Enjoy a slice (or two!) of this aromatic loaf—scented with a touch of lavender, bittersweet orange and underlying notes of Earl Grey tea—with your afternoon cuppa.
- Prep time 25 minutes
- Total time 2 hours & 30 minutes
- Portion size 12 servings
Ingredients
Candied Orange Zest:
Loaf:
Citrus Icing:
Method
Candied Orange Zest: Using wide vegetable peeler, cut strips of zest from whole orange. Slice lengthwise into thin strips. Place in small saucepan; cover with cold water. Bring to boil; drain. Repeat 3 times.
In same saucepan, stir 1 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar with 2/3 cup water; bring to boil. Add orange zest; reduce heat and simmer until zest is softened, 10 to 12 minutes. Strain through fine-mesh sieve into bowl; reserve syrup. Spread zest out on parchment paper; let cool. Toss zest with remaining sugar; coarsely chop. (Make-ahead: Wrap zest in plastic wrap and store syrup in airtight container; refrigerate for up to 5 days.)
Loaf: Steep 4 of the tea bags in warm (not boiling) milk for 10 minutes; discard tea bags.
Meanwhile, in large bowl, beat butter with sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time. Using paring knife, halve vanilla bean lengthwise. Scrape out seeds; discard pod. Beat in vanilla seeds.
In separate bowl, whisk together Candied Orange Zest, flour, tea leaves from remaining tea bags, the lavender, baking powder and salt; stir into butter mixture, alternating with milk, making 3 additions of flour mixture and 2 of milk, until smooth.
Scrape into greased parchment paper–lined 8- x 4-inch (1.5 L) loaf pan, smoothing top. Bake in 325°F oven until cake tester inserted in centre comes out clean, about 1 hour. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Using skewer, poke holes throughout cake. Gradually pour 1/2 cup of the reserved orange syrup over top. Let cool completely. Lift out onto rack; peel off parchment paper. (Make-ahead: Wrap in plastic wrap. Store at room temperature for up to 12 hours.)
Citrus Icing: Meanwhile, in large bowl, beat together butter, orange juice, lemon zest and vanilla. Gradually beat in icing sugar until smooth. Spread over top of loaf. Sprinkle with lavender.
Nutritional facts Per serving: about
- Fibre 1 g
- Sodium 145 mg
- Sugars 47 g
- Protein 4 g
- Calories 363
- Total fat 13 g
- Potassium 106 mg
- Cholesterol 64 mg
- Saturated fat 8 g
- Total carbohydrate 59 g
%RDI
- Iron 7
- Folate 16
- Calcium 4
- Vitamin A 13
- Vitamin C 7
