Five Spice Tea Cake Recipes

GREEN TEA AND FIVE-SPICE CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pans). Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups.
• Make and bake cake mix as directed on box for cupcakes, using oil and eggs and substituting tea for the water. Cool 10 minutes; remove cupcakes from pans to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• In medium bowl, beat butter and vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed 30 seconds. Reduce speed to low. Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating until blended. Add 1 tablespoon of the whipping cream, the five-spice powder and salt. Beat until light and fluffy. If necessary, beat in remaining whipping cream, 1 teaspoon at a time, until frosting is smooth and spreadable.
• Pipe or spread frosting on cupcakes. Top with coconut.

SPICED TEA CAKES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Mix butter and sugar until light.
• Add eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamon.
• Mix soda with buttermilk and add to mixture.
• Add flour small amount at a time.
• May be rolled into balls or dropped by teaspoon onto a cookie sheet.
• Bake in oven aproximately 10 minutes or until just brown.
• ENJOY!

TEA CAKE

Steps:

• Add the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix together on high speed until it looks pale yellow, 4 to 5 minutes. Reduce the mixing speed to medium. Add the vanilla extract and molasses Add the egg and mix until the ingredients are fully incorporated. The dough should be a smooth, consistent texture. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and baking soda and set to the side.
• Reduce the mixing speed to low and add the dry ingredients slowly. Mix until all of the dry ingredients are saturated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, folding in any unincorporated ingredients.
• After the dough is well mixed, remove the dough from the mixer and place on a piece of parchment paper. Roll the parchment to create a log approximately 1 1/2 inches in diameter (about 12 inches long). Wrap the log in plastic wrap and place in your refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Remove the chilled, firm log from the refrigerator. Remove the parchment and, using a sharp knife, slice the cookie dough in 1/4-inch circles. Place the cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet. The cookies will expand in the oven, so leave about 1 cookie width of space between them on the sheet (about 12 cookies per sheet). Work quickly, as these cookies should go into the oven while the dough is still cold.
• Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. The cookies are ready when they are just beginning to brown and let off a fragrant brown butter smell. Allow the cookies to cool fully before serving.

ASIAN FIVE-SPICE CHOCOLATE CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 10- by 2-inch round cake pan. Line bottom with a round of parchment paper and butter the paper.
• Put chocolates in a large shallow bowl. Bring water, 1/2 cup sugar, and spice to a boil, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then pour through a fine sieve set over chocolates. Stir until smooth, then stir in butter until smooth.
• Beat eggs with remaining 3/4 cup sugar until increased in volume and pale and beaters leave a distinct trail (4 to 5 minutes in a standing mixer or 15 to 20 with a hand-held). Stir 1/4 of eggs into chocolate to lighten and fold in remainder gently but thoroughly (fold 1 to 2 minutes).
• Pour batter into pan and smooth top. Put pan in a water bath and bake in middle of oven 40 to 45 minutes, or until a tester inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs adhering. Remove from water bath and cool 2 hours in pan on a rack.
• Unmold cake by running a thin knife around edge, then heating pan 5 to 10 seconds on burner set at moderately low. Invert cake plate over pan and flip cake onto plate. (If cake sticks, tap bottom of pan with a knife handle. If that doesn't work, heat pan again.) Peel off paper.
• Serve cake in thin slices.

TEA CAKES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to the creamed mixture (the dough will be soft). , Drop by teaspoonfuls 2 in. apart onto greased baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 7-8 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool.

FIVE SPICE

Steps:

• Place a small skillet over medium heat. Add spices and toast, stirring, until fragrant, 2 to 4 minutes. Pour into a small bowl and set aside to cool. If using the whole spices for a braise, they are ready to go.
• To make the spices into a powder, use a spice grinder, clean coffee grinder, or mortar and pestle to grind the spices until fine. If you like, you can strain the mix through a fine-mesh strainer to remove any coarse bits, but this is optional. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place for up to 1 year.

TEA-SPICED FRUITCAKE

Steps:

• Combine raisins, apricots, ginger, kumquats, star-anise pods, and vanilla-bean pod in a medium bowl. Bring water to boil in a small saucepan over high heat. Remove from heat, add tea, and cover; let steep 6 to 8 minutes. Strain brewed tea into bowl with fruit; let stand at room temperature at least 1 hour or up to overnight (the fruit will soften and absorb the liquid). Remove and discard star anise and vanilla pods.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine brown sugar, zest, and vanilla-bean seeds in a small bowl. Use your fingers to mix ingredients until well blended. In another bowl, lightly whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, and fennel seed.
• Butter an 8-inch square baking pan and line with parchment; butter parchment. With mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and brown-sugar mixture until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until incorporated. Add flour mixture and beat on medium-low speed until just combined. Add dried fruit mixture, pistachios, and marmalade; beat until just combined.
• Transfer batter to prepared pan. Bake 15 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue baking until cake is golden brown and a tester inserted in center comes out clean, 45 to 60 minutes. Using a toothpick or skewer, poke holes in top of cake; pour rum over cake. Let cool completely in pan.
• In a small bowl, stir together confectioners' sugar and lemon juice until smooth. Drizzle icing over cake. Garnish with thin slices of fruit from additional marmalade.

CHINESE FIVE-SPICE GINGER CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan and line it with parchment paper.
• Mix flour, ginger, baking powder, orange zest, baking powder, five-spice, and salt together.
• Mix applesauce and tea together in a separate bowl.
• Beat eggs with 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until very fluffy and light. Pour in oil gradually and beat on medium speed until combined. Alternate adding the flour and applesauce mixtures, mixing just until combined. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 60 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and let cool for 30 minutes. Place a wire rack over the cake pan and flip to release cake onto the rack. Let cool completely, at least 45 minutes.
• Cut parchment paper into any shapes you like to act as stencils. Brush lightly with water and stick them over the surface of the cake. Gently sprinkle turmeric around the shapes. Carefully lift up stencils.

TEA CAKES

Steps:

• In a bowl, whisk together the flour,baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg.
• In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again, then beat in the buttermilk and vanilla.
• Gradually add the flour mixture, beating just until smooth and well blended. Divide the dough in half. Flatten each half into a disc. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate until chilled and slightly stiff, at least 1 hour, but overnight ideally.
• Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
• On a lightly floured surface, working with one portion at a time, roll the dough to a ¼-inch thickness. Cut with a floured 1½-inch round biscuit cutter. Gather the scraps, reroll, and cut again. Sprinkle lightly with demerara sugar. Transfer the tea cakes to the baking sheets and space them about 1 inch apart.
• Bake until the tea cakes are lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on the pan for 1 minute, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. The tea cakes will keep for about 2 weeks in an airtight container.

FIVE-SPICE TEA CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Butter a 6-cup loaf pan and line it with waxed or parchment paper.
• Sift together the baking powder, baking soda, salt, flour, five-spice mixture, and ginger.
• In a medium bowl, mix together the tea and applesauce.
• In a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the eggs and sugar until very light and fluffy.
• With the mixer running at medium speed, drizzle in the oil and mix.
• Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients and 1/3 of the tea-applesauce mixture and mix.
• Repeat twice more, using up all of the ingredients.
• Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and bake until firm to the touch and split on the top, and a toothpick inserted comes out clean, 70 to 90 minutes.
• Set the pan on a wire rack and let cool 30 minutes, then turn out onto the rack, peel off the paper, and let cool.