Chai Cookies (Chai Sugar Cookies)

Chai cookies are sugar cookies infused with the cozy warm hug feeling of a cup of chai tea. The perfect fall or holiday cookie to make while listening to your favorite Taylor Swift album and wearing your favorite flannel.

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Here’s a fun food blogger story to ignore.

My daughter and I are both Swifties.

I’m an OG Swiftie, who has loved her since her first album when she was just a girl tryin to make a place in this world way back in 2006 and fell into full on fan girl obsession with the one two release of Folklore and Evermore.

And my daughter, well, she came into world a Swiftie and would only stop crying and fall asleep in the car if Blank Space was playing.

Fortunately for us, Blank Space was very popular at the time and played on repeat every 30~ish minutes or so.

You know, back in the Dark Ages before we had CarPlay.

So naturally since she released the TS12 news, we’ve both been fangirling out with all the countdowns, podcast appearances, variant drops…

And THE ENGAGEMENT.

Totally accidental that I was working on this post when I saw the news and proceeded to act like my best friend in the whole world just told me she was getting married.

Anywho, these (Swift-tea) chai cookies happened because my daughter and I started a Taylor baking project and she has publically talked about them.

Our recipe is very similar to hers with only a couple small switches: brown sugar instead of granulated in the dough and rolling the cookies in cinnamon and cardamom spiced sugar before baking.

The result?

A perfectly cozy, complementing a pumpkin chai tea latte with all the warm autumnal spices and soft shortbread like texture.

Ingredients and Kitchen Supplies

Here’s what you need for spicy sweet chai cookies made the Taylor way (or close enough anyway):

• Butter – You’ll want to bring it up to room temperature before starting.
• Canola Oil – In a pinch, we have used olive oil. Extra virgin really does not have a strong flavor, so you really do not notice a big difference. Its better to sub in a slightly more flavorful oil than skip it. The oil really gives the chai cookies their softness.
• Brown Sugar – So Taylor’s recipe calls for regular granulated sugar, but we thought chai cookies with their spicier edge would benefit from the molasses flavor of brown sugar and slight chewiness, so we used that instead.
• Powdered Sugar – For added sweetness.
• Egg – Nothing fancy, just a run of the mill large egg.
• Vanilla Extract – We use genuine vanilla extract for its better flavor.
• Flour – Use regular all purpose flour. We have not tested the cookie with gluten-free, but you can likely use a substitute if you like.
• Baking Soda – This helps give the cookies a bit of a rise.
• Salt – You just need a small amount of table or other salt.
• Chai Tea Bag – Really, you need the bag’s contents and you’ll cut the chai tea bag open and dump it right in the dough sans bag. It does not work well mixing the bag in. Too many complaints from ungrateful family members who say, “What the heck is this papery thing?” or “Why would you leave the tea bag in?” or “My cookies are papery.”
• Granulated Sugar – We mix this with a bit of cardamom and cinnamon to coat the outside of the chai cookies in a tasty mix.
• Spices – You mix a little bit of cinnamon and cardamom with the granulated sugar to create a spicy, sweet coating.

For the icing, you should know the ingredients all to well:

• Powdered Sugar – This forms the base of the icing.
• Milk – Taylor’s recipe calls for egg nog, but we use milk because it is available all year round and nog would be a really nice extra festive touch.
• Vanilla – Yes, same rule as above, use the real stuff for the best flavor.

Here’s what you want to grab to make chai cookies (you probably have this all):

• Set of Measuring Cups and Spoons
• Cookie Sheet (if it’s been awhile, you might need to shake it off)
• Mixing Bowls
• Rolling Pin

How to Make Chai Cookies

Here’s what you need to do make chai cookies with icing.

1. Prepare the dough.

First, preheat your oven to 350 F.

As it heats, beat the butter and then add in the canola oil.

Once it has creamed together, add in the brown sugar, powdered sugar, egg, and vanilla.

Stir in the half the flour, baking soda, salt, and contents of one chai tea bag.

Add in remaining dry ingredients.

2. Chill, dip, and bake.

Chill the dough for 1 hour.

As it chills, mix the granulated sugar, cinnamon, and cadamom in a small bowl.

Spray your cookie sheet with non-stick spray.

Scoop out the dough with a spoon, ice cream scoop, or small measuring cup to make roughly even sized balls.

Form the dough into a ball and then roll the ball in the sugar mixture.

Place each ball on the cookie sheet, leaving some space between each.

Use a measuring spoon or other flat surface to smush the ball down.

Bake the cookies for about 9 to 12 minutes or until the bottoms start to turn golden brown, seen around the edges.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

3. Make the icing.

In a small bowl, combine the milk, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract.

It should form a thick, but loose, icing that runs off a spoon but leaves a coating.

Dip the cookies into the icing and remove or use a spoon to add icing to the top of each cookie.

You can completely coat them or leave some room around the edges.

Finally, sprinkle on some of the remaining sugar and spice mixture.

The icing should thicken or harden after a few minutes of sitting on the cookies though it will not fully harden the way royal icing does.

Once the icing is set, you can serve the chai cookies.

Serving

Serve chai cookies with your favorite finger desserts, as part of a fall spread, during a relaxing brunch, or just as a snack.

They pair nicely with fall drinks, like spiked apple cider or just regular apple cider.

If you are planning a Taylor Swift release party, you can also make our Showgirl cookies and/or Homemade Strawberry Pop Tarts Recipe for an added Swiftie related treat!

Storing

These cookies stay fresh for about 3 to 5 days.

Place them in an air tight container and leave them on the counter.

You could also place them in the fridge if you like, but you do not have to.

We don’t recommend freezing chai cookies since they will lose some of their freshness.

Tips and Tricks

• Look for browning around the bottom edges of the cookies. They are done when they start to brown. They will firm up a bit as they cool, so they may appear soft on top.
• The dough will be very soft and feel like a cross between cake batter and cookie dough. This is exactly what you want.
• Don’t forget to smush the cookies flat before baking. This helps them bake evenly and quickly.
• Avoid icing the cookies until they cool completely. If they are too hot, the icing will get very runny and not stay put until they cool..
• The icing is very similar to the icing in these Pumpkin Spice Cookies and will not set entirely. It will soft set but not be like royal icing.

Did you make this? Let me know!

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