Earl Grey Chiffon Cake (伯爵茶戚风蛋糕)

I realize it has been awhile since I last baked a chiffon cake. And on top of my to-do chiffon bake list was this Earl Grey flavor. I have always wondered how a tea flavored chiffon would taste like. And being a home baker does gives me the chance to try out all sorts of special flavorings. Apart from the usual pandan and orange flavor, I bet you can't find these chiffon cakes in your nearby bakeries. :P So I guess being a home baker does have it's advantages, heehee. ;D However, I consider myself quite a practical baker, I will usually bake stuff that my family will consume, heehee. So you won't see me baking something out of the ordinary here. ;P

Earl Grey being one of my favorite teas to drink, so it was an obvious choice to use. Plus my previous successful attempt on the Earl Grey Maccarons, I was further encouraged that it will be nice. And I was right. :)

I got this recipe from a Japanese Bake Book (Tawianese translation) call 《西点学习大百科》. It was recommended by Grace from Kitchen Corner and it was definitely a good buy. ;)

Ingredients for Earl Grey Chiffon Cake (fills a 20cm tube pan)

Egg Yolk batter:

5 egg yolks

30g caster sugar

1/2 tsp salt

80ml vegetable oil

30g Earl Grey tea leaves or 3 sachets Earl Grey tea

180ml water (original calls for 200ml, I had left over)

120g superfine cake flour

2/3 tsp baking powder

Egg White batter:

5 egg whites (original calls for 6)

90g caster sugar

• In a heat proof saucepan, place 180ml water and the tea leaves/sachets in. Heat up till almost boiling. Off the fire and let the tea soak for 5 to 10 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 170C.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat up the egg yolks and 30g caster sugar till it is slightly thickens. About 5 minutes.
• Slowly drizzle in the vegetable oil and continue to beat till well incorporated.
• Then pour in 180ml of the brewed tea (cooled) and continue to mix till all combined and smooth. Then add in 2 sachets of Earl Grey tea grains into the mixture, stir well .
• Lastly, sift in the cake flour and baking powder, then mix well till no visible lumps.

• In another large mixing bowl, beat the egg whites till foamy. Then gradually add in the rest of the 90g caster sugar and beat till stiff peaks.
• Gently fold in the whites to the flour mixture in 3 separate portions, making sure it is well combined. Then pour the batter into the tube pan. Give the pan a light tab on the base to push up the bubbles. Or you can use a chop stick and lightly swirl in the pan to remove bubbles.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes till tester comes out clean.

The aroma from the tea was fabulous. Evident but not strong, slightly fruity scent and mildly sweet. And the cake was tender and moist, just how I like it. :) If you are worried about the tea specs in the cake, it is really small and you will not even notice it when eating. ;)

You can see that the cake is indeed soft and fluffy. I will definitely bake this cake again. ;) Hope you will give it a try too!

Have a good week ahead everyone