Thursday, March 14, 2013

A Tea Party - 3-14-2013


“Stands the Church clock at ten to three?
And is there honey still for tea?”

--Rupert Brooke, The Old Vicarage, Grantchester



Good Thursday morning.

It's early yet, but I'm busy getting things ready for our Afternoon Tea gathering.


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I trust the little poem above will not hold true today and that you'll join me around the tea table. 


Afternoon Tea or High Tea ?

Determined by the time of day tea is consumed. Afternoon tea is typically consumed with a small snack between 2 pm and 5 pm. High tea is consumed later in the day, between 5 pm and 7 pm.

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Afternoon Tea Basics

Afternoon tea, also known as 'low tea,' is what most people think of when they hear 'high tea.' It involves things like manners, lace and dainty foods. It is typically served in the mid-afternoon and it was traditionally served on low tables, hence its two names.


Historically, afternoon tea was considered to be a ladies' social occasion, and it is more often enjoyed by women than men to this day.



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High Tea Basics

High tea, on the other hand, is traditionally a working class meal served on a high table at the end of the workday, shortly after five PM. It is a heavy meal of meat dishes (such as steak and kidney pie), fish dishes (such as pickled salmon), baked goods (such as crumpets or, in Ireland, barm brack, vegetables (such as potatoes or onion cakes), and other heavy foods (such as baked beans and cheesy casseroles).

High tea is much more of a working class family meal than it was an elite social gathering.



A Brief History of Afternoon Tea

Legend has it that afternoon tea was started in the mid-1800s by the Duchess of Bedford. Around this time, kerosene lamps were introduced in wealthier homes, and eating a late dinner (around eight or nine PM) became fashionable. At the time, there were only two meals each day -- a mid-morning, breakfast-like meal and the other was an increasingly late dinner-like meal.



The Duchess has a tea named in her honor
credit: http://tzvetkova.wordpress.com/2010/03/21/duchess-of-bedford-tea/

The story goes that the Duchess found herself with a "sinking feeling" (likely fatigue from hunger during the long wait between meals) and decided to have some friends over for assorted snacks and tea (a very fashionable drink at the time). The idea of an afternoon tea gathering spread across high society and became a favorite pastime of ladies of leisure. Later, it spread beyond the highest echelons of society and became more accessible for some other socioeconomic groups.

Today, tea, the drink, is a major component of many British meals, including breakfast, 'elevenses,' afternoon tea and 'tea' (which is more like traditional high tea than afternoon tea).



Our Afternoon Tea

Since our gathering is for afternoon tea, I've chosen pink and gray for our table setting. There's plenty of space available around the table for all who will choose to join us.
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I've chosen Lapsang Souchong as our featured tea of the day. It's a black tea from China and Taiwan. Its unique flavour is produced by lying the leaves out on bamboo trays and allowing smoke from pinewood to permeate through them. It is considered an adventurous tea with a unique smoke flavour and a dark rich colour. Drink with or without milk.




Some tea drinkers believe you get the best flavor from loose-leaf tea. See below for a way to brew loose-leaf tea on a cup without the mess. Love that little dragonfly tea twig, from Stash tea. 




Do you care for a cucumber sandwich?

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Date nut bread, anyone? It's my favorite tea bread. The recipe I use can be be found here.

credit: Chock Full o'Nuts' date-nut bread. Leah Koenig

No afternoon tea would be complete without scones. There's strawberry jam as well:


Or lemon curd if you prefer. M-mmm. Love this stuff! I make my own; very easy and quick.



I wouldn't want anyone to leave hungry, so here's a few more treats to choose from:







Thanks for stopping by and see you for tea next Thursday, same place but a different menu.


18 comments:

  1. Oh, it all looks so good. I'll join you this afternoon as I drink my cup of tea. Scones and lemon curd for me (I wish!).

    Thanks for the explanation of high vs. low tea. I even see some tea houses who don't get this right and say they are serving High Tea in the early afternoon.

