Darling Harry,
We had such a smashing picnic and met a multitude of your friends last Tuesday. Mr. Woppit introduced them all, but I’m afraid I got quite lost after the first ten or so. The balloon, however, was nearly lost after someone naughty nibbled through the rope and it started to sail off!
The mansion grounds are absolutely lovely, and the weather was splendid; parasols were most definitely needed. We had a lovely wander through the maze, although we never did seem to find the center. I carefully laid a trail of jelly beans to mark our path, as there seemed to be a magnet disruptor beam rendering the compass useless. Unfortunately, I think someone naughty must have been eating them as fast as I laid them down.
After tea, we had a game of cards and were shown a selection of amazing magic tricks. I’m fairly sure the magical disappearance and reappearance of several winning cards at opportune moments were purely coincidental and not an attempt to cheat by someone naughty!
We ate all the truffles, I’m afraid, but I saved you some coriander from the sandwiches.
All my Love,
Emilly
Mr. Woppit cordially invites you to join him and his friends for a picnic tea in the garden.
3:30 p.m. or thereabouts, depending on the prevailing wind.
There is ample space for tethering your airship or balloon on the south lawn, and party games and croquet will be played for an assortment of delightful prizes throughout the afternoon. Do feel free to bring your own tablecloth and cushions.
Practical clothing is suggested, though waistcoats and bowties are optional.
RSVP
Gingerbread Woppits
Strawberry and Rose Conserve
Tea Time Truffles
Tipsy Turvey Tea Bread
Magical Fruit Scones
Paddington Cocktails
Cheese Straws
Coriander, Choppped Hazelnut and Cream Cheese Sandwiches
Banana and Brown Sugar Sandwiches
Jelly Beans
Darjeeling or Fruit Tea
When entering a garden maze, it is always advisable to keep some biscuits upon one’s person; one never knows just how long it may take to find the center and, afterwards, the egress.
Lady Jessica Shaw-Morton, adventurer and lady of fashion, swears by them as a restorative from the fatigues of exploration. Camping overnight in the very center of Hampton Court’s yew lined puzzle, she once fended off a whole flock of racing pigeons with just one small biscuit from Fortnum and Masons. Quite how this was achieved depends rather on whom you ask; suggestions vary from throwing it as far as possible and shouting “fetch,” to bribing a fellow maze explorer and dashing linguist to tell them politely that racing season was over.
Projectile or tea dueling component, these delightful fancies are sure to find a welcome place on any tea table, at home or, indeed, abroad.
225g (8 oz.) plain flour
5g (1 tsp.) ginger
5g (1 tsp.) cinnamon
115g (4 oz.) butter or margarine
115g (4 oz.) soft dark brown sugar
30ml (2 tbsp.) black treacle (blackstrap molasses)
30ml (2 tbsp.) golden syrup
Icing sugar to coat your board
Small packet of colored ready-to-roll icing or rolled fondant
White fat or shortening
Gold, bronze or silver edible dust powder
Cling film (plastic wrap)
Rubber stamps
*Makes 10–12 biscuits
Early adventurers often found their exploits funded by wealthy patrons who desired spices from foreign lands. Ginger had a mysterious allure, and many tall tales were told in medieval times about its origins. One thirteenth-century French courtier thought it was fished from the Nile using nets, along with rhubarb, cinnamon and aloes! These exotic things from the Far East made lengthy journeys from countries such as India and China, passing through many hands for many months as trade caravans wound their way across the world. How much simpler things have become with the advent of fast ships, railways and aeronautics!
The fragrant smell of rose gardens and strawberries is well known to participants in the annual Steam Croquet match in Little Puddlington-on-the-Ether. Customarily played as “Gentlemen versus Others,” opposing teams have occasionally included automatons, Venusians and even, on one occasion, a monkey butler. The ensuing chaos always draws a large crowd. Rules are often hotly debated, alliances forged and grudges forgiven only for new ones to be made.
