I was extremely curious about the effect of the different ways of using tea for baking. I wanted to know if there was any noticeable difference and what would it be by cooking with steeped tea vs. using the tea leaves directly in the batter. I chose to make cookies, and even though the recipe did’t include milk, I decided to add some steeped with tea to test its effect (it’s not a big deal adding milk since it can add structure to the batter and also give baked goods their crisp crust).




- 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- *Earl Grey leaves of 2-3 teabags OR 2 oz Earl Grey steeped in milk (steep with 3 teabags). If you decide to use the milk in this recipe you might need to add a bit more flour so that the dough is not sticky.
- Preheat oven to 375 F.
- Cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer until smooth.
- Add egg and vanilla, mixing well until combined, about 2 minutes. ** If using steeped milk, add now.
- Stir in flour, baking powder and salt. *** If using tea leaves, add them now.
- Mix until dough comes together, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Remove the dough from fridge, roll into big 1 1/2 inch balls and place on baking sheet. Lightly press down on dough to flatten it.
- Bake at 375 F for 10-12 minutes.