This Earl Grey Cake is perfect for the tea lover in your life! Earl Grey infused cake layers paired with a silky vanilla bean buttercream.
There is nothing quite like having to call the fire department while you’re in the middle of making a cake. And no, this was not due to another incident with the kitchen torch. It actually had nothing to do with my baking at all (hah!), but it certainly made for a more eventful Thursday than I had planned.
It all started with an odd smell in the kitchen. I went in there late morning to start making the buttercream for this Earl Grey Cake and smelled this weird mechanical/chemical kinda smell (not gas). I thought maybe it was the landscapers with their various electric tool things (lol, I have no idea what they are called), but the smell didn’t dissipate after they left, and actually got stronger.
In typical Olivia fashion, I started to freak out, half-finished cake still sitting on the counter. I have a pretty wild imagination so I started picturing faulty wiring in the walls, smoking and starting an electrical fire (for real). Our place is 30 years old (we’ve only been here for a year) and has had some work done to it. Some of the stuff here has been DIY’d, and I have no idea what’s inside the walls.
Anyhow, due to fears of an electrical fire (lol, sigh), I went and turned off all of the breakers leading to anything in the kitchen. Sure enough, the smell faded away. This confirmed my fears that it was something electrical. So, naturally, I went to Google to see what to do. As always, Google is so helpful. No matter what you look up, you’re either dying or you’re going to die. Everything was like: “Get out of the house!”,”You’re gonna die!”, “Call the fire department”. So I did.
I had to psych myself up to do it though. The thought of a fire truck outside my door, neighbors gawking and wondering wtf was going on, I just didn’t want to deal with it. But I also didn’t want out place to burn down, so… I literally had an internal pep talk before I dialled the number.
Anyhow, the fire department arrives. I could hear their sirens as I was pacing the floor, wondering if somehow they could be discreet (lol). They checked stuff out as much as they could, using their heat sensor things, but couldn’t find anything. I was hoping they’d be like — ok, turn on each of the breakers one by one and we’ll see. Unfortunately, they said they weren’t qualified to assess that and that I’d need to call an electrician, but to leave all the breakers off. SIGH. At least I was assured that nothing was currently on fire? I guess?
So off I go to Google again to find an electrician who can come TODAY. ASAP. I was cringing at the amount I would be charged for this emergency visit. I get off the phone with the guy, who says he’ll be here in a couple hours, and turn the breaker for the fridge back on because, HELLO, I have a cake in there.
As soon as I get back upstairs I smell it again. It’s easy to get behind our fridge, so I pull it out and start smelling the outlet. LOL I am SUCH a freak/loser/whatever. I thought for sure it was coming from there, but then I hear a zap from the back of the fridge. Aha! My nose leads me to the bottom of the back of the fridge, where there is this grate, and that’s where the smell is coming from. Thank god. I was so relived it wasn’t something in the walls!!
I cancelled the electrician (yay!).
I didn’t realize at that point that the fridge had actually DIED. I thought it was just on its last legs and that we should probably look at buying one on the weekend. After the whole ordeal (and finishing this cake), I went into the freezer to get a popsicle (it was super hot that day). The popsicle was basically mush. Oh *&^%. The fridge is DEAD. Ooookay, so off I went to the appliance store (alone, Ryan was at work and the shop closes at 5:30pm, seriously) to buy one that day.
Thankfully they had one they could deliver on Saturday, so it wouldn’t be too bad. We put what we could into our (already packed and very small) second fridge/freezer, but there was still a lot left in the fridge. It was keeping things cool-ish as it died, but by Saturday morning when we opened it up, the air that came out of there was warmer than the air outside. Gross.
So, a bit of an ordeal and some food loss, but it all worked out in the end. And we finally have a new fridge, which I’ve wanted since the day we moved in. Now, let’s talk about this Earl Grey Cake, shall we? Because it’s a winner.
I’d had an Earl Grey Cake on my radar for a while now, but it seemed like more of a “Fall” type cake (cozy sweaters, warm tea, etc.), so I waited until it was closer to Fall season. The days are getting shorter and cooler (I’m actually wearing a sweater as I type this – insert happy face).
Earl Grey is traditionally a black tea that is flavored with bergamot (citrus). I say traditionally because you can now get rooibos and even green tea versions of Earl Grey. I prefer the traditional one, although mine has a bit of a twist too. My favorite is a Cream of Earl Grey which adds a hint of vanilla to the classic beverage. It really takes it to a whole ‘nother level of deliciousness. I used Cream of Earl Grey tea in the cake, but you can use any kind you like.
