I'd jazz them up a bit by chucking in some ground chai tea. It was delicious.

Chai Gingerbread Cookies

Recipe by Charis Mitchell

Makes 20 chewy/40 crisp cookies

For the cookies

3C plain flour

1/2tsp salt

1Tbsp ground ginger

1Tbsp ground cinnamon

2Tbsp ground chai tea (2 tea bags)

3/4C dark brown sugar

6Tbsp margarine 

4Tbsp aquafaba (water from a can of chickpeas)

1/4C molasses

1/4C golden syrup

For the icing

4C powdered sugar

squeeze of lemon juice

4-6Tbsp water

food colouring, optional

Preheat the oven to 200 and line two cookie sheets with baking paper. 

Cream together the margarine and sugar until smooth. Add the aquafaba, molasses and golden syrup and mix until everything is well incorporated. In a separate bowl combine the flour, salt, spices and chai tea. Gradually add the dry mixture to the wet and mix until the dough comes together.

Roll dough on a lightly floured surface into a large rectangle 1/4 inch thick (for thin, crisp cookies roll out thinner) and cut shapes out with cookie cutters. Place cookies on the baking trays (you don't need to leave much space between them as they don't spread) and bake for 8 minutes, until lightly golden. Leave to cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely while you make the icing.

In a small bowl mix together the powdered sugar, lemon juice and as much water as needed until you have a thick, smooth and glossy icing. Add food coloring if desired and then spread onto the cooled cookies.

Keep in an airtight container for up to a week or in the freezer for months.