Christmas Morning Chai Dutch Bros Recipe & Ingredients (2024)

Christmas Morning Chai is chai (tea) with cream, white chocolate, and spices. It is a delicious spin on Masala Chai, made with black tea and a masala chai spice blend. It is made this way at Dutch Bros., a coffee shop chain in the Western United States.

Christmas morning chai is basically a combination of masala chai and white chocolate. It is delicious, made with wonderfully sweet white chocolate chai balanced with beautiful spices.

It tastes warm and cozy and is a fun drink to enjoy during the holiday season, Christmas, or any time of the year. A hot drink that is perfect to cozy up to on a cold day, during the holidays, winter, or any time for the chai lovers in your life.

If you want to make authentic chai, try Chai Masala Powder. You can use it to make Masala Chai, Chocolate Chai, Rose Chai and even Biscoff Chai if you like to explore chai drinks.

There are two ways you can make this copycat recipe:

1. Dutch Bros way: Use Oregon chai concentrate, Torani White Chocolate Sauce, half and half, and nutmeg
2. DIY at home ingredients: Use your black tea, white chocolate chips or chopped white chocolate, milk, spices

I like covering both ways to make this so it is easier for you to try with whatever ingredients you may have on hand. I think it is delicious both ways. It is fun to make with your ingredients so you can tweak the recipe according to your preferences.

Chai means tea in Hindi, so don’t say chai tea! You’re saying tea tea then 😊

Why you will love this Christmas Morning Chai recipe

Delicious flavor profile | White chocolate flavor + Masala Chai, yum!

Simple ingredients |Use ingredients you likely have in the pantry.

Flexible recipe |Easy to tweak to your personal preferences.

Save money | Make your favorite drink at home and save money!

Ingredient Notes

As mentioned above, you can make this two ways: the Dutch Bros Christmas Morning way which entails buying a few items (listed below) OR you can make this with ingredients at home which will get you a white chocolate chai.

Dutch Bros Method Ingredient Notes:

Torani White Chocolate Sauce – this is essentially a white chocolate sauce. I found mine at Walmart.

Oregon Chai Blend – You can use either the liquid concentrate (pictured above) or Oregon Chai also sells a powder version you can add to hot water.

Nutmeg – This is optional. At Dutch Bros a little is sprinkled on top. It smells delicious and adds to the drink. You can also substitute cinnamon.

At Home Ingredient Notes:

The good news is, if you don’t have the above store-bought ingredients, you can make this with things you likely have in your pantry.

Black tea – You can use either loose black tea leaves or tea bags. I always use the Wagh Bakri brand for loose tea when making chai. My family used to use Lipton tea bags before the switch over to loose tea. Indian black teas are easy to find online and in your local Indian grocery store.

Chai Masala Powder – You can either use the chai masala powder you regularly use or make your fresh blend as I’ve outlined in the recipe card below.

I think certain spices such as cardamom, ginger, and a hint of cinnamon/clove pair beautifully with white chocolate.

Unsweetened cocoa powder: you can substitute melted chocolate in its place. I prefer using cocoa powder to control the amount of sweetness. I also think cocoa powder provides a stronger chocolate flavor.

Sugar – I’ve used white sugar. Feel free to use the sweetener of your choice. Brown sugar, coconut sugar, maple syrup, and honey all work. Just taste and adjust to your preference for sweetness.

Milk – I usually use 2% milk. You can also use whole milk for a creamier cup. Feel free to substitute with plant-based milk for a vegan option.

Chai spice blends are easy to make at home. You can even use ready made ground spices.

Variations / Substitutions

Latte style: Use a frother

Mix up the spices used: Some ideas include green cardamom, Star anise, black pepper, fennel seeds, ground cinnamon. Whole spices can also be crushed for a fresher, stronger taste in this cozy drink.

Feel free to use ginger root (fresh ginger), cardamom pods (crushed), whole cloves, and cinnamon sticks.

Cold chai: Let it cool and blend with ice for a rose chai frappe or mix with ice cubes for an iced version

Making it vegan: Substitute plant-based milk to make this recipe vegan. I would go with oat milk or something like Ripple (available in the US) as they are thicker and will make a creamier chai.

Syrups: A caramel drizzle or splash of vanilla syrup also makes a delicious drink.

Chocolate: Chocolate milk would also taste delicious in place of half and half.

How to Make

To make Dutch Bros Christmas Morning Chai:

1. Mix Oregon chai concentrate, half and half, and white chocolate syrup in a cup. (Heat chai concentrate and half and half in microwave or stovetop if you want it hot. Add ice cubes if you want it cold.)
2. Top with whipped cream (optional). Drizzle more white chocolate syrup on top.
3. Finish with a sprinkle of nutmeg.

To make from scratch, with at home ingredients:

1. Place water, sugar, chai spice blend and loose-leaf tea or tea bags in a pot on medium-high heat on the stove.
2. Let it come to a simmer and roll boil for about 3-4 minutes.
3. Add milk and cocoa powder to the hot water. Let it come to a boil. Turn to medium heat.
4. Let simmer for 5-6 minutes. Add white chocolate chips. Stir with a whisk.
5. Turn off the stove.
6. Strain tea with a tea strainer and serve.

This cup of chai (cup of tea) is perfect to serve on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning breakfast.

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