The Unexpected Beverage That Adds Oodles Of Flavor To Boxed Cake Mix

No matter what flavor you're trying to make, a cake made from a boxed cake mix is easy to put together and always delicious. But if you're growing tired of the same old, same old with your boxed cake mix, the simple addition of tea adds a burst of flavor that your cake mix has been missing. In fact, you can add tea to all kinds of baked goods, from cakes to cookies and everything in between.

Adding tea to your cake mix is easy and you've got several ways you can do it. The first is simple: Take your loose leaf tea pour it directly into your cake batter. An important point to note here is how finely ground the tea you're using is. If your loose leaf tea is already the consistency of powder, you don't need any extra steps. If there are large chunks of herbs in your loose leaf tea, you'll want to grind them down into a powder to avoid any unpleasant textural surprises.

Another way to add tea is to use it as the liquid component of your cake mix. Your favorite boxed cake recipes usually call for milk or water, so you can brew your favorite tea and swap it out to add in the tea flavor you're looking for. You can also add tea to your boxed mix by infusing melted butter with tea. You're essentially treating the hot melted butter as if it were hot water and then adding the infused butter like normal to the recipe.

Now that you know how to add tea to a boxed cake mix, the obvious question is: What kind of tea should I use? The good news is that you've got lots of options and plenty of room for experimentation when it comes to fun cake ideas. Chai is a popular choice for spice cake infusion because it adds notes of ginger, cinnamon, and other spices. Earl Grey adds more of a semisweet, semi-bitter flavor that can add a pleasing punch to simple cakes by adding hints of lavender. 

Looking for more options? Try adding real matcha to fruit-flavored cakes. Since it's a green tea powder, matcha adds color to your cake and adds a vegetal, earthy flavor that acts as a pleasing balance to the fruit flavor in your cake. Whether you're a self-described tea expert or just a casual afternoon tea drinker, adding tea to your favorite boxed cake mix can be the game-changer you need to turn a simple cake into a flavorful creation that you can surprise your family and friends with.