I found this recipe over the summer trolling food blogs and had all the ingredients on hand, however, who wants to bake in the summer? Well, it was cold today (in August?!?) and I wanted to heat the house a bit, so I whipped these up, but in 8x8 square cake pan form.
The cake is super light and fluffy. I skipped the ganache and it's still good. I used gharam masala as the chai spice, all purpose flour for the cake (using 1.25 cups plus 1 T) and almond milk for the whole milk. Also I added 2 t of vanilla before the eggs. My guess is that the author left it out because it's not common in Australia? I know it's definitely not common here.
Anyway, this is easy and yummy, highly recommended!
Vanilla Chai Cupcakes
Adapted from Dessert First
Makes 12 cupcakes
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons chai spice mixture
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 egg whites
1/2 cup whole milk
1 chai tea bag
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
Method
Place 1/2 cup whole milk in a small saucepan with 1 chai tea bag. Brew, stirring occasionally, until just before it starts to simmer. Remove from heat, let cool completely to room temperature, and remove tea bag before using in the recipe.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.
Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together into a medium bowl. Stir in the chai spice mixture.
Cream the butter and sugar together in a stand mixer with paddle attachment on medium speed until soft and creamy.
Add in egg and egg whites, one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition to combine before adding the next.
Add in the flour mixture and chai milk mixture in three alternating additions, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Beat just to combine each addition before adding the next. Gently fold in chocolate chips.
Using an ice cream scoop or a spoon, fill each cupcake liner about 3/4 full with batter. Bake in oven for 15 to 18 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through, until a toothpick inserted in the cupcakes comes out clean.
Let cupcakes cool in tin on a wire rack until cool before decorating.
Whipped Chocolate Cinnamon Ganache
Adapted from Dessert First
Makes just enough to frost 12 cupcakes
Ingredients
4 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 chai tea bag
Method
Place chocolate into a medium heatproof bowl.
Combine cream, cinnamon and chai tea bag in a medium saucepan and place over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Heat just until it comes to a simmer.
Remove tea bag and pour cream over chocolate. Let sit for a minute before stirring to combine. Stir until chocolate is fully melted and the mixture is smooth.
Pour into a container and chill in refrigerator for an hour or until it is firm.
Place ganache in a stand mixer and whip with whisk attachment until it is light and fluffy. Do not overwhip or it will become dry and crumbly, just like overwhipped cream.
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Originally Posted by Angelina
So I just used my Penzey's garam masala mix. It did make for a spicy cake, but it didn't end up tasting savory.
