I love this cake! This single-layer Earl Grey lavender cake is full of rich earl grey flavor with hints of lavender, lemon, and buttermilk. It's topped with a glossy honey lemon icing, and best of all, it's so easy to make!
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Top this cake with my Blueberry Cake Filling, if you like!
A recipe like this lavender Earl Grey cake sounds complicated -- you might think you have to use fresh lavender flowers or infuse whole leaf tea. But it actually couldn't be simpler! It's actually a simple vanilla cake recipe, with tea leaves right in the batter to give it that distinctive Earl Grey flavor without any extra time!
This cake would be perfect for a casual dessert, a springtime tea party with friends. Maybe even for a low-key baby shower! The flavors are perfect and just make you think spring!
What does Earl Grey taste like?
This lavender Earl Grey cake is made with Earl Grey tea, which is a black tea flavored with bergamot, a type of citrus fruit. If you're not already a die-hard Earl Grey fan like me, you will be. It's DELICIOUS. It's a very distinctive flavor, and a delicious variation on a standard black tea. Plus, the citrus and tea flavors together work very well in baked goods, ranging from cakes and cookies to ice cream!
For this cake, I used the type of Earl Grey that I buy to drink, which is Revolution Earl Grey Lavender Black Tea (affiliate link). It has the bright, citrusy flavor of bergamot, along with the soothing scent of lavender. I love the blend of a classic flavor with slight floral note! So I knew that it would be perfect in this easy Earl Grey lavender cake. But if you have another type of tea you prefer, I'm sure it would complement these flavors well! If you do try a different tea, share that in the comments so we can try it out!
To give this Earl Grey lavender cake its tea flavor, you'll just need to open your tea bags and stir the leaves into the batter. The smaller the tea leaves are the better, so if need be you can chop them a little before adding them.
Ingredients
- eggs - your eggs should be room temperature to achieve the best fluffy texture in this lavender Earl Grey cake.
- granulated sugar - adds a light sweetness to your cake batter.
- vanilla extract - definitely look for a high-quality vanilla extract for the best flavor.
- vegetable oil - using oil instead of butter in this cake keeps the baking process easy and keeps our cake moist!
- buttermilk - adds even more of that moist texture and tangy flavor.
- all-purpose flour - be sure that you measure out your flour using either the spoon-and-level method or (even better) a food scale to measure by weight. Both will help you get the right amount of flour, but using a food scale to measure out 160 grams.
- baking powder and baking soda - these help to give our cake a lift!
- lavender Earl Grey tea - I use Revolution Earl Grey Lavender Black Tea for this recipe, but you can use any Earl Grey you prefer and add in a half teaspoon of lavender extract.
- salt - balances out the sweetness the batter.
Honey-Lemon Glaze
- zest of one lemon - for delicious citrus flavor. And for more lemony goodness, check out my collection of recipes with lemon curd and my Lemon Blueberry Mascarpone Cake!
- 2 tbsp honey
- 2 cups powdered sugar - (240g)
- 2-4 tbsp fresh lemon juice - or as much as you need to get the right consistency
Equipment
You'll need an 8-inch cake pan for this Earl Grey lavender cake recipe, but otherwise it's a simple bowl-and-whisk cake recipe!
Step by Step
This cake is so easy! It's a one bowl recipe that you can whisk together in just a few minutes!
- First, you'll mix together your wet ingredients: Eggs, sugar, and vanilla, followed by the oil and buttermilk.
- Then just fold in your dry ingredients: Flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and tea leaves.
- Then just pour it into your pan and bake!
It's that simple! And it's a single layer cake, which is my favorite type of easy cake to whip up for a casual occasion. So go ahead and get baking!
Tips and F.A.Q.
Not traditionally -- Earl Grey is a black tea that has been flavored with citrusy flavor of the oil of bergamot. But many variations on Earl Grey have included lavender, and the lavender variation is often called French Earl Grey tea.
Just like in this cake, my favorite accompaniments for Earl Grey are lavender, vanilla, honey, and lemon. Other great flavors to go with Earl Grey are blackberry, chocolate and cardamom.
One of the most popular ways is to infuse the tea into warm milk prior to baking. That method allows for a variable tea flavor without affecting the look and texture of your bake. In this Earl Grey lavender cake, we're baking the tea leaves right into the cake! I love this method because it's much easier, and it means you can see the bits of tea leaves right in the crumb of the cake.
It depends! Most tea bags contain between 30 and 50 mg of caffeine, depending on the amount of tea in each bag and the variety of tea used. Since we're using three bags of tea in this Earl Grey lavender cake, I'd estimate about 150 mg of caffeine in the entire cake.
Related Recipes
If you like this easy Earl Grey lavender cake, then you definitely will want to try another quick and easy single-layer cake recipe, my Pineapple Upside-Down Cake! It's full of that caramelized pineapple flavor and it's SO quick and easy!
You also might like my Orange Rosemary Olive Oil Cake -- like this lavender Earl Grey cake, it's got bright, citrus flavors, and it's made in the same 8-inch cake pan! So easy! And serious lemon lovers will adore my Lemon Bars with Graham Cracker Crust!
📖 Recipe
Equipment you may need
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs - room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoon vegetable oil
- ½ cup buttermilk - (see note)
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour - (160g)
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- 3 bags Lavender Earl Grey Tea - or 2 tablespoon of crushed full-leaf tea (see note)
- ¼ teaspoon salt - optional
Honey-Lemon Glaze
- zest of one lemon
- 2 tablespoon honey
- 2 cups powdered sugar - (240g)
- 2-4 tablespoon fresh lemon juice - or as needed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, tea, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat eggs, sugar, and vanilla with a whisk until thickened and smooth.
- Mix in oil, followed by buttermilk until blended.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold dry ingredients into wet ingredients until just barely combined.
- Pour into prepared cake pan and drop from 2 inches onto counter to get rid of air bubbles.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick entered into the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Cool in pan for about 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Prepare Honey-Lemon Glaze:
- Whisk together honey, lemon zest, and 2 tablespoon lemon juice in a bowl.
- Gradually whisk in powdered sugar until smooth.
- Add lemon juice as necessary to achieve a very thick, but pourable consistency.
- Spread glaze over cooled cake.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Last Updated on June 27, 2025 by Chenée Lewis
Gwen says
I'm excited to make this- would it work in a loaf pan do you think?
Chenée Lewis says
I haven't tried it in a loaf pan so I'm not sure. If you try it, let me know how it works out! 🙂
Tara says
Do you just cut the tea bags to add the tea mixture?
Chenée Lewis says
Yes exactly!
Rina McLuckie says
Your recipe calls for all purpose flour, have you tried baking it with cake flour?
Chenée Lewis says
I haven't, but I would imagine it would work great!
Renee says
My daughter is a real Earl Grey fan, and this just might be her favorite cake! Thanks so much for the recipe! That bergamot, lavender, and lemon combo is fabulous!
Chenée Lewis says
So glad to hear it! Thanks so much!
Anjali says
This cake turned out perfectly!! It was slightly herbal, slightly savory, and the honey lemon glaze went great with the lavender flavors. I enjoyed it with my morning coffee for a breakfast treat!
Chenée Lewis says
Thank you so much! I'm happy that you enjoyed it!
Seema Sriram says
Earl grey is my daughter's favourite flavour. We adore this cake and am going to make it again for her birthday.
Chenée Lewis says
Yay! So glad you both love the recipe!
Sara Welch says
Enjoyed this for dessert last night and it was a sweet success! Turned out perfectly light, fluffy and delicious; my whole family loved it!
Chenée Lewis says
Wonderful! That's great to hear!