This perfect London fog cake is an extra soft and moist cake flavored with Earl Grey tea and lavender, soaked with sweet Earl Grey lavender milk and frosted with silky lavender vanilla bean cream cheese frosting. It’s so incredibly soft, packed full of Earl Grey and lavender flavor, with the most irresistible texture from the tea milk soak, almost like a tres leches, but not quite as wet. The most perfect tea cake!

Why You’ll Love This London Fog Cake

  • Perfectly soft and fluffy Earl Grey cake– This cake is incredibly soft and flavored with finely ground Earl Grey tea, lavender and vanilla bean paste to give it the best London fog flavor. The buttermilk works together in the cake batter with the creamed butter and well mixed eggs to give the cake the most fluffy and lush texture.
  • Tea milk soak- we’ll be making a very strong milky Earl Grey using two tablespoons of loose leaf tea (and lavender buds) and just 1/2 cup of milk, then mixing that with sweetened condensed milk and vanilla bean paste. After the cake bakes, it will get poked with small holes, and this delicious mixture will get poured over the cake, allowing it to soak up all that Earl Grey goodness!
  • Lavender vanilla bean cream cheese frosting- Adding a bit of finely ground lavender and vanilla bean paste to the cream cheese frosting adds a finishing sweet note to the cake. It’s silky, fluffy and makes each bite of cake just completely melt in your mouth! (I also added a bit of food coloring to the frosting to give it a pretty lavender hue.)

For the full recipe, including measurements, step by step instructions, and bake time, please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is just a brief overview!

Start by preparing the Earl Grey cake batter and baking the cake.
While the cake cools, make the Earl Grey milk soak by making the strong milky Earl Grey, then mixing it together with sweetened condensed milk and vanilla bean paste.
Make the lavender frosting while the cake cools by whipping softened butter with an electric mixer until fluffy. Then mix in the cream cheese, and add in the powdered sugar, finely ground lavender and vanilla bean paste. Mix until very fluffy. (Add purple food coloring if you want it to have a lavender color.)
Once the cake has had ample time to cool, remove a thin layer off the top so that the Earl Grey mixture can easily soak into the cake. Poke holes liberally in the cake, then pour the milky tea mixture over the top.
Frost the cake with lavender cream cheese frosting. Slice in 16 servings & serve!
Enjoy with a London Fog and a good book in hand ?

Tips for baking a soft and moist Earl Grey cake

Room Temperature Ingredients-  You’ll have the best textured cake if you use room temperature ingredients instead of cold. Cold wet ingredients, like eggs and buttermilk, can cause the cake to bake with more of a gummy consistency, and we don’t want that. We want a moist and fluffy cake!

Mixing the Batter- You’ll want to cream the butter and sugar together until pale in color and fluffy, and the eggs should be mixed in until smooth. It’s okay at this point to mix a lot, as we’re adding air into the eggs, helping to give the batter a “lift”. However, mix the dry ingredients on low speed just until they are blended into the wet ingredients to avoid an overly dense cake.

Measuring Your Flour Properly- If you learn anything from making this recipe, please let it be this: measure your flour (and all other ingredients) with a digital kitchen scale. Please don’t bring me to tears; don’t scoop your measuring cup into your flour. This will always lead to inaccurate flour measurements and therefore, a wonky bake.

Baking Pan- I recommend using a light colored, metal baking pan. This will help to ensure that the cake gets baked evenly. A glass or dark colored baking pan can cause baking variations, like the cake baking too quickly, being over-baked in some areas, while not baked in others.

A note on lavender, Earl Grey & vanilla bean paste– While I used loose leaf Earl Grey, you can of course use tea bags and cut them to remove the tea leaves. If using tea bags, you can keep them intact for the milk soak steps. (Two tea bags should be around the equivalent of 2 tablespoons of loose leaf tea.) Because vanilla is such a prominent flavor component in a London fog, I chose to use vanilla bean paste for this recipe as it has a stronger vanilla flavor than vanilla extract, but vanilla extract will work similarly in the recipe. I really recommend using dried lavender for this recipe, opposed to lavender extract, to ensure a strong lavender flavor. I think a lavender extract could easily get covered up by the strong flavor of Earl Grey tea, whereas real lavender buds compliment the flavor profiles of the tea.

London Fog Cake FAQs

How do I store this London fog cake?

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge, for three days. Allow the cake to come to room temperature before enjoying for the best texture!

Can this London fog cake be made gluten free?

I have been on my own gluten free journey lately and have found that most of my recipes turn out great GF- Hooray! There is a caveat though, I can only say the recipe will come out good with Bobs Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten free baking flour. This is not sponsored, but my true opinion. This is the only gluten free flour I use as it bakes most similarly to regular, all-purpose flour.

Can I use something else in place buttermilk?

If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you can easily make it but mixing 1 cup (240 ml) of whole milk with 1 tbsp of fresh lemon juice or white vinegar.

If you make this cake please leave a star review! Also, tag me on Instagram @inbloombakery_ so I can see your creation! Follow me on Pinterest for other dessert ideas!

