There is a ridiculous amount of tea in my apartment.
Really, it's starting to take over my already-limited cabinet space. But J loves it so I'll just have to deal. Oh, and of course, turn it into cupcakes.
I've been thinking about how tea could translate into baked goods. Coffee works so well that I figured people had to be baking with tea. But aside from green tea, I couldn't find much. So I decided I'd just have to make it up on my own.
I wanted to mimic a classic cup of black tea with lemon and honey. I found a fantastic chamomile cupcake recipe from Joy the Baker and changed it up a bit with a bright black tea (Himalayan Splendor from Teavana) and honey lemon frosting.
These cupcakes came together like a breeze, and I love how they turned out - a minimally sweet cake with a luscious, creamy frosting. If I make these again, I'll give them a bit more tea flavor by infusing the milk with tea. I have included this change in the recipe below.
Black Tea Cupcakes
(adapted from Joy the Baker's Honey Chamomile Cupcakes)
1/4 cup unsalted sugar, softened
1 cup all-purpose flour
Scant 3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
4 tablespoons quality black tea, divided (about 7 tea bags will also work)
1/2 cup milk
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
Place a rack in the upper third of your oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Fill a cupcake pan with liners and set aside.
Heat milk on medium until hot but not yet simmering. Add one tablespoon (or two bags) tea and remove from heat. Set aside for five minutes and strain to remove tea leaves. Allow to cool to body temperature.
While the milk infuses, grind remaining three tablespoons of black tea in a coffee or spice grinder. A blender or food processor would also work in a pinch.
In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, cream together butter, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ground tea. Mix on medium speed until course and sandy. This should take about five minutes.
As the mixture creams, whisk together the infused milk, egg and vanilla.
Add half of the milk mixture to the flour mixture. Beat until just combined. Add the rest of the milk mixture and beat on medium-high speed for one minute or until well blended.
Divide the batter between the prepared cups. There isn't much batter so be sure to only fill the cups half way.
Bake the cupcakes for 17-20 minutes or until they start to turn golden. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before frosting.
Honey Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
12 oz. cream cheese
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
The zest of one lemon
3/4 cup honey
Beat cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and lemon peel in large bowl until fluffy. This will take at least five minutes. Add honey and beat until smooth. If the frosting is too soft, throw it in the refrigerator until it's firm enough to pipe. This makes a ton of frosting, so don't be afraid to frost heavily - you won't run out!
These keep for several days covered in the fridge, if you don't eat them all fresh out of the oven (*burp*). For the best taste out of the refrigerator, let them come to room temperature before serving, and enjoy with a cup of tea!
