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Home » Dessert » Irish Tea Cake Recipe

Irish Tea Cake Recipe

Created: February 22, 2023 Updated: February 23, 2023 by Lyuba Brooke 33 Comments

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Irish Tea Cake is so easy, simple, soft, and delicious! This beautiful, simple cake is perfect for morning or afternoon tea break and just perfect topped with juicy raspberries and a sprinkle of powdered sugar.

For more classic Irish recipes, check out our Shepherd’s Pie and Dublin Coddle.

Slice of Irish cake on a plate with raspberries on top.

Irish Tea Cake

Feeling fancy? Enjoy a tea party with desserts like this traditional Irish tea cake! Just like the name claims, this cake is traditionally served with tea. However, it’s also wonderful when paired with your morning cup of coffee, as an afternoon snack, or even as a late-night sweet treat. There’s never a bad time to enjoy a classic cake that’s this scrumptious! It’s especially great when you’re craving something fluffy and only slightly sweet.

As much as I do love more indulgent, decadent desserts, there’s something also so satisfying about treats that aren’t overly sweet. A touch of white granulated sugar and pure vanilla extract are what give this cake the delightfully subtle sweetness that it has. It’s angelically soft and fluffy, making every bite taste like heaven! The additional sweetness that really enhances it is the dusting of powdered sugar and sprinkling of berries it’s topped with just before serving.

With St. Patrick’s Day just around the corner, I’ve been planning all of my Irish-inspired recipes so I can best celebrate the holiday! Usually, I end my St. Paddy’s Day dinner with this sweet send off and it’s always a huge hit. After all, a cake this wonderfully simple is always picky-eater approved. Speaking of simple, you’ll love the list of ingredients here. If you’re an avid baker, you likely already have everything you need in your kitchen right now!

Ingredient Notes:

ingredients for Irish tea cake on cutting board.

This list of ingredients is just how I like it – short and sweet!

  • Unsalted Butter – Make sure you leave it out at room temperature for 45 minutes to 1 hour to soften.
  • White Granulated Sugar
  • Eggs – get the to room temperature just like the butter.
  • Vanilla Extract – Pure vanilla extract will always create better flavor than imitation.
  • Cake Flour
  • Baking Powder
  • Salt
  • Whole Milk
  • Sour Cream – use full fat for best results.
  • Powdered Sugar – This is just for dusting on top. Measure with your heart!

Baking Instructions

Irish tea cake is a famously easy cake to make! These steps are clear, concise, and free from any unnecessary frills.

Prepare.

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Lightly grease and flour your cake pan.

If you’d prefer, you can always cut out a circle of parchment paper instead of greasing and flouring.

yellowish cake batter in the mixing bowl and spatula.
pouring cake batter into the cake pan lined with parchment.

Make the cake batter.

Beat the softened butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs one at a time.

Beat in the vanilla, milk, and sour cream.

Sift in the dry ingredients and mix everything on a low speed until just combined.

cake batter spread in the round cake pan.
baked cake on the cooling wire rack.

Bake the cake.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Tap the cake pan on the counter to get the air bubbles out.

Bake the cake for approximately 25-30 minutes.

Cool and dust.

Let the cake cool in the pan for a few minutes. Then, run a greased butter knife along the edges to separate it from the pan.

Flip the cake over onto a cooling rack and let it cool completely before dusting with powdered sugar.

side view of sugar dusted cake on the cake stand.

Serving Suggestions:

Here are just a few lovely ways you can dress up your homemade Irish tea cake:

  • Powdered Sugar – While this is technically optional, it would be sinful not to serve Irish tea cake without a dusting of powdered sugar on top! Just make sure the cake is cooled to room temperature prior to dusting, otherwise it’ll soak into the warm cake.
  • Berries – Raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, blueberries… You can sprinkle on the whole rainbow of berries if you’d like! That’s another wonderful reason to make this cake during the springtime for a tea party or St. Patrick’s Day – all of the berries are fresh and ripe.
  • Whipped Cream
  • Salted Caramel Sauce – A drizzle of this sauce on top of your cake is pretty mouthwatering. Just ask my kids, who can’t get enough of it!
Irish tea cake on the white cake stand with raspberries.

