Happy Valentine's Day

The Magic Of Love

Love is like magic

And it always will be.

For love still remains

Life's sweet mystery!!

Love works in ways

That are wondrous and strange

And there's nothing in life

That love cannot change!!

Love can transform

The most commonplace

Into beauty and splendor

And sweetness and grace.

Love is unselfish,

Understanding and kind,

For it sees with its heart

And not with its mind!!

Love is the answer

That everyone seeks...

Love is the language,

That every heart speaks.

Love can't be bought,

It is priceless and free,

Love, like pure magic,

Is life's sweet mystery!!

- Helen Steiner Rice -

                                       Wishing you all a "tealightful" filled Valentine's Day!

Victoria Sponge Cake

I recently made Victoria Sponge for a group where I was also asked to give a tea presentation.  In addition to the classic Victoria Sponge I  made one with lemon curd.

Victoria Sponge

1 C flour

1 t baking powder

2 T sour cream

1/4 C butter, melted

2 C favorite preserves or lemon curd

3 eggs

1/4 t salt

3/4 C sugar

1 T lemon juice

Powdered sugar for dusting

Beat eggs with sour cream.

Add sugar and beat on highest speed of mixer for 5 minutes until light.  

Beat in melted butter.

Stir in lemon juice.  Make sure you have removed the seeds,  unlike mine in the picture.

In a separate bowl sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.  Fold gently into wet mixture.

Spread batter into  a greased, wax paper lined 11x15 jelly roll pan.  Make sure you grease the pan before putting in the wax paper and then grease the wax paper before pouring in the batter.  Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes or until cake springs back when touched in the center.  You don't want to over bake it.  The cake will crack easily when you roll it if you do.  If it does crack, you can cover the cake roll with a little more powdered sugar.  

This tea infuser is also great tool for dusting with powdered sugar!

Cool baked cake in pan for 5 minutes.

Dust a tea towel with powdered sugar.  Turn cake out onto the towel and remove the wax paper.  Spread with jam leaving a 1/2" border on all sides.  Roll up in jelly roll fashion and refrigerate for 1 hour to set.  Remove from fridge 15 minutes before serving.  Dust cake roll with powdered sugar and cut into approximately 1 1/2" slices.  Garnish each slice with whipped cream,  fresh fruit and mint.  

For the lemon cake I used the lemon curd recipe in the preceding post.  I definitely liked the lemon much better than  the strawberry jam.  Which one would you prefer?

How to Make Lemon Curd

Lemon Curd made from scratch is a little time consuming but the simply luscious result is well worth the effort.

Lemon Curd

• 4 large eggs
• 3/4 C sugar
• 1 1/2 T freshly grated lemon peel
• 1/2 C freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 6 T butter, cut into 12 pieces

Ingredients and cooking equipment you will need.

Beat eggs with whisk in top of double boiler.  If you don't have a double boiler, you can use a smaller pan that  fits into a larger one.

Whisk in lemon peel, juice and sugar. Be sure to grate the  lemons before you cut them and extract the juice.  Place mixture over simmering water.  Check to make sure the hot water is not touching your double boiler.  If the water is touching the pan with your lemon curd mixture, it may cause cause it to curdle.  Stir constantly with wooden spoon until the mixture is hot to the touch.

When mixture is hot to the touch, add butter one piece at a time stirring until each piece is melted. 

When the Lemon Curd is ready, the mixture will be slightly thickened, glossy, translucent, creamy and should measure 145 on a candy thermometer.  Cool 1 hour , cover and store in the fridge.  Lemon Curd is delicious with scones and a cup of tea, of course.  It is equally delicious as a cake filling, a spread for toast and sugar cookies.  Enjoy and use your imagination. What is your favorite way to enjoy delicious Lemon Curd?

A Welcomed Tea Break from Winter 2011

Recently, I was fortunate to leave my icy, snow filled backyard and  the winter of  2011 behind for a welcomed break to...

warm, sunny Anguilla to share vacation and iced tea on the stunning white sand beaches with dear friends.

It was delightful to see tropical flowers blooming.

And absolutely fabulous to bask in the warm tropical sunshine.

We took a day to do a little shopping on nearby St. Martins and stopped at Hediards to purchase some tea.

.
But of course, all vacations must come to an end.

A farewell sunset on our last night in Anguilla.

If you could take a winter break, where would you go?

A Perfect Fall Tea Filled Afternoon

A few days ago I had the pleasure of joining some dear tea friends that I made during my days at Civil-La-Tea.  We met at The Joy Garden in New Freedom, PA for full afternoon tea.

A welcoming tea table with a beautiful fall afternoon view.

