BOBA Milk Tea Cupcakes

Frosting first because this needs to be done ahead of time

1. In a small saucepan, heat the heavy cream on medium heat until it just begins to simmer, marked by small bubbles around the edges. Or you can microwave it in 15 to 30 second intervals until steaming. Do not let it boil.
2. Place vanilla callets in a medium heat-proof bowl. Pour the heated cream over the vanilla callets. Do not stir. Let that sit for 4 to 5 minutes.
3. Gently stir the mixture with a metal spoon or silicone spatula. Add a pinch of salt and keep stirring until the mixture is smooth. The vanilla callets should be completely melted. (See notes if it has not melted.) Once the mixture does not feel warm to the touch, it has cooled enough to cover and place in the fridge. Let the ganache chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight. 
4. Transfer the ganache to the bowl of your stand mixer. With the whisk attachment on, beat the ganache on medium-high speed until it it’s fluffy and the color is lighter. It is now ready to use as frosting. You can store whipped ganache in the fridge until ready to pipe, up to 5 days.

Cupcakes

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and line a 12 count cupcake pan with liners.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt. 
3. In the bowl of your stand mixer with the whisk attachment, beat the oil, brown sugar, milk tea powder and eggs for 5 minutes until thick and fluffy. Add the sour cream and mix on low until just incorporated, about  30 seconds, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula. 
4. Add the flour mixture and whisk on low until just combined, about 10 seconds. Scrape down the bowl and mix gently by hand, if needed, until the mixture is smooth and combined. 
5. Divide the batter evenly into the cupcake pan, filling each to about 1/2 full. 
6. Bake for 20 to 23 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to continue to cool.

BOBA 

1. In a medium saucepan, bring 8 cups of water to a boil. (Generally, you need about 10 cups of water per 1 cup of BOBA.) Add BOBA pearls and cook according to instructions on the package. 
2. I use Wu Fu Yuan 3 Minutes Tapioca Pearls. I stir gently with the water on low simmer until the BOBA floats to the surface, about 3 minutes. Then I turn off the heat, place the lid on the pot and let that sit for another 2 to 3 minutes. (The “3 Minutes” on the label of the package refers to their microwave instructions, in case you were wondering.)
3. Pour the BOBA and all the liquid in the pot through a strainer. Then soak the boba in cold water for 20 seconds. Drain in a colander. 
4. In a small saucepan, heat 1/4 cup of water and brown sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the strained BOBA into the sugar water and stir gently to combine, making sure all the BOBA pearls are coated. This will keep the BOBA soft until ready to use, for up to 3 hours. After cooking the BOBA, they must be used within 3 hours or they will start to get hard. 

Frost

1. Scoop some frosting on top of each cupcake. Using the back of a spoon spread the frosting around to the edges and make a small indent or “bowl” in the center for your BOBA pearls to sit. Alternately, you can pipe the frosting on, making a circular bowl on top of your cupcake for your BOBA to sit in. 
2. Spoon about 1 teaspoon of BOBA Tapioca Pearls on top of each frosted cupcake.