Molasses Chai Spiced Bread

The combination of sweet and sticky molasses with the warm, comforting blend of homemade chai is a match made in holiday heaven! This bread is spiced with chai and baked to perfection. Topped with a thick layer of chai-infused glaze, this bread deserves nothing less than a quiet afternoon and a cup of hot tea!

Chai can include several different spices. Cardamom is the most common ingredient, followed by some mixture of cinnamon, ginger, cloves, etc. Sometimes, ground black pepper, coriander, and fennel are also used, but they are slightly less common. In North America, chai is most commonly known as a flavoured tea – most likely thanks to the popularity of Starbucks. This Molasses Chai Spiced Bread recipe uses the North American version of chai.

This bread could not have come at a better time. It’s cold outside which makes me crave comforting, warming treats like this. Sometime earlier this year, I started to really appreciate the comforting feeling of a hot cup of tea in the afternoon. Even during the summer months, I would enjoy a cup of tea, but not as often. Now that the colder weather has settled in to stay for a while, I’m back to it and I can’t imagine enjoying chai any other way. A hot cup of tea and a slice of Molasses Chai Spiced Bread is the perfect afternoon treat!

I’m going to tell you all about this recipe and how you can make it in your home this holiday season. But first, I want to tell you about what you can expect from Lord Byron’s Kitchen this Christmas. Over the past seven Christmases, I have built a reputation for sharing series-type recipes. The most popular would be my annual 24 Cookies of Christmas, which was fashioned after an advent calendar. But, I have others that are only 12 days, which were fashioned after the 12 Days of Christmas.

Before we get to a list of ingredients and instructions for today’s recipe, let me tell you about this series and more! Welcome, Dear Reader, to my second Christmas series this holiday season! I’m calling this series Lord Byron’s 12 Holiday Breads and Loaves.

Just like every other series that I’ve shared over the years, this one will also see a new recipe shared each day for the next 12 days – even on Saturday and Sunday! You might be asking yourself, how many Christmas recipes could one possibly have or need? Well, I say you can never have too much of a good thing. And, I love having lots of choices. Who wants to prepare the same holiday recipes year after year?

SUBSCRIBE NOW SO THAT YOU NEVER MISS OUT ON NEW RECIPES!

So, welcome, Dear Reader, to Lord Byron’s 12 Holiday Breads and Loaves Series! Even though this is the second series for this holiday season, you can always look back at previous years if you just cannot wait until the next recipe is published. Also, some of my favourite recipe collections from previous years are my 75 Homemade Gifts from Your Kitchen, my 50 Make Ahead Freezer Friendly Christmas Recipes, and my 30 No-Bake Christmas Recipes post.

You really don’t want to miss one of these recipes, so if you have not yet subscribed to Lord Byron’s Kitchen, I encourage you to do so. That way, a new recipe will be emailed to you every day. You won’t have to bother to come looking for it! Like in previous holiday recipe countdowns, I like to mix up the recipes in the series so that there is something for everyone. Are you ready!!??

INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO PREPARE THIS RECIPE

The following is a list of the ingredients needed to prepare this recipe. For exact amounts and measurements, refer to the printable recipe card located near the bottom of this post.

• Butter – Make sure your butter is at room temperature!
• Brown Sugar
• Eggs – Make sure the eggs are at room temperature.
• Molasses – When baking, the best molasses is fancy molasses.  Stay away from dark or blackstrap molasses unless instructed otherwise.  Fancy molasses is light molasses. 
• Flour – No need for anything special. Just use regular all-purpose flour. I have not tried this recipe with any other type of flour.
• Spices – You will need ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and nutmeg.
• Baking Soda
• Salt
• Water

HOW TO MAKE A MOLASSES CHAI SPICED BREAD

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside. Sift together the flour, ground cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves, allspice, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and incorporate into the mixture. Add the molasses and incorporate into the mixture. Set aside the batter. Add the baking soda to the boiling water and stir to dissolve. Beat 1/3 of the sifted flour mixture into the batter until just combined. Next, beat in 1/2 cup of the boiling water and baking soda mixture. Repeat with another 1/3 of the sifted flour, followed by the remaining boiling water, and finally, the last of the sifted flour.

Transfer the batter to the loaf pan. Tap the pan firmly on your countertop. Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool for 30 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack.

For the glaze, combine all of the ingredients into a bowl and whisk until smooth. Depending on your preference, you may add more or less milk for a thicker or thinner glaze. Spoon the glaze over the loaf and set it aside for 2-4 hours to firm before slicing.

MOLASSES 101

There are basically three types of molasses – light, dark, and blackstrap. If you boil cane sugar once, you will get light molasses. If you boil it twice, you’ll get dark molasses. So, boiling it three times must mean that you’ll get blackstrap molasses. Remember, the darker the molasses (blackstrap) the less sweet and more bitter it is.

Never use blackstrap molasses in a recipe unless instructed to do so by the author of the recipe. You can use light or dark without changing the taste drastically. There are also sulphured and unsulphured molasses. The difference between the two is that the sulphured molasses has been chemically treated with preservatives. Nearly 100% of the time, I use unsulphured light molasses.

SERVING YOUR LOAF

Here’s the thing about breads and loaves – they both come from humble beginnings. Even looking at it, you can tell that it isn’t pretty, it isn’t spectacular, and it surely isn’t show-stopping. But, that certainly doesn’t mean that your bread shouldn’t be served with style!

Like scones and biscuits, I think breads lend themselves quite well to what most people would call English Tea. I like to think of English Tea as an afternoon snack. And, afternoon snacks are terribly underrated! I like to partake whenever time permits. Hot coffee and a slice of this Molasses Chai Spiced Bread, or any other sweet treat, is a great break from the 9-5 routine.

With the cooler weather approaching, I can’t think of a better way to serve this bread than putting out a full set of tea. Sure, it might seem I have too much time on my hands, but life is short, folks – enjoy it! Take the tea set out of your cabinet, dust it off, and take a well-deserved afternoon break!

QUESTIONS?

If I have not answered all of your questions in the text above, don’t hesitate to reach out to me! You can contact me by sending me a message in the comments section further down the page. I will try my best to answer as soon as possible! You might reach me even faster by following me on Facebook and sending me a private message. Scroll down to follow me and never miss another recipe!