oolong tea bread

From as early as I can remember, I’ve always loved the aroma and depth of herbal teas. During Sunday morning dim sums, my family would have to cut me off after a few cups of warm tea so they wouldn’t have to deal with a caffeinated child for the rest of the day. In high school, a cold venti cup of unsweetened green tea was the perfect, refreshing beverage to end tennis practice with. As an adult, my tea consumption has provided me comfort when I feel homesick while away at college, energy during finals week, and a newfound appreciation for those expensive loose-leaf blends. 

This oolong tea bread captures the aromatic nature of the Chinese tea by pairing it with the sharp taste of yogurt to highlight the best of both worlds. The tea that is used in this bread can be switched out for your favorite herbal tea such as matcha, chai, or earl gray! I took inspiration from Bon Appetit’s recipe for Earl Grey Yogurt Cake which you can find here. However, I found this recipe to be a bit too wet for my liking and I wanted to highlight the oolong taste in my bread. If you are using loose leaf tea, it is usually stronger than the blends in premade tea bags so adjust the recipe to only include 3 tablespoons!

When eating this bread, it can easily be mistaken as a cake; the amount of sugar can turn it from a savory, aromatic bread to a sweet, decadent dessert cake. In this recipe, I use 1 cup to make it more earthy but my family loved it as a cake with 1 and ¼ cups of granulated sugar! Please feel free to adjust the recipe to your liking! Let’s get started!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups or 250 grams of all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 1 cup of granulated sugar 
• 1 teaspoon of table salt
• 1 cup of vegetable oil
• 1 cup of plain whole-milk yogurt
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract 
• 4 tablespoons of oolong tea (approx. content of 4 tea bags)
  • If using loose leaf tea, use 3 tablespoons

For sprinkling on top before baking

• 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar

Materials

• 2 large bowls
• Whisk 
• 9”x5” loaf tin
• Optional: Parchment paper

Directions: 

1. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. 
2. Line your pan with parchment paper if you have it but if not, use a little bit of vegetable oil to lightly brush the sides to prevent the loaf from sticking. 
3. In a medium bowl, combine the 2 cups of flour, 1 tsp of salt, 1 cup of sugar, and 2 tsp of baking powder. Set to the side.
4. In another medium sized bowl, whisk together the 2 eggs and 1 cup of sugar until pale and frothy. It should take 1-2 minutes, set a timer and start whisking! 
5. Add the 1 cup of yogurt, the contents of 4 tea bags (3 tablespoons if using loose leaf), and 2 tsp of vanilla extract to the egg and sugar mixture. 
6. Gradually add the 1 cup of vegetable oil to the liquid mixture while continuously whisking. If the bowl begins to slip, ask someone to hold to help slowly pour the oil in or place a hand towel under the bowl to stabilize it enough for you to use both hands.
7. Gradually add the dry mixture from step 3 into the wet ingredients. Stir until incorporated and gently tap the bowl to get rid of any air bubbles. 
8. Pour mixture into your greased tin. Sprinkle 1 tsp of granulated sugar over the surface of the mixture before putting the tin in the oven. 
9. Bake for approximately an hour and 15 minutes or until you can stick a toothpick in the middle and it comes out clean. Check periodically to account for variation in oven temperatures. 

• If you notice your loaf getting too brown but the middle is still uncooked, cover the top with aluminum foil to prevent further browning. 

That’s it! Once you remove the loaf from the oven, allow it to cool for 10-15 minutes and transfer to a wired rack to allow airflow to the bottom of the loaf and serve! This bread is amazing eaten alone or with a little bit of butter or fruit jam on top!

I hope y’all enjoyed this easy recipe for moist, indulgent bread. I love starting my mornings with a toasted slice of this bread and a cup of, you guessed it, herbal tea.