You don’t have to love tea to love this cake! Ryan is not a tea drinker at all, and he loved the unique flavor it has — though I will say that if you are not a fan of Earl Grey, it might not be up your alley. The Earl Grey tea is infused into the cake layers in many levels, so it is very prominent. I paired it with a simple vanilla bean buttercream to compliment the creamy Earl Grey flavors.
Tips for this Earl Grey Cake:
- If you don’t like Earl Grey tea, you can experiment with other tea flavors. I used Cream of Earl Grey for this cake.
- The Earl Grey syrup is optional (I forgot to add it even though I had it made), but it will enhance the flavor of the cake even more, and will add moisture.
- I used the tea leaves as garnish on the cake for the pictures, but do not recommend doing this as they are rather unpleasant to chew on!
- Be sure to check my Swiss Meringue Buttercream post for tips and troubleshooting.
- To help ensure your cake layers bake up nice and flat, see my Flat Top Cakes post.
Earl Grey Cake With Vanilla Bean Buttercream
Ingredients
Earl Grey Milk:
- 1 1/2 cup milk
- 1 Tbsp Earl Grey tea heaping, loose leaf
Cake:
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp Earl Grey tea finely ground
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup Earl Grey milk room temperature
Earl Grey Syrup (optional):
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 Tbsp Earl Grey tea
Vanilla Bean Buttercream:
- 3 large egg whites
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
Instructions
Earl Grey Milk:
- Bring milk and tea to a boil in a small pot over med-high heat. Turn heat off and steep for 10mins. Strain and measure out 1 cup. Top up with milk if needed.
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour three 6″ cake rounds and line with parchment.
- In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, tea,and salt until well combined. Set aside.
- Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on med-high until pale and fluffy (approx 3mins). Reduce speed and add eggs one at a time fully incorporating after each addition. Add vanilla.
- Alternate adding flour mixture and Earl Grey milk, beginning and ending with flour (3 additions of flour and 2 of milk). Fully incorporating after each addition.
- Bake for approx. 35mins or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean.
- Place cakes on wire rack to cool for 10mins then turn out onto wire rack. Allow cakes to cool completely.
Earl Grey Syrup:
- Place sugar, water, and tea into a small pot. Bring to a boil and simmer 2 mins. Remove from heat, steep for 5 mins. Strain and cool completely.
Vanilla Bean Buttercream:
- Place egg whites and sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk until combined.*
- Place bowl over a double boiler on the stove and whisk constantly until the mixture is hot (160F) and no longer grainy to the touch (approx. 3mins).
- Place bowl on your stand mixer and whisk on med-high until the meringue is stiff and cooled (the bowl is no longer warm to the touch (approx. 5-10mins)).
- Switch to paddle attachment. Slowly add cubed butter and mix until smooth.** Add vanilla bean paste and mix until incorporated.
Assembly:
- Place one layer of cake on a cake stand or serving plate. Brush with 2-3 Tbsp of the Earl Grey syrup.
- Top with approximately 2/3 cup of buttercream and spread evenly. Repeat with remaining layers. Frost and smooth the outside with a thin crumb coat. Chill for 20mins.
- Pipe rosettes on top of desired using a 1M tip.***
Notes
** The buttercream may look like it’s curdled at some point. Keep mixing until it is completely smooth.
*** I used tea leaves as garnish on the cake for the pictures, but do not recommend doing this as they are rather unpleasant to chew on!
advika says
Hi , I’m going to bake this for a birthday, and the birthday girl really like another pre-made tea that is not earl grey, could I omit the tea for that, would it have any differences?
I really love your recipes!!
Olivia says
Hi Advika! Any tea would work. I hope she loves it!
Sage Walund says
I like the flavor of this cake but it usually is on the dry side when I make it. Yesterday I made it and it was ESPECIALLY dry. That last one is Probably my error, but idk about the others
Olivia says
Hi Sage! It should not be dry at all. Is it possible it’s being overbaked? Baking times are just a guideline as every oven bakes differently. Some run hotter/colder so baking time needs to be adjusted. To save a dry/overbaked cake you can use some simple syrup on it: https://livforcake.com/simple-syrup-recipe/
Hallie says
Hi can i make these into cupcakes?
