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Chewy Chai Sugar Cookies pack a flavor punch with a blend of chai-inspired spices. If you love chai, these are the cookies for you!
I feel like the older I get, the less interested I am in shopping inside actual stores.
You know with other humans, shopping carts and checkout lines?
Lately, I feel like I’ve been heavily relying on Instacart to do my grocery shopping. And every single time the little popup shows me how many hours I’ve saved by having them do my shopping just keeps me ordering allthethings from the app.
I do actually drive to pick up the groceries as opposed to having them delivered, so there’s that.
Don’t even get me started on Amazon Prime. Let’s just say I’m on a first name basis with pretty much every single delivery driver in my town.
Since we have so many deliveries at this time of year, I love to leave a little box on the porch full of snacks, water and Gatorade for the delivery drivers to enjoy on their route.
While I’d love to say I thought of this, I actually got the idea from Kristen at Dine and Dish about 4 years ago and it’s become one of our favorite holiday traditions.
This year, I’m thinking of packaging up homemade cookies to leave for them as well!
I mean, who wouldn’t love to get Peanut Butter Blossoms, Chocolate Chip Cookies, or these Chai Sugar Cookies during the holidays?
What are chai spices?
Have you ever had chai?
“Chai” literally means “tea” in Hindi. In India, chai isn’t just a type of tea…it is tea!
Here in America, chai refers to a spiced, milky black tea. The spices usually include green cardamom, ginger, cinnamon and black pepper. Sometimes other spices such as cloves or star anise are used as well.
I love chai and like to use chai spices to flavor all sorts of baked goods, such as Maple Chai Cinnamon Rolls, chai spiced granola, and Chai Spiced Candied Nuts.
Pretty much anything that would be good with cinnamon would be good with chai spices. I even have a recipe for Chai Spice Blend that you can mix and keep on hand any time you want to add some chai flavor to your recipes.
Chai-spiced sugar cookies
Since I know that chai spices are a great substitute for cinnamon, I was inspired by snickerdoodle cookies to see what might happen if I flavored a chewy sugar cookie dough with chai spices.
Spoiler: The result was amazing.
Cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, allspice and black pepper combine to create an incredibly aromatic spice blend that transforms a plain, chewy sugar cookie recipe into a complex and comforting cookie.
Bonus? Chai Sugar Cookies pair perfectly with a piping hot cup of tea.
Make a batch of Chai Sugar Cookies, steep a pot of tea, and curl up to watch some Christmas movies with your loved ones.
They would also be a great cookie to take to a holiday cookie exchange! They are the perfect combination of familiar and new, with their chewy texture and spicy flavor.
I think you’re going to love them.
Chai Spiced Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¾ cups white sugar
- 2 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon finely ground black pepper
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
- In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl combine sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, allspice and black pepper. Remove 1/4 cup of the sugar-spice mixture, set aside to reserve for rolling the cookies.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar-spice mixture until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Beat in egg and vanilla extract, combine until fully incorporated.
- Slowly blend in dry ingredients mixing until just combined.
- Using a small scoop (2 teaspoons) roll dough into balls and then into the reserved sugar-spice mixture. Place dough balls on prepared baking sheet about 1 1/2 inches apart.
- Bake in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes.
- Let stand on baking sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.
Notes
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
The first time I made these I got RAVE reviews from everyone. Since making them however I feel like every batch since has become drier and drier (and less chewy) The dough last batch was practically crumbs. Any suggestions on what I might be doing wrong or how to remedy this?
Anna-
That is really strange – I’ve made these cookies more times than I can count and I’ve never had this issue before, so I am quite perplexed. I’m sorry I am not more of a help.
-Jamie
I just made these cookies and the were awesome! I did make a few changes to the original recipe. I added a 1/4 teaspoon each of almond & orange extracts, replaced 1/4 cup of sugar with vanilla sugar and added a 1/4 teaspoon of cloves. The orange extract added a subtle citrus flavor just like some chai teas have.
I found these on Pinterest quite awhile ago & made them yesterday while the Super Bowl was on. Obviously, I could have cared less about the game, but hubby watched. I absolutely love Starbucks chai tea latte, so I knew I would love these. They did not disappoint me. I had no problems. They held together fine, easy to shape in balls, I did flatten them with the bottom of a glass. Baked 8 min. Perfect! I might try to make them even spicier next time. I like my chai with an extra shot of chai. Thank you for my new favorite!
Betty-
I am so glad to hear you enjoyed the cookies! :) Thanks so much for stopping by and reporting your feedback!
-Jamie
When I found the recipe on Punchfork, lemon zest and lemon juice were listed as ingredients but I don’t see them being used in the recipe. Did I miss something? I have all of my ingredients ready for action and my mouth is watering!
Priscilla-
There is no lemon zest and lemon juice in this particular recipe. There is none listed in the ingredients or the directions, so I am not sure why they were listed elsewhere. Sorry about the confusion and have a great day!
-Jamie
Absolutely gorgeous cookies. The spice combination sounds incredible! Love love love your photography. :) And I’m glad to know I’m not the only one baking cookies in early January. :)
These were amazing! Double batch will be happening tomorrow!
Anne-
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe. Thanks for stopping by and providing your feedback – have a great day!
-Jamie
Oh my goodness! These look SO good! I was actually looking for an eggnog cookie recipe for a cookie exchange later this week. Umm… Yeah, I’m making these instead. :)
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe. Thanks for stopping by and providing your feedback – have a great day!
-Jamie