Lavender & Vanilla Bean Teacake - with Taken By Surprise & Little Aowl

Afternoon tea is never complete without tea cup in hand and some sort of sweet treat! Be it with cookies or cupcakes, scones or macarons, taking time out for yourself is something we should all do more often!
So do yourself a little favour and take a break with this particularly delish baked goodie that I have been loving - Lavender and Vanilla Bean Teacake!



The perfect tea accompaniment, the gorgeous Ally from Little Aowl and I have been spending many a summer afternoon baking (and eating!) this super yummy and easy to make teacake. And because this recipe is a lovingly made creation of ours, we would love to share our foodie joy with you!

So before you start drooling all over your keyboard or smartphone, here's our recipe so you can enjoy this little treat next time you feel like a little me-time.

Lavender and Vanilla Bean Teacake Recipe

Ingredients - Cake

110g butter

1x cup caster sugar

seeds scraped from 2x vanilla beans

2x eggs

2x cups self-raising flour

1x cup milk

1 1/2 tbs edible lavender flowers

Ingredients - Tea glaze

soft icing sugar (about one cup)

1/2 cup water

pink food dye

1x tea bag Earl Grey

edible lavender flowers & pansies to decorate

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180° C. Grease a 20cm round cake tin (a snap lock base release is best) and line the base with baking paper.

2. Pour milk into a small saucepan and add lavender flowers. Cook over high heat until the milk begins to stick to the sides of the saucepan, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until milk smells strongly of lavender. Don't let the milk burn! Then place the lavender-infused milk in a bowl, cover with cling wrap, and place in the freezer to cool.

Taken by Surprise Tip: Place bowl of milk over another bowl full of ice water to speed up the cooling process.

3. Using an electric beater, beat the butter, caster sugar and vanilla bean seeds in a bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, then beat well. The mixture should be wet and shiny.

4. Fold in half the flour into the sugar/egg/butter/vanilla mixture, and once combined, fold in half the milk. Add the remaining flour and milk, folding in gently.

Taken by Surprise Tip: Make sure to fold the mixture (a motion similar to if you are very slowly beating eggs with a fork) and not stir it. Be gentle, because if you knock all the air out with heavy handed mixing, your cake won't rise!

5. Bake the cake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let the cake stand in the tin for 10 minutes, then let it cool completely on a wire rack.

6. Submerge the earl grey tea bag in the water in a small cup or mug. Squeeze the tea bag until the water turns a golden colour. Add one drop of pink food dye and the icing sugar. The consistency of the glaze should be thin (but thicker than water) and not quite opaque.

7. Pour the glaze onto the centre of the cake and let it spread over the top and down the sides. Use a butter knife to help spread the glaze evenly if required. Sprinkle lavender flowers on top, and place pansies in the centre. How pretty!

8. Serve alone or with cream, then it's time to slice that baby up and eat, duh!

What is your favourite thing to eat for afternoon tea? Let me know in the comments below!