Chilly Days on PEI

With chilly mornings, cooler afternoons and brisk evenings, there has been a definite decrease in the iced tea requests and once again, with the season's change, the hot teas and lattes are welcomed as the days shorten. I love to wrap my hands around a tea-filled mug, don't you?

There are three favourite lattes at the Charlottetown Farmer's Market tea bar in the autumn. Our Black Chai with Masala (means mixture of spices from India) may inch into first place. I make a doubly strong serving of this chai tea into a 16 oz. cup. It fills almost 2/3 of the cup.

Then I froth my secret milk mixture (it is mostly skim milk) and top up the tea. We have additional spices on hand for those who like to indulge in a spicier libation, but most folks find this blend perfectly balanced.

[caption id="attachment_1595" align="aligncenter" width="700"] The best Chai![/caption]

Secondly, our very own London Fog Blend, created 3 years ago by a creative employee (I'm very blessed to have had many of those) is a combination of ingredients directly from the tea gardens. Without the use of vanilla syrups as was in the original, which we hear was first concocted in Vancouver, we have a pretty amazing latte.

[caption id="attachment_1596" align="aligncenter" width="700"] No syrups needed to make this our signature London Fog[/caption]

Thirdly, and definitely not the least, is the Pumpkin Spice Blend that when mixed with foamed milk, could definitely pass for pumpkin pie in a cup. It's delicious! Even though pumpkins are a fall harvest here on the Island, this latte makes it right through the winter as a top seller.

Don't let the thought of our Canadian winter get you down. Enjoy the fall! Put some of that freshly chopped wood in the stove, wrap a blanket round your shoulders, pull on your favourite pair of wool socks and put on the kettle!

"While there is tea, there is hope." My favourite quote by British playwright, Arthur Pinero