The croquet match is an opportunity for gentlemen inventors to see and be seen, for their lady friends to display their biggest hats and finest lace, and for everyone to retire to the pavilion for a fantastic afternoon tea of warm buttered scones with conserve and cream.
575g (11⁄4 lb.) jam sugar
Juice of 1⁄2 lemon
675g (11⁄2 lb.) strawberries cut into 1⁄2" (1cm) pieces (if they are only small strawberries, keep them whole)
5ml (1 tsp.) balsamic vinegar
50ml (2 fl. oz.) crème de rose, rose cordial (or a handful of highly scented rose leaves and petals in a muslin bag)
Four 225ml (8 oz.) jam jars
*Makes four 225ml (8 oz.) jars
Many people question the difference between a conserve, marmalade, jam and jelly. While there are no set definitions, I would suggest the following:
Jelly—A fairly rigidly set delicacy created with just the juice of the fruit.
Jam—A slightly softer set spread made using the whole fruit. It may be sieved to create a smooth, seedless and skinless concoction, or the fruit may be left unsieved complete with pips and texture.
Marmalade—A spread made from citrus fruit that involves using the chopped peel to add interest and flavor.
Conserve—A versatile preserve containing whole or large chunks of fruit in thick syrup, often with other flavors added like liqueurs or spices.
For an autumnal picnic on the grounds of your favorite stately home, Bramble gin jelly is the perfect reward for an afternoon’s hard blackberry picking. Just follow the instructions below to create 4 jars full for your next soiree!
Just the rustle of a chocolate bar being unwrapped is enough to tear Mr. Woppit away from whatever he happens to be busy with, so this recipe is definitely a favorite. It was first made by an exotic beauty from Bradford who had gained ideas above her station while working as a housemaid for a notable antiquary in Paris. Her subsequent escape from a life of servitude in a hot air balloon, and her rise to fame as the most successful crinoline maker in all of London is, of course, well known; though, her true identity remains a closely guarded secret to this day.
Despite being mobbed by newspaper boys whenever her lofty designs are escorted to a new owner, she still makes time to have tea with her friends once a fortnight, where Mr. Woppit flirts outrageously.
15g (1 tbsp.) fragrant Rose Pouchong loose black tea
120ml (4 fl. oz.) boiling water
200g (7 oz.) milk chocolate
200g (7 oz.) dark chocolate
300ml (10 fl. oz.) double cream
Iridescent dust, cocoa powder or icing sugar
There are many delicious teas available, all of which will impart their own particular flavor to the truffle. For a wonderfully smoky, exotic sweet flavor, try Russian caravan. Or, for more of a citrus note, use a good quality Earl Grey flavored with bergamot oil. Some particular blends such as Twining’s Earl Grey with Lavender or the East India Company’s Bombay Chai are very delicious with chocolate. Serve these treats alongside cups of tea from the same blend.
Try rolling the truffles in cocoa powder for a dark, sophisticated extravagance. You could also try icing sugar, sugar strands or edible glitter.
For an indulgent dark chocolate truffle, replace the 200g (7 oz.) milk chocolate with an extra 200g (7 oz.) dark chocolate. For a lighter, sweeter truffle replace the 200g (7 oz.) dark chocolate with 200g (7 oz.) white chocolate.
Lady Elsie’s recipe is a closely guarded secret, passed down through the family as a legacy from Lady Violet. Its glorious crumbly texture has been known to divert gardeners from re-painting roses and urchins from chimney-cleaning duties, and when the Red Queen came for tea she was thoroughly distracted and quite forgot to demand anybody’s head!
Each member of the household has a favorite method for its consumption. It is eaten cold and sliced and spread with butter by the dashing eldest, and warm with ice cream by the naughty youngest. The butler loves the way Cook makes any leftovers into bread and butter pudding, and even the bear in the hall of Sherwood Manor was once found to be clutching a slice slathered in marmalade in his sticky paw!
