Cardamom, vanilla and honey gently sweeten and flavor a glass of milk. Heated until just warm, it is the perfect soothing cup of milk.
This flavor profile is based on a “Persian Love Cake” that I baked years ago for a friend’s bridal party. It had the same spices in it, and I really loved it. Cardamom is sometimes called the “Queen of Spices” and was held in high esteem in the Ancient world. I hold it in high esteem in my modern world because it is so delicious! It was traditionally thought to improve digestion, and your breath, but beyond that it has an exotic, slightly spicy-yet-sweet flavor that is unique. You can replace the vanilla with a few drops of rose extract for an especially Persian flavor profile.
We have had a busy Valentine’s Day so far today. I wasn’t planning on it being quite so busy and full of extra crafts and such, but I realized that my six year-old was really looking forward to today and I wanted to make it special for her (especially after she had the flu all of last week and has been rather home bound as of late). You can follow our adventures of today on my Facebook page.
But for now, I just need to a second to drink some relaxing, nourishing warm milk after a busy morning.
You can make this dairy-free by using homemade almond or coconut milk too. My children prefer a simple warmed milk with honey, but I like the extra flavor of the following.
- 2 cups of milk of choice (I used raw goat’s milk)
- 8 green cardamom pods, smashed and the brown seeds removed to use (about ½ teaspoon of the brown seeds)
- 3 teaspoons honey (I used local and raw)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (the better quality the better as the flavor really comes through)
- Combine the milk and cardamom in a small pot and heat until just warm. Take off the heat, and stir in the honey. Let steep for five minutes.
- Add the vanilla (if you want your milk hot, rather than warm, you can reheat at this point) and then pour through a small fine sieve into two cups. Serve right away.