Do I need to change any of the amounts
Olivia says
Hi Hallie! Yes, the recipe should make about 18-24 depending on size. All you need to do is reduce the baking time. Start checking at 15mins or so.
Fiona says
Nice, moist cake! Just made this as a tester for an upcoming wedding cake. I found the flavour really dissipated after a few days though. Has that happend to you? Thoughts on how to avoid that??
Olivia says
Hi Fiona! So happy you liked it 🙂 I haven’t noticed the flavour to fade. How are you storing the cake and did you eat it at room temperature?
Nicole says
This recipe looks amazing! I am definitely going to try it.
I only have 9” cake pans – do you think splitting the batter between 2 pans that are 9”s would work? Or should the recipe be increased?
Thanks!
Olivia says
Hi Nicole! I would increase the recipe. Converting pan sizes is always tricky. Here are some sites I use as a guideline:
http://www.joyofbaking.com/PanSizes.html
https://www.cookipedia.co.uk/recipes_wiki/Cake_tin_conversion_charts
Based on that I would 1.25x the recipe for two 9″ pans. Change the Servings to 16 to get the amounts (technically it should be 15 but that gives some odd numbers).
Adrian Yeoh says
Hi, I’ve made the batter a few times now and have had decent results. I do notice however that once I start to add the milk the mixture looks split. I end with flour as instructed but even so the batter looks curdled.
All my ingredients are roughly around the same room temp and even made sure the milk was slightly warmer that room temp but I still get the same result. What would you suggest?
Olivia says
Hi Adrian! Curdled batter happens to the best of us. It is most often due to temperature (usually eggs that are too cold) which causes the ingredients to not emulsify properly. How long did you leave your eggs out? Curdled cake batter isn’t the end of the world though, you can totally still bake it and the cake will be delicious (though maybe slightly more dense).
adrian says
Eggs were left out for half a day, although I fixed the problem. I added a tbs of flour at a time on low speed after the final step until the batter properly emulsified. I live in Denmark and I boil it down to the higher water content in the milk, who knows! The sponges are going into a wedding cake for tomorrow wish me luck
Olivia says
Ah interesting! Glad it worked out 🙂 Good luck!
Adele says
This is one of my favourite recipes! I’ve made it many times. I am wondering, could I omit the earl grey tea and just use milk to have a vanilla cake? I just love the texture so much with this recipe that nothing else compares. I’ve tried other vanilla cake recipes and just don’t love the texture.
Olivia says
Hi Adele! I’m so glad you love this one. You can definitely just use regular milk and it will be just like my Vanilla Cake recipe 🙂
Alice says
Such an AMAZING recipe – have made this cake multiple times and it’s always a hit. 1.5 cups of milk usually results in leftovers so I tend closer to 1.25 cups for the earl grey milk. I also use ~1 cup sugar for less sweetness but that’s personal preference. Thanks for the lovely recipe!
Olivia says
Hi Alice! So happy you love it. Thanks for your tips!
Simon says
The cake in this recipe is very nice, but I have to say that the buttercream frosting is a little unpalatable. 3 whole sticks of butter to only 1 cup of sugar is pretty excessive – I achieved a taste and texture I was very happy with with only 1/2 cup of butter, but decided to trust the process of the recipe. Big mistake! Eating the finished cake felt like eating straight butter. The experience was especially unpleasant after I placed the cake in the fridge for a few hours to preserve it – felt like biting into a cold stick of the stuff. I would definitely recommend AGAINST using that much butter – try only 1/2 a cup or 3/4 a cup if you do this recipe.
Olivia says
Hi Simon! So glad you liked the cake. It sounds like something went wrong with the frosting though – it shouldn’t taste like you’re eating a stick of butter. This can be due to a few factors — the meringue not being stiff before adding the butter, the butter added too quickly, the buttercream not whipped long enough after adding the butter, etc. I have a detailed tutorial with tips and troubleshooting here: https://livforcake.com/swiss-meringue-buttercream-recipe/ That being said, meringue buttercreams aren’t for everyone, they are much more buttery than something like an American buttercream. I do not recommend eating the buttercream while it’s chilled. It will have the flavour and texture of butter then. I always recommend eating cakes at room temperature.
Vivian says
Hi! Do you know it’s possible if I make this in a small ramekin instead to make small tea cakes?