115g (4 oz.) mixed dried fruit
115g (4 oz.) caster sugar
150ml (1⁄4 pt.) hot tea
3g (2⁄3 tbsp.) marmalade
1 egg
225g (8 oz.) self-rising flour
For the perfect cup of tea to go with your perfectly delightful tea bread, why not try making your own flavored sugar lumps? These are a lovely way to add a subtle flavor to a cup of tea or cocktail. All you need to start is a flexible silicone ice cube mold, some caster sugar and a suitable flavor. My favorites include lavender, rose and mint.
To make the lumps, put 55g (2 oz.) of caster sugar and 30g (2 heaping tbsp.) of the flavoring agent (lavender flowers, rose petals, mint leaves, etc.) into a grinder or blender. Add two drops of a food coloring and pulse until the mixture resembles damp sand. Press teaspoons of the mixture into the ice cube mold, firmly packing each one and dusting any excess from around the edges. Leave to dry out completely somewhere warm, like an airing cupboard, for a few days. Unmold carefully and store in an airtight tin until needed.
Tea was such an expensive commodity in the early days of its import that even when the brew became cold in the pot, every last bit of it was used up. By soaking dried fruit overnight in the last of the tea, it restored a delicious plumpness and imparted a delicate flavor.
Many different regions of England developed their own tea loaf or tea bread recipes such as the Bara Brith of Wales or Yorkshire Brack. They are not really bread loaves as they generally contain no yeast and taste more like a delicate, fatless fruitcake.
If the sun is over the yardarm, and you fancy a tipple with your tea bread, why not try a Paddington Cocktail?
For two servings you will need: 4 measures of gin, 2 measures of marmalade (the runnier the better) and the juice of 1 lime.
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice, add cocktail ingredients and shake well until a frost forms on the outside of the shaker. Strain into glasses half filled with crushed ice. Garnish with a twist of lime peel.
Different types of marmalade will give a different character to this cocktail. For example, The Admiral’s Marmalade (p. 104) adds warm treacle Caribbean flavors, while lemon marmalade (p. 89) creates a light citrus drink.
As the balloon swept dangerously close to the ground, a cry of “drop the ballast! Quickly!” went up. First went the heavy urn of tea, then the croquet set, followed by the traveling games compendium. Mr. Woppit’s friends and relations raced along in the shadow, calling encouragement and pausing to gather the abandoned items. More objects flew from the basket—a jar of jam, then a pair of bloomers caught like a flag from a trailing rope, but Miss Dashwood leapt to defend the hamper. “Not the scones! Never the scones!”
A gust of wind flicked the balloon high into the air as, with a final burst of the burner, it cleared the tree tops and sailed off, scones still onboard, much to the disappointment of the onlookers.
5g (1 tsp.) baking powder
225g (8 oz.) self-rising flour
Pinch of salt
55g (2 oz.) butter
40g (11⁄2 oz.) sugar
115g (4 oz.) mixed dried fruit, the more interesting the better (I used dried raspberries and apricots)
150 ml (5 fl. oz.) coconut milk
*Makes 8 scones
Look for really fun dried or semi-dried fruits to use in this recipe. Dried cherries and mango go well together, as do dried blueberries and raspberries. I’d suggest using just two types of fruit so as not to confuse the flavors too much. The coconut milk gives it a richness rather than an overwhelming coconut flavor, so you can always add 15g (1 tbsp.) of desiccated coconut if you want to up the coconut flavor element.
If you want to dry some fruit yourself, choose unblemished fruit. Cut into pieces as necessary and soak in equal amounts of lemon juice and water for 10 minutes. Cover a deep tin tightly with muslin to make a hammock of sorts. Arrange the fruit on the muslin without touching. Place in a very cool oven (140° F/60° C)) for about 5 hours, turning several times during desiccation. Small pieces of fruit like raspberries will dry much faster than a whole peach! Remember, the fruit will shrink hugely when dried—a raisin is just a dried grape, after all!