Other Recipes to Try

Lemon Lavender Sugar Cookies

Strawberry Cake

Lavender Earl Grey Madeleines
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Strawberry Cupcakes
4.63 from 43 ratings

London Fog Cake

Yield: 16 slices
Prep: 1 hour 30 minutes
Cook: 40 minutes
Total: 2 hours 10 minutes
This perfect London fog cake is an extra soft and moist cake flavored with Earl Grey tea and lavender, soaked with sweet Earl Grey lavender milk and frosted with silky lavender vanilla bean cream cheese frosting. It’s so incredibly soft, packed full of Earl Grey and lavender flavor, with the most irresistible texture from the tea milk soak, almost like a tres leches, but not quite as wet. The most perfect tea cake!
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Ingredients

For the Earl Grey Cake

  • 3 tbsp (12 g) Earl Grey tea
  • 1 tbsp (2 g) culinary lavender
  • 2 1/4 cups (282 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 10 tbsp (140 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cups (300 g) granulated white sugar
  • 3 eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 tbsp vanilla bean paste
  • 1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk

For the Earl Grey Milk Soak

  • 1/2 cup (120 ml) whole milk
  • 2 tbsp (8 g) Earl Grey tea
  • 1/2 tbsp (1 g) culinary lavender
  • 1/2 cup (150 g) sweetened condensed milk
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste

For the Lavender Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 1 tbsp (2 g) culinary lavender
  • 1 cup (224 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 8 oz (226 g) cream cheese, cold
  • 2 cups (260 g) powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • purple food coloring (optional)

Instructions
 

For the Earl Grey Cake

  • Preheat the oven to  350°F (175°C). Grease a 9×9 inch light metal baking pan and line it with parchment paper.
  • Add the Earl Grey tea and lavender to a food processor and pulse until finely ground. Pass through a sieve to separate any large bits.
    3 tbsp (12 g) Earl Grey tea, 1 tbsp (2 g) culinary lavender
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, Earl Grey tea, lavender, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Then set aside the flour mixture.
    2 1/4 cups (282 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt
  • Add the softened butter and granulated white sugar to a large bowl. Cream together for 2 minutes with an electric mixer on high speed.
    10 tbsp (140 g) unsalted butter, softened, 1 1/2 cups (300 g) granulated white sugar
  • Then add in the eggs and vanilla and mix on medium speed until pale in color and smooth, about 1 minute.
    3 eggs, at room temperature, 1 tbsp vanilla bean paste
  • Add in the buttermilk and dry ingredients a little bit at a time, mixing on low speed until all is combined and the batter is smooth. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as necessary.
    1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk
  • Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake the cake for 38-44 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center.
  • Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 30 minutes, then pull up on the parchment paper to release it from the pan. Let the cake continue cooling on the cooling rack until completely cooled.

For the Earl Grey Milk Soak

  • While the cake cools, work on the Earl Grey milk soak. Add the milk to a small sauce pan and heat over low heat until steaming, then add in the Earl Grey tea and lavender. Allow it to steep for 15 minutes, then remove from the heat. Pass the mixture through a sieve and allow the milk to cool.
    1/2 cup (120 ml) whole milk, 2 tbsp (8 g) Earl Grey tea, 1/2 tbsp (1 g) culinary lavender
  • Transfer the Earl Grey milk to a liquid measuring cup or something you can easily pour from. Mix in the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla. Set aside until ready to use.
    1/2 cup (150 g) sweetened condensed milk, 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste

For the Lavender Cream Cheese Frosting

  • Add the lavender to a food processor and pulse until finely ground. Pass through a sieve to separate any large bits.
    1 tbsp (2 g) culinary lavender
  • Add the butter to a large mixing bowl and mix on high speed with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
    1 cup (224 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • Then add in the cream cheese and mix on high speed until fluffy, about 1 minute.
    8 oz (226 g) cream cheese, cold
  • Sift in the powdered sugar, and add in the lavender and vanilla. Mix on low speed until combined, then on high speed for 1 minute until fluffy again. Add in purple food coloring and mix until combined.
    2 cups (260 g) powdered sugar, 1 tsp vanilla bean paste, purple food coloring (optional)

Assembling the Cake

  • When the cake is completely cooled, cut a very thin layer off the top of the cake using a sharp knife. This will make it easier for the Earl Grey milk to absorb into the cake. Transfer it to a serving plate. Poke holes on the top of the cake using a wooden stick or the handle of a wooden spoon.
    (I used the handle of a honey dipper for smaller holes.)
  • Slowly pour the Earl Grey milk mixture on top of the cake. It is thin so it should absorb into the cake and the poked holes easily, but do be patient as it does.
  • Frost the top of the cake with a thick layer of lavender cream cheese frosting using an offset spatula. Then cut into 16 slices and serve!
Course: Dessert
Keyword: cake, cake recipe, Earl Grey, Lavender, London Fog, London Fog cake
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