Olivia says
Hi Vivian! I have never baked cakes in ramekins or any sort of glass pans so I’m not totally sure if you’ll need to change the baking time, etc to accommodate. It should work though but make sure to grease and flour them (or use cake release: https://livforcake.com/homemade-cake-release/) and line with parchment.
Annie says
For the Earl Grey milk, should you use 1 cup milk and a tea bag or prepared Earl Grey tea? If the latter, how much milk and how much tea (what ratio) to achieve the 1 cup required?
Olivia says
Hi Annie! I would cut the teabag(s) open, measure out 1 Tbsp of the loose tea and dump that into the pot with the milk and heat it. Don’t use a cup of prepared actual tea. I hope that makes sense!
Ashmita says
Hey Olivia,
Can I use Black Tea for the cake?
Olivia says
Hi Ashmita! For sure, that will work totally fine 🙂
Minerva says
Hello , i wanted to ask if we can also use earl Grey tea bags ? I can’t find loose tea where i am and won’t get here in time for my moms birthday 🎂
Olivia says
Hi Minerva! Yes, that should work, just take the tea out of those 🙂
Mk says
I really would love to make this cake for my Ma’s birthday.
Do you have a recipe for buttercream without egg whites?
Please let me know.
Xx
Olivia says
Hi MK! Here are a couple options for buttercream without eggs: https://livforcake.com/ermine-frosting/ https://livforcake.com/simple-vanilla-buttercream/
T says
Hi Olivia! 1. I absolutely LOVE this recipe it’s my go to with lemon buttercream filling! I use 1:1 gluten free flour and turns out so delicious! 2. I was hoping to make cupcakes using this recipe what baking time and temperature would you recommend?
Olivia says
Hi T! I am so glad you love this one and that the GF version works well! To make cupcakes all you need to do is reduce the baking time — start checking at 15mins or so. The recipe should make 18-24 depending on size.
Margaret says
Hello!! I am really looking forward to trying out this recipe. Making it this weekend for my sister who LOVES earl grey tea! Does the recipe make enough icing to completely cover the outside of the cake? I was hoping to get a thicker layer for the outside so you can’t see cake peaking through. Thanks!!
Olivia says
Hi Margaret! I would double the icing recipe to make sure you have enough. I hope you both love it!
Margaret says
Hello Olivia,
I made the buttercream and doubled the recipe as you suggested. However 3 cups of butter seemed like too much, the icing ended up tasting like straight butter! Did I do something wrong? Can it be made with less butter next time?
Thanks!
Olivia says
Hi Margaret! The frosting is more buttery tasting than an American buttercream but it should not taste like straight up butter. I have some tips on that here: https://livforcake.com/swiss-meringue-buttercream-recipe/ You could use less butter next time if you like.
Annika says
Made this for the first time yesterday and it was a huge hit! I doubled the recipe (cake only) because I was using 9” springforms, and slightly upped the amount of tea used in the milk / syrup.
I did double the vanilla bean paste used in the buttercream and added a packet of Vanillin Sugar from Dr. Oethker (you can find it on Amazon, many German recipes use it).
Everything came together beautifully and there are zero leftovers! Will be adding this to my recipe binder – thanks for sharing it!
Olivia says
Hi Annika! So happy you loved it. Thanks so much for all your tips!
laurel says
HI! Looks good, might make for my boyfriend’s birthday
What do you do with the syrup? Drizzle it on after…? Put it in the middle?
Olivia says
Hi Laurel! You brush it onto the cake layers as the first step in the Assembly instructions.
Meg says
Hi!
Wondering if it’s ok to use 2 8 inch cake pans instead?
Olivia says
Hi Meg! Yes, that’s totally fine. Baking time may be slightly shorter.
Rom says
lovely cake made it without the frosting tasted great with my tea.
Olivia says
Hi Rom! So happy you liked it 🙂
Emma says
Hi! Planning to make this tomorrow for my husband’s birthday – how did you finely grind the tea for the cake? With a pestle and mortar, or in a blender…?
Olivia says
Hi Emma! I used a coffee grinder. I talk about it in the post 🙂
Emma says
So you did!!! Sorry! I didn’t have a coffee grinder so I did actually use pestle and mortar and it worked beautifully! I filtered the tea through a tea strainer. The cake was so lovely, thank you for the recipe!
Olivia says
Perfect! I’m so happy you liked it 🙂