Method
- Make the lavender syrup. Simmer the sugar and water until the sugar dissolves. Add the lavender, let it steep, then strain.
- Make the tea. Boil the water, add the tea, then drop to a low simmer for 10 min. Taste it. You want it aggressively strong, almost bitter, because the ladyfingers dilute it. Simmer another 5 min if it's not there.
- Sweeten it. Strain over the sugar, press the leaves, and whisk until dissolved. Whisk in the vanilla and a pinch of salt. Set aside to cool.
- Whip the cream. Whip the heavy cream to soft peaks, 1 to 2 min. Add the mascarpone and vanilla all at once and whip 30 sec more until smooth. Move to another bowl.
- Beat the yolks until they get thicker, around 5 min.
- Fold. Fold the whipped cream into the yolks in two additions. Light and airy is the goal, so don't deflate it. Add lavender syrup and sugar to taste.
- Layer. Dip each ladyfinger in the tea, turning to coat, and lay them in the pan. Spread a third of the cream over the top. Repeat twice more for 3 layers total, finishing with cream.
- Top with a scatter of dried edible lavender.
- Chill in the fridge. Overnight is best, but we did 4 hours and it was still great, just a little softer to slice.
- Serve cold.
Notes
- We adjusted the sugar to taste as we went, so do the same. Add the lavender syrup gradually and taste the cream before you fold it.
- Loose leaf beats tea bags, noticeably.
- The vanilla is intentionally forward. Cut it to 1 to 2 tsp if you want the earl grey to lead.
- Use pasteurized eggs. The yolks aren't cooked.
- 3 layers in an 8-inch pan means thinner cream layers than the original 2-layer version, so keep extra ladyfingers on hand.