Given all the craziness happening in the world right now, I thought we could all use some calming cupcakes, and what better flavours than Earl Grey and lavender?
When I'm feeling stressed out the best thing that brings me some calm is a cup of tea. I think it's the British in me!
So, given that we could all use some more calm in the world right now I thought I'd combine the two most calming flavours I could think of: Earl Grey and lavender.
These gluten free beauties consist of an Earl Grey sponge, they're filled with lemon curd, and topped with lavender and vanilla swirl buttercream. The combination of the soft tea and lavender flavours with punchy lemon curd is a real treat.
I, of course, used my easy 4 ingredient homemade lemon curd to fill these because it's truly amazing!
I also used culinary lavender, which you can find in the herb section in any supermarket, and Earl Grey teabags to infuse milk.
It's important to let the milk infuse with the Earl Grey for at least 30 minutes, but I infused mine for 2 hours to ensure the flavour really sunk in.
A great tip for using lavender is to add tiny amount at a time, otherwise you could end up with an overly soap-y flavour. A little goes a long way..!
So, whip these up, put the kettle on, and chill out!
Let's get Caking It.
Recipe
180C (170C fan)
Yield: 12 cupcakes
Prep: 15 mins
Bake: 18 mins
Assembly: 10 mins
Ingredients
Sponge
150g unsalted butter
150g caster sugar
4 medium eggs
200g gluten free self-raising flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
2 tbsp sour cream
100ml milk
12g of loose-leaf Earl Grey or 6 teabags
Filling
Frosting
300g double cream
200g icing sugar
1 tbsp milk
1tsp culinary lavender
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Purple food colouring
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Method: Sponge
Don't forget to wait until all the ingredients are room temperature before starting.
In a small saucepan heat your milk until simmering, then add the Earl Grey tea. Let it simmer for 10 minutes, remove from the heat, then let steep for 2 hours (minimum 30 minutes).
Repeat this process with the milk and lavender for the buttercream and set aside until needed.
Preheat oven to 180C. Fill 12 muffin holes with cases.
With a fork, cream the butter until pale, then add the sugar and cream together until fully incorporated.
Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing with an electric whisk between each addition. Remove the Earl Grey from the milk and add the liquid to the eggs. Mix until incorporated.
In a separate bowl, mix the flour, bicarb, and xanthan gum, and then add this to the mixture, mixing until fully incorporated.
Spoon in the sour cream and fold until combined.
Spoon 2 tbsp of the mixture into each muffin case.
Let the mixture sit in the cases for 20 minutes before placing in an oven for 18 minutes. A skewer or toothpick inserted into the cupcakes should come out clean.
Method: Buttercream
Another super easy, but equally as visually effective and delicious buttercream.
While the cupcakes are cooling, make the frosting.
Cream the butter until pale, and gradually add in the icing sugar until it is all incorporated. You can do this either with a standing mixer, an electric hand whisk, or a fork. At this point the mixture should be a little stiff. Split into two, and in one add 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla.
Put the lavender milk through a sieve and add a splash of it to the other buttercream, mixing and tasting until you get the desired taste.
It is at this point you should have one lavender buttercream and one vanilla. Add some purple food colouring to the lavender.
In order to create a swirled effect, follow the instructions for my multicoloured pride cupcakes, or my orange and dark chocolate cupcakes. To recap it, simply place a line of lavender and vanilla buttercream on clingfilm, wrap it into a roll, and place in a piping bag.
Assembly
Making sure the sponges are completely cool, scoop out the middle of the cupcake with an apple corer, taking care not to go right down to the bottom.
With a teaspoon, fill the middle with some lemon curd.
Pipe your swirled purple and white buttercream on top of your cakes.
Enjoy with a good cup of Earl Grey and chill out!