Tips for the Best Irish Tea Cake:

  • Make sure to bring butter and eggs to room temperature first. This is so easy to forget to do! Nothing is more annoying than reaching for your eggs and butter, just to realize they’re still cold in the fridge.
  • Don’t over-beat the batter! Over-beating is often the cause of the cake not rising properly. The key to any good fluffy cake is batter is mixed just until combining after adding the flour.
  • Line the bottom of your cake pan with parchment paper to better prevent sticking.
  • Once you add the batter into the baking pan, tap the cake pan on the counter a few times before putting it in the oven! This will get rid of the extra bubbles and ensure that the batter is spread evenly in the pan.
top view of the cake slice on the plate with raspberries on top.

PIN THIS RECIPE FOR LATER

closeup of Irish tea cake on a white plate with raspberries.

Irish Tea Cake

Irish Tea Cake is so easy, simple, soft, and delicious! This beautiful, simple cake is perfect with juicy raspberries and a sprinkle of powdered sugar.
4.67 from 3 votes
Print SaveSaved! Rate
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Irish
Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes
Bring ingredients to room temperature:: 30 minutes minutes
Total Time: 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes
Servings: 8
Calories: 339kcal
Author: Lyuba Brooke

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 1 cup white granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs room temperature
  • 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 3/4 cups cake flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup whole milk
  • 2 tbsp sour cream
  • 2 tbsp powdered sugar for dusting
US Customary – Metric

Instructions

  • Preheat the over to 350°, grease and lightly flour the 9-inch round cake pan.
    (You can also cut out a circle of parchment paper, the same size as the bottom of the pan and place it in the cake pan. This will prevent the cake from sticking to the bottom.)
  • Beat softened butter and sugar on medium speed, until light and fluffy. (about 2 minutes)
  • Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
  • Beat in vanilla, milk, and sour cream.
  • Sift in the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix everything, on low speed, until just combined.
  • Pour the batter into the pan. Gently tap the cake pan on the counter a few times to get the air bubbles out and make sure the batter is spread evenly. Bake the cake for 25-30 minutes. Do the toothpick test to check for doneness.
  • Cool the cake for a few minutes and run a greased butter knife along the edges to separate it from the pan. Turn it over onto the cooling wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled, dust the cake with powdered sugar.

Nutrition

Calories: 339kcal | Carbohydrates: 48g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 75mg | Sodium: 171mg | Potassium: 176mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 28g | Vitamin A: 458IU | Vitamin C: 0.03mg | Calcium: 79mg | Iron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @willcookforsmiles and tag #willcookforsmiles
collage of two Irish tea cake images sliced and whole.

Originally published on Will Cook For Smiles on March 6, 2013.

LYUBA

ABOUT LYUBA

I’m Lyuba Brooke, mother of 2, the cook, recipe developer, photographer, and author behind willcookforsmiles.com. I share many classic and original recipes, cooking tips, and tutorials. My passion is sharing delicious meals for everyone to try. Read more...

5.5K shares

Filed Under: Cake, Dessert, Seasonal, St. Patrick's Day

All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe. Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.

Comments

  1. B Van Osch says

    March 22, 2023 at 1:09 pm

    5 stars
    made this for St Patricks Day…company loved texture, found it very tasty without being sweet..making it again today

    Reply
  2. LyubaB says

    March 14, 2022 at 11:01 am

    You can but it will affect the texture it will be a little denser you can sub the sour cream for full-fat plain yogurt.

    Reply
  3. Aamenah says

    March 11, 2022 at 9:52 am

    Hi….can i substitute czke flour with all purpose flour?
    Moreover i do not have sour cream….what can i use instead?
    Thanks

    Reply
  4. Virginia Castaneda says

    January 17, 2015 at 10:25 pm

    Loved this recipe. Made it twice. The first time I used oat flour since I must stay away from gluten. It came out light, fluffy, and so delicious. I also used lactose fat free milk. This recipe is a keeper. The second time I used all purpose flour and it was delicious. Thanks for posting this recipe!

    Reply
    • lyuba says

      January 19, 2015 at 12:11 pm

      I’m so happy you liked it, Virginia!!
      I love the idea of oat flour, I will definitely try it now :). Thank you!

      Reply
  5. Virginia Castaneda says

    January 17, 2015 at 10:21 pm

    Love this recipe. Made it twice. First time used oat flour since I must stay away from gluten. Used lactose fat free milk and it came out light , fluffy and delicious. Second time baked with all purpose flour for my cousin also came out delicious. This recipe is a keeper. Thanks for your post.

    Reply
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Well, hey there!

I’m Lyuba Brooke, mother of 2, the cook, recipe developer, photographer, and author behind willcookforsmiles.com. I share many classic and original recipes, cooking tips, and tutorials. My passion is sharing delicious meals for everyone to try. Read More.

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