Jasmine Cake

One of my favorite bloggers recently did a lemon cake with these gorgeous flowers on top. This cake came to mind when I got my new Sipsby box and was debating on what to make. I haven't made a cake in a while and I've been craving it!

I decided jasmine was the tea I needed to make the cake with because of it's lovely aroma but also was stuck on what kind of cake to make. I didn't want to make a cake with any powerful flavors that would overpower the jasmine. I looked up the lemon cake I mentioned earlier and saw that there were some easy substitutions I could do to make this jasmine cake work! You can check out her original recipe here (and all her other delicious recipes!) 

I was really excited about this recipe because Jasmine is such a delicate flavor and I think it would go well in the cake and the aroma would just be a lovely addition to it as well. I brewed the jasmine a little longer than suggested so that the flavor and aroma would be more potent in the cake since there will only be two tablespoons of it. 

I was also excited to add the crushed jasmine in because this is a fun way to add some texture. You should make sure that the leaves are thoroughly crushed so that it's almost like powder! 

The cakes ended up being very fluffy and delicious! I made two different shapes because I let a family member borrow one of my cake pans so I only had these two. It turned out well! 

You may have noticed that I didn't include a frosting recipe in this post and here's why. If you look at the original recipe linked above she uses an elderberry buttercream type frosting. I thought it would be good with the jasmine and it wasn't bad but it wasn't quite right. I would suggest creating a light flavored buttercream like maybe honey flavored to go with the jasmine cake.  

This cake + tea was SO GOOD. Such a wonderful combination to have after dinner as a little treat!. 

Peach Matcha Cake

Peachy Cake.

Are you sick of the matcha recipes yet? I don't think I ever will be! Something new I've come across is flavored matcha! The Matcha Reserve provided some peach matcha to experiment with. 

I was a little skeptical at first about flavored matcha. Matcha is known for it's health benefits so the idea of adding flavor worried me a bit. I was pleased to find out that the flavoring is natural and sugar free! What the flavoring did do was add a wonderful fragrance and taste.  

I used a very basic cake recipe here because I wanted the peach flavors to come through really well. I placed almonds on top of the heavy cream in the center and on top but that could easily be replaced with fresh fruit to pair with the peach flavor!

My parchment paper wasn't smooth around the edges to give the cake a little texture. If you want them perfectly round you can follow this tutorial on cutting the parchment paper or simple butter and then flour the pans, making sure to tap off excess flour. 

As you probably can tell I'm very fond of almonds. As mentioned before, I think fresh fruit would also go well in the middle. The cake was very tender and what the almonds do is give the cake a nice crunch. 

On top, I was more delicate with the almonds. I tried to sprinkle them gently and some ended up sticking up which I really liked the look of. This matcha is so good I sifted some extra powder on top of the cake. Not only does this give you an extra punch of matcha but also a lovely aroma of peach for the whole cake!

The heavy cream was not super binding but it did the job. It almost turned out like a matcha sandwich! 

What I really enjoyed about this flavored matcha was that the peach flavor wasn't overbearing. It lightened the taste of the matcha which is nice because matcha can often have a heavy flavor. Peach flavor is such a wonderful summer flavor and as summer approaches, you want this cake in your oven! 

The matcha reserve has 8 different flavors to choose from. You can find flavors from peppermint to blueberry! I think any of their flavors would taste great tn this cake! You can use code NAZANINMATCHA for 15% off your purchase on the matcha reserve website. 

Chocolate Honeybush Cake w/ Honey Buttercream Frosting

Honeybush. 

Robert's (my guy <3) mother is from South Africa and she introduced me to rooibos tea and the traditions surrounding it. She recently mentioned honeybush which I had never tried but was interested in. Along with the Persian Plum Rose , Blossom sent me a sample of Honeybush as well. 

I used one of my favorite recipes for chocolate cake and adapted it to make it extra honeybush infused! 

This tea was fascinating, it almost looks like mulch and smells very earthy. From the scent, I did not expect the taste in the cake. 

While I was mixing the cake and also while I was baking it, the brewed honeybush had such a strong aroma it was filling the apartment. It was wonderful!

Honeybush infused milk. 

Hot honeybush tea. 

Two layers of honeybush goodness. 

I decided to top this off with a honey buttercream frosting that I've made before and is SO good.

Cake:

• 2 cups brown sugar

• 1 3/4 cup flour

• 3/4 cup cocoa powder

• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 2 eggs

• 1 cup milk infused with honeybush

• 1/2 cup plain yogurt

• 2 teaspoons vanilla

• 1 cup hot Honeybush

• pinch of salt

Frosting: 

2 sticks of butter, room temperature
4 tablespoons honey
1 cups powdered sugar* 

What I like to do is mix the honey and the butter then gradually add in powdered sugar little by little until I like the consistency of the frosting. So it may be less than 1 cup or more based on preference. Don't forget to taste test too because frosting gets sweet fast!
 

Cake Instructions

1.  Prepare the honeybush infused milk by heating the 1 cup of milk. Do not let it boil. Drop 2 tablespoons or more of honeybush into the tea depending on how strong you want it. Let it sit for several minutes. Pour the milk through a strainer and let cool. 

2. Mix all the dry ingredients together. 

3. Add in eggs, yogurt, vanilla and honeybush infused milk.

4. Boil water and pour one cup of boiling water in a cup. Place 1-2 tablespoons of honeybush in a teabag and place in boiling water. Let it brew for a few minutes then pour hot, brewed tea into cake mixture. Gently mix. 

5. Pour batter (will be thin) into two 9 inch pans that are greased and floured. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes.

