Boba Milk Tea Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Foam Topping
Boba Milk Tea Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Foam Topping

Infused with Tetley Orange Pekoe Tea, these impressive cupcakes taste exactly like brown sugar milk tea boba. 

Preparation time: 1 hour 

Cook time: 30 minutes

 Total time: 1 hour 30 minutes (+ 1 hour standing time)

 Makes: 12 cupcakes 

 

Ingredients 

Cupcakes: 

  • 3/4 cup (175 mL) 3.25% homogenized milk
  • 4 bags Tetley Orange Pekoe Tea, divided
  • 1 1/2 cups (375 mL) all-purpose flour, sifted
  • 1 1/2 tsp (7 mL) baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt
  • 1 cup (250 mL) granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup (125 mL) unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla extract

 

Brown Sugar Tapioca: 

  • 1 bag Tetley Orange Pekoe Tea
  • 3/4 cup (175 mL) firmly packed brown sugar
  • 1 cup (250 mL) storebought black tapioca/boba pearls

 

Whipped Cream Cheese Foam Topping: 

  • 8 oz (250 g) brick-style plain cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 cup (125 mL) confectioners’ (icing) sugar, sifted
  • 1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cups (375 mL) heavy or whipping (35%) cream (cold)

 

Directions 

  1. Cupcakes: In small saucepan set over medium-low heat, bring milk and 2 tbsp (30 mL) water to a simmer. Remove from heat. Cut open 2 tea bags and empty contents into saucepan. Add remaining 2 tea bags. Let tea steep for 1 hour. Remove tea bags, squeezing out excess tea and discard bags. If needed, let milk tea cool to room temperature.
  2. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.
  3. In medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
  4. In large bowl, using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. One at a time, beat in eggs, incorporating each one fully before adding the next. Beat in vanilla.
  5. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture in 3 parts, alternating with milk tea in 2 parts, starting and ending with flour mixture and scraping down bowl as needed between additions. Spoon or scoop batter into prepared muffin cups, filling about two-thirds full.
  6. Bake for 14 to 15 minutes or until tester comes out clean when inserted into centre of cupcakes. Let cool completely in muffin pan on wire rack.
  7. Brown Sugar Tapioca: In small saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups (375 mL) water, tea bag and brown sugar to a boil. Boil for 5 to 7 minutes or until brown sugar dissolves.
  8. Add tapioca pearls. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes or until pearls start to float and brown sugar tea mixture has thickened to a syrupy texture like maple syrup. Let boba in brown sugar tea syrup cool to room temperature (syrup will thicken a little more as it cools).
  9. Whipped Cream Cheese Foam Topping: In medium bowl, using electric mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth and creamy. Add confectioners’ sugar and vanilla with a hand mixer until light and fluffy.
  10. In another medium bowl, using the same electric mixer and beaters if desired, beat heavy cream until soft peaks start to form. Add whipped cream to the cream cheese mixture and beat until combined. Refrigerate frosting until ready to use.
  11. Assembly: Strain boba pearls from the brown sugar syrup, reserving syrup to soak cupcakes.
  12. Use a 1-tsp (5 mL) measuring spoon to scoop out a shallow cavity on the top of each cupcake (reserving cake). Spoon scant 2 tsp (10 mL) brown sugar syrup into each cavity. Recap with scooped-out cake.
  13. Spoon frosting into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. Pipe frosting evenly over cupcakes.
  14. Using the back of a spoon, create a crater in centre of frosting. Spoon 2 tsp (10 mL) boba pearls into each crater. Serve immediately.

 

Tetley Tips:

  • Alternatively, spoon frosting onto cupcakes instead of piping.
  • Substitute homogenized milk in Step 1 with an equal amount of evaporated milk if desired.

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