 A comforting bowl of mushroom wild rice soup to begin

Next,  tempting Cream and fragrant Cinnamon Chip Scones.  To be followed by delcious Cucumber tea sandwiches, Blue Cheese and Apple Bruchetta, Asparagus and Swiss on marbled rye, and a mini Quiche.

And for the grand finale a luscious Chocolate Brownie Cup with Chocolate Ganache, Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting and a Shortbread Cookie with Toffee Crumble. 

The special treat were the tea friends around the table sharing tea with me making it a perfect fall tea filled afternoon.  Where will you enjoy tea this fall season?

Pumpkin Bread

Difficult summer gardening and life have taken me away from blogging on a regular basis.  With the end of a long, hot and dry summer,  I've put my garden to bed and plan to blog more often. This Pumpkin Bread recipe is delicious seasonal fall treat.  You can make 5 small loaves with it (loaf pan measuring 6" X 3") or 2 large loaves.  It freezes well and is wonderful to have on hand for the unexpected guest and gift giving.  The recipe below calls for 2 teaspoons of cinnamon but you can use the spice that best suits your taste.  The original recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1 teaspoon of nutmeg.  You can also use Allspice and or Pumpkin Pie Spice. The addition of nuts and raisins are optional.  I personally think they are a tasty addition but again do what suits your own taste. Especially satisfying with your afternoon cup of tea.

Pumpkin Bread

3 C sugar

1C vegetable oil

4 eggs

2C canned pumpkin (16 oz)

2/3 C water

3 1/3 C all purpose flour

2 t baking soda

1 1/2 t salt

2 t cinnamon

1/2 to 3/4 chopped walnuts (optional)

1/2 to 3/4 raisins (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour  loaf pans.  Mix together sugar & water with electric mixer.  Add eggs, pumpkin, water & blend.  Combine remaining dry ingredients and blend slowly.Blend in nuts & raisins.  Fill pans equally & bake 1 hour if using 2 large pans or 45-50 minutes if using 5 small pans.  Loaves are baked when inserted toothpick comes out clean.

 

A Frozen Tea Cocktail

This refreshing tea cocktail  has been a family favorite for many years.   It was my mom's recipe and she kept a frozen container in the freezer to be served at a moment's notice when company dropped by.  We fondly call it "Slush".

Slush

2 C boiling water

4 teaspoons loose tea or 4 teabags

1 C sugar

1 large can frozen  orange juice concentrate

1 large can frozen lemonade concentrate

7 C water

2 C vodka

Brew tea in 2 cups of boiling water.  Add cup of sugar to brewed tea and stir until sugar is dissolved.  Stir in remaining ingredients and freeze in covered container.  Due to the alcohol content, it will not freeze solid but will be of a a "slushy" consistency. Use ice cream scoop to fill glasses and garnish.  You can also serve with a spoon.  Can be enjoyed any time of the year but is especially refreshing on a hot summer evening!

Tea in Paris

Recently, my husband and I were fortunate to celebrate our anniversary by taking a  week long river cruise from Normandy to Paris.  It was a fabulous trip and I absolutely adored Paris!  We will have to return some day as we simply didn't have enough time for everything we wanted to see and do. 

Even though our time was limited, I did my best to visit several tea spots. On our way to Paris, we stopped at Rouen.  Rouen is a charming town with plenty of shopping and historical points of interest.  Most notably where Joan of Arc met her demise.  Cakes was our first tea stop.  The tea maids  at Cakes wore  beautiful red toile aprons which I wanted to purchase.  But a $100 for an apron couldn't be justified so a picture would have to do. No one there spoke English but using the universal language of money I was able to purchase some French Breakfast tea. It was quite robust and satisfying.
 

 Next, was the famous Hediard in Paris.  The walls were a dizzying array of  red tea tins.  Hediard, purveyor of fine teas since 1854, offers more than 200 varieties of tea from many different origins to be enjoyed at any time of day.  They strive to impart the spirit of tea, to encourage the awakening of tastes, to stimulate the desire and satisfy the curiosity for the unknown.   We were able to be seated here for a delicious pot of tea and a to die for French apple tart. 

 At Hediard,  I chose the  famous Hediard blend, one of their most popular black tea blends from China with a delicious subtle bergamot, lemon and sweet orange flavor.

Mariage Freres was the last stop for tea. It was also established in 1864.   Here there was an overwhelming inventory of  600 choices of tea. With the help of a young French salesman,  I chose  Marco Polo.   Another wonderful black tea blend of  several varieties of Chinese and Tibetan fruit and flowers creating  a highly sophisticated bouquet.

And so our trip to France came to an end all too quickly.  I am still enjoying my French tea and dreaming of returning some day.  Have you ever been to France?

