A luxurious, frothy plant based latte made with Earl Grey tea blended with raw cashews, whole lemon, and spices. The perfect cuppa for morning or afternoon.
When I was working in Downtown Toronto, my morning treat would be an almond milk London Fog latte, which is essentially Earl Grey tea with frothed milk. At home, I have the luxury of not having to use store-bought plant milk. Instead I created this version, for which I blended the brewed tea with cashews to create a silky smooth, luxurious drink with a light foamy cap.
The other day we got 15cm of snow within the span of seven hours. On days like that we warm ourselves with hot liquids. Tea in the morning, then soup for lunch, but by afternoon, we were still prowling the kitchen for something hot and comforting. I sometimes make hot cocoa, turmeric golden latte, or matcha lattes in the afternoon, but lately I’ve been making this plant based Earl Grey lemon latte instead.
About Earl Grey
Earl Grey is a black tea blend flavoured with bergamot, a type of citrus fruit similar in appearance to a lemon. Bergamot has a citrusy, yet floral flavour that works great in so many ways. I love to use Earl Grey tea to make ice-cream, or tea-infused chocolate truffles. The loose tea leaves are also great ground to a powder and added to cake batter, for a bergamot and tea-scented dessert.
I am, admittedly, a tea snob, and recommend buying the highest quality blend that you can find. Cheaper alternatives create a weaker brew, with only mild bergamot flavour. My favourite brand is Kusmi, their Earl Grey and Price Vladimir blends will both work in this recipe. I also love Taylors of Harrogate, their blends are fantastic too.
About the recipe
I know that blending a chunk of lemon into your latte is a leap of faith, but trust that it works perfectly. If you’re a lover of lemon, you will appreciate the fragrant and citrusy kick of this hot drink. And also, using the whole citrus fruit (rather than either the zest or juice) in a recipe is not altogether unusual. I hope to share a salad dressing made with whole lemon, and a cake made with a whole cooked orange as well in a few weeks, both great.
Variations
if you don’t have Earl Grey, use a plain black tea blend to brew the tea
substitute 1 tbsp cashew butter or coconut butter for the raw cashews, if unavailable
if you cannot use nuts but are okay with coconut, substitute the cashews with 2 tbsp full fat coconut milk from a can
no maple syrup? Use agave syrup or organic golden sugar, but start with 2 tsp and add to taste. Both of these taste sweeter than the maple.
1tsp(3 g) loose leaf or 1 tea bag Earl Grey black tea blend
2tbsp(25 g) raw cashews(make the tablespoons slightly rounded)
¼ to ⅓of a whole lemon (about 50 g)including skin, cut into slices and all pips removed
⅛tspcinnamon
¼tspvanilla pasteor seeds scraped from a 1-inch piece vanilla bean
1 to 1 ½tbspmaple syrupor to taste
Instructions
Bring the water to the boil, and add the loose leaf tea or tea bag. Let steep for 5 minutes. When done steeping, remove the tea bag or strain the tea into the small jar of a blender.
To the tea in the blender, add the cashews, lemon slices, cinnamon, vanilla, and maple syrup. Start with less maple syrup, and add the rest later, if necessary – how much you add will depend on how sour and how large your lemon is. Blend the mixture on high speed for about 60 seconds, or until smooth and frothy.
Strain your blended latte into a mug using a fine mesh strainer, and pressing on chunky bits to remove as much liquid as possible. Adjust the sweetness, if necessary, by adding more maple syrup to taste.
Notes
If you don’t have Earl Grey, use a plain black tea to brew the tea.
The raw cashews can be substituted with 1 tbsp cashew butter or coconut butter.
No maple syrup? Use organic golden sugar, start with 2 tsp and add to taste.
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