I have discovered the tea of all teas.
The most magnificent drink in all the land.
I’m serious here people… It has changed my life forever.
May I introduce you to the London Fog Tea Latte.
I first discovered its existence on Instagram. A friend of mine had posted a photo of her latte and just went on and on about it. So the next day, I stopped in at my neighborhood coffee shop to try it for myself. Honestly, I wasn’t sure if they would know what I was talking about. I live in a pretty small town compared to most. But here’s a secret, if you go to Starbucks, they call it the Earl Grey Latte. It’s all the same though. Earl Grey tea with lavender, vanilla, and steamed milk or rather soy for me.
HEAVEN. IN. A. CUP.
After I had drank about 5 or 50 lattes, I decided I needed to step it up a bit. I needed to somehow take my new favorite drink and turn it into a cute, little cake-y dessert. It had to be light and fluffy and lavender. Oh, and it had to be pretty. So I made these…
The first step is to make your earl grey infused tea butter. I melted 1 cup or 2 unsalted sticks of butter in a nonstick pan over low to medium heat. Then I added 2 Tazo Earl Grey tea satchels to the melted butter and let it steep for several minutes. Even though the recipe only calls for 1/2 cup or 1 stick of unsalted butter, I used 1 cup of butter because some of the butter will get lost in the process due to evaporation and then you will inevitably lose a bit trying to transfer it from the pan to the bowl. I have infused butter with tea before when I made these and absolutely loved the flavor, so I couldn’t wait to do it again for my London Fog Tea Cakes.
So I have to share a secret with you guys. My most favorite part about these cakes is the lavender. Not only did I use lavender extract, but I also added lavender sugar. I know I know. Lavender is an acquired taste. I have heard people say, I love lavender, just not in my desserts. But to me, it is absolutely delightful with the Earl Grey tea infused butter.
I am also totally obsessed with my new tea cup cupcake mold. Aren’t they adorbs?!I just couldn’t wait to find the perfect reason to pull these babies out…
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup {1 stick} unsalted butter, steeped in Tazo Earl Grey tea
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup vanilla lavender sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon lavender extract
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 cup {2 sticks} unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 lb. confectioner sugar
- 1 tablespoon meringue powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon lavender extract
- splash of heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° and line a standard 12 cup muffin pan with cupcake liners.
- In your stand mixer bowl fitted with your paddle attachment, combine flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt.
- Add tea infused butter, sour cream, eggs, and extracts; beat at medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula and mix again for about 30 seconds.
- Divide batter evenly among cups of prepared muffin pan.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Remove the cakes from muffin pan and transfer to wire rack.
- Allow cakes to come to room temperature before frosting.
- In your stand mixer bowl, cream the butter on medium-high speed for 2-3 minutes making sure to stop to scrape the bowl once or twice.
- Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the confectioner sugar and meringue powder.
- Once all of the powdered sugar is incorporated, increase the speed to medium-high and add the vanilla.
- Add a splash or two of heavy cream until you achieve the desired consistency.
- Whip at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed.
- Any unused frosting can be stored in an airtight container and placed in the refrigerator until future use; let frosting come to room temperature before using.