Bake Some Tea Cookies for Your "Mum" for Mother's Day

Show your "Mum" some love and bake her a batch of these sweet tea cookies for Mother's Day.  These cookies are scrumptious to nibble with your tea and in between teatimes.  Given to me by a dear grad school friend many years ago,  this recipe has always been my "go to" sugar cut out cookie recipe.  You can decorate the cookies as you wish as shown in the picture above or serve them as is as shown in the picture below. They are equally delicious either way.   Will you be sharing tea with someone on Mother's Day?

Sugar Cookies

Mix together and reserve:

2 C flour

1/2 t baking soda

1/2 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

Cream together:

2/3 C butter

1 C sugar

Blend in:

1 egg. beaten

2 T milk

1/2 t vanilla

1/2 t lemon extract

Blend in dry ingredients.  Chill in fridge 2 hours or until dough can be easily handled.  Roll 1/8" thickness on lightly floured cloth.  Cut  into teapot  shapes with floured teapot cookie cutters.  Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 375 for 10-12 minutes.

Fresh Flowers for Your Tea Table

It's so wonderful that spring is here and with it the arrival of many beautiful spring flowers.  Though there are many lovely artificial flowers there is nothing like fresh flowers for your tea table.  It can be a simple bloom in a decorative vase or a more elaborate bouquet.  It is a good idea to keep the flowers low and unobtrusive.  They should complement the table.  If a tall centerpiece is used,  place it to the side of your table so that your guests will be able to see each other.  I adore Lilacs which are so prevalent right now.  They are an extremely fragrant flower so if you decide to use them,  you should know that your guests enjoy them too.

What flowers do you like to use for your teatime celebrations?  Sipping Union Blue Lady...

Irish Soda Bread Scones

Enjoy these delicious Irish Soda Bread Scones with clotted cream and your favorite cup of Irish tea.  Scones are baked at 375 for 15-20 minutes.  They are ready when tops are browned and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.  See previous post for video on how to make these.  Recipe found in "Teatime in Gettysburg".

An Irish Blessing:  May your blessings outnumber the shamrocks that grow, and may trouble avoid  you wherever you go.  Happy St. Patrick's Day!

How to Keep Your Pot of Tea Hot

 

Over The Top Tea Cozy

Are you looking for a solution to keeping your tea hot while you enjoy your "tea time"?  First, be sure to warm your teapot before brewing.  Fill your teapot with boiling water for a few minutes before use.  Discard this water before brewing your tea.

After you finish brewing your tea, top with a tea cozy.  The tea cozy  provides one solution that at the same time enhances the beauty and interest of "tea time". 

                                          Hug-A-Pot Tea Cozy                           

There are several types of tea cozies. Two of the most popular are over the top and hug-a-pot cozies.  The first is placed over the teapot after brewing.  Brewing your tea with the tea cozy on is not recommended.  It causes the tea to become over brewed and become bitter.  The tea cozy is removed when the tea is poured.  Hug-a-pot cozies are tied onto the teapot after the tea is brewed.  There is no need for removal when the tea is poured.

Gold Colored Metal Tea Warmer

Tea warmers are another solution.  A tea light candle is placed in the tea warmer and the teapot sits on top.  Tea warmers are available in many shapes, sizes and materials.

Using a tea cozy or tea warmer can enhance your "tea time" and enables you to savor the warmth, beauty, and serenity that happens during those moments we linger over a pot of  tea...a refreshing, replenishing, respite beneficial to our well-being.

Do you use a tea cozy or a tea warmer to keep your pot of tea hot?

A Christmas Gift Idea

Looking for a gift for the Tea Lover on your list? This teacup filled with tea, or chocolates would be a perfect answer. Simply fill the teacup with the item of your choice and wrap the teacup in cellophane. Tie with colorful ribbon and include an adorable teapot teaspoon in the bow.

If you like, it would be nice to include the following verse compliments from www.Tea At Home With Olivia.com.

"Teacups are Special Gifts. I give you this gift just from me, to sip and enjoy a cup of tea. Whenever you use it I hope you'll know, the person who gave it admires you so. "


Happy giving...

Tea Tasting at 17 On The Square

Many thanks to all who came to the Tea Tasting. I so enjoyed seeing all of you again . Also, many thanks to all the new tea friends who stopped by. Teas offered for sampling were White Christmas (Chocolate Coconut Cream) , a seasonal favorite, French Caramel Creme Brulee; a rich, creamy flavor of the traditional dessert and Almond Cookie; a green tea with almond and coconut taste, grated coconut and almond flakes.

Please feel free to visit My Tea Spot at 17 On The Square in downtown Gettysburg. There are many antique and vintage treasures there to explore as well. It is a beautifully renovated Civil War building filled with antiques, collectibles, specialty foods, tea, jewelry and art.