    Darla

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    1. Yes, I believe there is some confusion on the matter. High Tea sounds fancier, so I suppose that's the reason it's often called that when served in the afternoon. Thanks for attending the party. :)

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  2. How delicious and pretty everything looks.
    With all your offerings, I could come only once a month. So much to digest. Great!

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    1. We can just eat with our eyes and not add one calorie! But unfortunately, just looking at all the treats makes me hungry.

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  3. delightful! i've never seen that way of steeping loose tea in a cup. i've also never tasted lemon curd. i've noticed that the bookstore close to me sells it in sweet little jars. i should get some.

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    1. If you are interested in making lemon curd I'll be glad to share my recipe. It's quite expensive to purchase it.
      Isn't that a cute way to brew one cup of loose tea? I have a little aluminum tea ball I use occasionally, but like you had never seen the tea twigs with special filters to accommodate them. I want one!

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  4. Wonderful pictures! Love Lemon Curd and would enjoy finding out how to preserve it. Have never done any actual research, (other than taking Tea at The Ritz, The Savoy, And Claridges the last time I was in London), but was told that the difference between High and Low teas, was the inclusion of savory (as opposed to sweet) items, so just adding a sandwich made it High. There was also an English friend who insisted the clotted cream was essential, but I forget why. And the reason that the Upper Class needed the afternoon has been linked to the corset, since an Upper Class woman could not eat enough to make it until dinner, while wearing those tight corsets. But the working woman didn't not wear a corset except for special occasions, so they could eat much more at each meal. Fun, light subject to discuss, which is what I want when sipping tea and eating cakes. Yes, I am a low tea woman - give me those sweets! But I will pass on the Lapsang Souchong - I like my Barbecue smokey, but never my tea.

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    1. Lemon Curd is so good that there's no need to preserve it in this house. In addition to eating it on biscuits, I like to make little individual short pastry crusts and fill with the curd for tarts. Clotted cream and Devonshire Cream are equally nice and seem to be served with scones/preserves a lot in England. I've only seen the imported varieties and its quite expensive....but very good.

      That's an interesting explanation of the afternoon/high teas. Could be true!

      Thanks for joining the tea party today and the interesting topics of discussion you brought to the table.

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  5. I am so pleased that I have just eaten my supper otherwise I would be drooling. Lovely to be reminded of the Old Vicarage at Grantchester, I used to live close by.

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    1. I'm sure you could teach us a thing or two about teas, since yours is a country of tea drinkers. Which is your favorite. How neat that you lived near the Old Vicarage!

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    2. I am personally not a great fan of scented teas but prefer a good quality Assam. I have never noticed that Duchess of Bedford tea before in Tesco, will look next time I am in. It doesn't mention the type of tea on your illustration.

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    3. I have just looked up the tea - it is a Sri Lanka tea, which I like, infused subtly with lemon oil from California and orange oil from Valencia - sounds interesting.

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    4. Thanks for that information, Rosemary. I'm sure I'll never find the Duchess of Bedford tea in my stores, but I may order it online. Sounds interesting. So many teas, so little time!

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  6. I did so enjoy the scone and strawberry jam but would prefer Lady Grey tea,as I find the Souchong too smokey with these treats.The pink and grey is a delightful feminine touch.Ida

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  7. I tried Lady Grey for the first time a while back and I love it too! Do you prefer bags or loose tea, Ida?

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  8. Your tea party was delicious and very pretty Sanda. The pink and gray scheme is very much to my liking, and lemon curd with scones is a top favourite of mine. I would try the Souchong, but am a Lady Grey fan myself. Looking forward to your next tea - high, low, afternoon, whatever :)

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  9. Thanks for coming, Patricia. Many Lady Grey fans about. Till next time!

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  10. Sorry I missed it yesterday but did enjoy it on Friday evening. Since I worked outside all day, this was quite a treat to behold and made me feel better just looking at the pretty pictures and descriptions. Maybe Wayne will look over my shoulder and read this and it will substitute for the evening meal.!

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