Start by steeping one tea bag in 1 cup of cold water for about 20 minutes. The tea bag needs a good steeping to get all the lovely flavors out. Using cold water will prevent it from burning. Luckily it doesn’t get bitter as some teas do which is one of the things I really like about this tea. Preheat the oven to 160°C and line a cupcake baking tray with muffin liners.

In a bowl sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.

In a different bowl combine the steeped tea, oil, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix well. Do not overmix.

Cut the strawberries in small pieces and fold them into the batter.

Divide the batter evenly between the cupcake liners and bake for about 20 minutes or until you can stick a toothpick in the middle and it comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.

To make the buttercream, beat the margarine until it becomes light and fluffy, this will take a few minutes. Add the icing sugar and continue to beat until the mix is well combined. I recommend using a stand mixer or you risk having very sore hands the day after. Add in the freeze-dried strawberry powder and mix well. Place the buttercream in a piping bag fitted with your favorite piping tip and pipe the buttercream on the cupcakes. Decorate with a fresh strawberry on top. If you can’t get your hands on the freeze-dried strawberry powder you could always use store-bought liquid flavoring and vanilla.