6. Let cool in pans for 10 minutes then place on a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled, frost with honey buttercream. I used a thin layer to make them almost "naked" but feel free to use more!

Do you have a favorite tea infused sweet?!

Home Sweet Home Honey Cake

Majestic & Moist.

I opened up this Home Sweet Home blend and had a little freak out. There are candy snowflakes and Christmas trees in it! If you follow me on Instagram you know that I'm a bit Christmas crazy, so this tea only encouraged my Christmas spirit.

This blend is very festive! The other ingredients include black tea, cloves, cinnamon, star anise and jasmine pedals. It smells like what I hope my house smells like throughout the holiday season. The cinnamon scent really pops.

I try to create my own recipes but when I came across this cake recipe, I couldn't resist: Majestic and Moist honey cake. The spices in this cake sealed the deal for me, I knew they would go well with the taste of the tea. 

Here is the recipe to check out and follow: Majestic & Moist Honey Cake Recipe

I made a few changes!

• First, from the choices given I used a bundt pan. Make sure to butter the pan before pouring any batter into it.

• I used all brown sugar instead of some white and some brown

• I used applesauce in place of the vegetable oil

• I used Home Sweet Home tea blend from For Tea's Sake

• I didn't use almonds but only because of the audience I created the cake for, feel free to use them!

This recipe is SUPER dense but delicious. At first glance, I wasn't sure that all the ingredients mixed together would produce a yummy cake but I was wrong! The tea really gives the cake a wonderful aroma. This is the perfect cake for the holidays! 

I've posted a few times about the blends from For Tea's Sake and I thought it would be fun for you to learn a bit more about the company. I had the opportunity to ask Sarah, their social media marketing manager a little more about the company. I love her answers, especially about the versatility of tea <3

1)       How was the name 'For Tea's Sake" chosen for the company? 

A lot of our inspiration and ethos comes down to one simple moment. Enjoying a cup of tea. It’s such a simple concept, and we loved the play on words. (For Tea’s Sake!)

2)       Do you all have a specific process for choosing your blends? 

We do a ton of research on blends, food trends, and what’s emerging in major tea markets. From there we built out our three classifications (CORE, WELLNESS & ARTISAN). Everything we create comes back to these pillars so it’s a real foundation for us. We wanted to appeal to tea consumers at all levels and each of our classes allows us to do that.

CORE – for those know what they like, and expect certain standards for their tea.

WELLNESS – for those looking to focus on the healing and wellness benefits in tea, much more health-centric

ARTISAN – big for gift giving, moments, and occasions  

We also source our tea’s from farms world-wide, ensuring everything we produce is natural (no artificial flavors), authentic, and pure. Quality is a big focus for us!

3)       If you could have tea with anyone past or present who would it be and where?

We’d love to share a cup of tea with Thomas Edition. His passion for innovation and creation is simply unparalleled. His commitment to his craft is all kinds of inspiration.

4)       How would you convince someone to switch from coffee to tea? 

We’re a big believer in education, so for us a priority is always helping our customers understand what they are putting into their bodies. The most compelling part of tea drinking for us is the range of purposes it can have in your life, it’s so versatile. It can be consumed to give you a jump start to the day or it can help you unwind and relax for a cozy night in. Not to mention it’s the second most consumed beverage in the world! We’d definitely use our knowledge to educate coffee drinkers on why they might want to consider making tea a stronger part of their routine because of the different purposes it fulfills.  That said, coffee drinkers are certainly stead-fast in their commitment, so a convert would be a big accomplishment!

5)       What is your current favorite tea blend? 

This is a tough one! One of our original blends that still delights us is SLEEP WELL. Some of us over here have becomes addicted to it nightly!!!

6)       What is your favorite part about drinking tea?

As we mentioned, definitely a fan of the versatility but we’d also call out the health & wellness benefits as being a huge plus. Every blend serves a unique and important purpose and we love being able to constantly evolve with new blend trends.  

7)What is your favorite tea pun?

How can we choose! Let’s just say it’s always a par-tea when we’re involved ;)

If you want to try this recipe using the same tea blend I did, you can use Naza15 for 15% off your first order from For Tea's Sake.

Have you tried a honey cake recipe that you loved? Share with me!

Cardamom spiced Flourless cake.

Winter storm Jonas 2016 baking. 

The east coast was hit by a blizzard this weekend and in Takoma Park we got a bit over 2 feet!

My boyfriend and I bravely went outside in an attempt to dig out our cars (which were completely buried) while it was still snowing. We gave up and I came in and started searching for a recipe!

I went back through Bake and found a flourless cake recipe which was perfect because I didn't have a lot of flour. 

Here's the recipe!

Basically, you melt the butter and chocolate together in a double boiler first. If you don't have a double boiler you can easily make one. I used a pot of hot water and placed a sauce pan on top, worked perfectly. 

In a separate bowl you mix all the other ingredients together. Once the melted chocolate and butter has cooled for 10 minutes you mix them together. 

If you don't have parchment paper I buttered a cake pan (or you can use spray) and the cake came out nicely. 

This recipe says to bake for and hour and 10 minutes at 325 but I would check it before hand. I think mine was cooked through at about 40 minutes!

My cake came out a little broken but it was still delicious! I think what happened is that the pan I was using was a bit too small. My boyfriend, sister, brother in law and I ate this with whipped topping. The cake is very rich so don't forget to pour yourself a glass of tea !

NOTE: I ground the cardamom by hand and the smells brought back memories of my childhood. It was so wonderful. We used to eat this hard candy Ahb-Nabat and it had cardamom seeds in it. So cool how this smell reminded me of that memory. 

Freshly ground cardamom.

Cardamom candy!