“A thin grey fog hung over the city, and the streets were very cold; for summer was in England.”
― Rudyard Kipling, The Light That Failed

London Fog cupcakes – inspired by the London Fog tea, the origins of which are rather foggy themselves but said to come from Vancouver, British Columbia, creator unknown. Essentially the tea is a steamed-milk Earl Grey tea latte, sweetened with vanilla syrup and these cupcakes are a variation on a theme subtly carrying the classic notes of bergamot and orange. Tea-flecked and topped with silky smooth not-too-sweet buttercream these make the perfect light and delicate tea-time morsel best served with the fragrant black tea itself.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

Equipment:

• cupcake tin like this 
• paper cases
• pestle and mortar
• piping bag and nozzle

Makes: 8-10 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

For the cake batter: 

• 1 teaspoon loose leaf Earl Grey tea (or equivalent, leaves from 1 Earl Grey tea bag), crushed until fine
• 115g/4oz unsalted butter, softened at room temperture
• 115g/4oz caster sugar
• 2 large free range eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 115g/4oz plain flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1½ tsp baking powder
• 1-2tbs milk – judge according to how this the mixture is, it should be a soft dropping consistency

For the buttercream:

• 150g/5oz unsalted butter
• 200g/7oz icing sugar
• pinch salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla paste
• 3 tablespoons double (heavy whipping) cream
• dark chocolate flakes

METHOD

Baking tip: This recipe already yields a light cupcake, but if you want to achieve bakery fluffiness of texture and you have the time, separate your eggs. Add the yolks into the batter and in a separate squeaky clean, dry bowl (vital for this method) beat the egg whites and then fold the egg whites in with the finished batter. This method takes some practice to get right, so if unsure, stick to the basic recipe as given below.

Making the cake:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas mark 4 and line your cake tin with paper cases.
2. Take 1 teaspoon of earl grey tea leaves (if you only have teabags, use the contents of 1 bag) and place in your mortar. Crush until fine and set to one side for later.
3. Cream the butter and sugar together until pale, use your Kitchenaid or electric mixer if you have one – this should take about five minutes. Take the time to pause and scrape down the sides of the bowl two or three times as you beat to ensure all the mixture is fully incorporated.
4. Beat in the eggs, a little at a time, and add the vanilla essence.
5. Using a large spoon, gently fold in the sifted flour, baking powder and salt being careful not to beat out the air. You should have a smooth batter. Add the milk, one or two tablespoons – the mixture should be a soft dropping consistency.
6. Spoon the mixture into the cupcake cases, filling half full. Over filling will leave no room for flooding the cakes with the glacé icing. Generally this step just takes a little experience to be confident getting it right.
7. Bake in the oven for 6-8 minutes if doing mini cakes and 12 minutes if doing small fairy cakes and 15-18 minutes if doing larger cupcakes.
8. Set aside to cool.

Making the buttercream:

1. Place the butter in the clean bowl of your electric mixer and cream on medium-high until very pale, almost white – this takes around five minutes, remember to scrape down sides as you go.
2. With the mixer on low, add the icing sugar one third at a time until fully incorporated.
3. Finally add the salt, vanilla and cream and beat on medium for a further one or two minutes.

Frosting the cakes:

Once the cakes are fully cool, fill a piping bag fitted with your chosen nozzle with buttercream and decorate as desired. Sprinkle with dark chocolate flakes ready to serve with a pot of Earl Grey tea.