‘The ideal tea table should include some sort of hot buttered toast or scone, one or two sorts of sandwiches, a plate of small light cakes, and our friend the luncheon cake. Add a pot of jam or honey, and a plate of brown or white bread and butter – which I implore my readers not to cut too thin – and every eye will sparkle.’ In Lady Sysonby’s Cook Book, published in 1935, the author described the essence of the English tea: a relaxed, informal meal, lacking in any form of pretension.
Tea and breakfast had much in common, in that they were both informal meals, and very English. While breakfast in the English country house was served continuously from about nine till eleven thirty, with members of the family and guests alike coming down when they chose, tea was also very relaxed, with no obligation to be punctual, or even to put in an appearance. At neither meal were the guests waited on; once the tea had been laid out, the footmen left the room, and the guests waited on each other, or helped themselves. Even when there were fifty people staying, as at Eaton Hall, the hostess was still expected to pour out the tea herself, and the guests would pass it from hand to hand until everyone had been served.
Tea was never served in the dining-room. At Flete, when Helen Mildmay and her father were alone, they had tea in the library. When there was a house party, tea was served in the drawing-room. A folding table was carried in and spread with a white cloth by the footmen, who set it up at one end of the room. Small chairs were brought in, and others already in the room were rearranged around the table. There were two teapots, with a choice of China or Indian tea, a silver kettle over a spirit-lamp, and a silver milk jug. To eat, there were usually scones with butter and Devonshire cream and home-made jam, a sticky ginger cake, an iced cake and little chocolate buns. After a day’s shooting, the tea would be more substantial, with croissants baked by Mrs Woodman, who was an expert.
Various houses had their own customs, peculiar to them. In some, tea was served in the nursery, with Nanny presiding; in another, it was served in the billiard room, which was not usually frequented by ladies. Many had special dishes, like chocolate buns, orange jumbles, or ginger hats. The keynote was simplicity, and lack of ostentation, as Constance Spry explains in her classic cookbook: ‘It was not considered good taste to have too many small things – one good plum cake, one light cake, perhaps of the sponge variety, or an orange cake, iced, might appear, and a hot dish of crumpets or buttered toast, anchovy toast or hot teacakes. Even on the most elegant of tea tables it was permissible to leave jam in its pot set on a plate unless you possessed a nice, plain glass jar. It was the fancy dish that was considered inelegant.’
While tea was served at five, or even five thirty, in country houses, in London it was earlier, at four thirty. This was a lighter, more elegant meal, served in the sitting-room, from a tray. A plate of cucumber sandwiches and a light sponge cake were all that most people would expect.
In some circles, bridge teas were very fashionable. The ladies would converge, all wearing hats, for an afternoon of cards and gossip combined. At some point in the proceedings the card tables were covered with white cloths, and an elaborate tea appeared. Bridge rolls were invariably served; these were usually filled with finely chopped egg and cress, the cress forming a delicate green fringe around the edges.
Lower down the social scale, tea meant high tea, which was a hybrid meal, not unlike breakfast, but with sweet things added. This was the main evening meal in working-class homes, and was served whenever the husband got home from work, some time between five and six.
The English high tea was a mixture of savoury and sweet foods, with tea to drink. The savoury element depended on the financial state of the household, and might run to sliced ham, sausages, or fish and chips when things were good. Otherwise it depended largely on bread, which could be spread with butter, margarine, jam, meat or fish paste, according to funds. This was followed by pastries, sweet biscuits or cakes. A light supper followed between nine and ten, but this was more in the nature of a snack before going to bed, and usually consisted of bread and cheese, with cocoa to drink.
It was in the country houses that tea reached its zenith. Although only a few were ever served at one time, the variety of dishes was impressive. The sandwiches alone were legion, and quite different in character from those of today. Apart from a very few, like cucumber or tomato, they were made with complex mixtures of different ingredients, all finely chopped and mixed together, similar to the sandwiches we find today in cities like Vienna and Turin. Hard-boiled eggs were never simply sliced, but chopped and mixed with mayonnaise, mango chutney, or watercress. Cream cheese was combined with chopped walnuts, dates, dried apricots or stem ginger, or with honey, or redcurrant jelly. There were many more savoury fillings than sweet, and brown or white bread was used, or a mixture of both, or soft finger rolls. For picnics or shooting lunches, substantial sandwiches were made with meat or fish: smoked salmon with anchovy butter, rare roast beef with horseradish sauce and sliced tomatoes, or cold game with sauce tartare. For the tea table, lighter versions were made on similar lines, using fillets of Dover sole, minced lobster, or potted shrimps. Vegetables were sometimes used in the form of asparagus spears, or a purée of green peas. Fruit, in the shape of sliced dessert apples, made an unusual filling, but the most exotic must be Mrs Leyel’s rose petal sandwich.
In winter, a hot covered dish, in china or silver, was often to be seen on the tea table. This might hold any of the toasted breads or teacakes described by Constance Spry, or simple sandwiches of jam or marmalade that had been toasted, or even fried.
While a fairly substantial fruit cake, sometimes called a luncheon cake, was often made for picnics, those destined for the tea table were usually lighter. Plain cakes were very popular, and existed in many forms. Most were made on the pound cake principle – using equal weights of eggs, butter, sugar and flour. For a special occasion, they were flavoured with orange or lemon juice, and given a thin icing. More often, they were left very plain, like Madeira cake, seed cake, sand or rice cake. Then there were light sponge cakes, filled with butter cream, or fresh strawberries and whipped cream. For a tea party, an iced chocolate or walnut cake might put in an appearance, while a rich fruit cake was iced for Christmas. Sticky ginger cakes were always popular, often served sliced and spread with butter. All these cakes had something in common, for they shared an essentially English simplicity, unlike the rich and creamy gateaux that were eaten on the Continent.
SAVOURY SANDWICHES
Egg and Mango Chutney Sandwiches
A subtle mixture of flavours, far removed from the simple egg sandwiches of today.
2 large eggs, hard-boiled
2 teaspoons mango chutney
2 tablespoons chopped watercress
6 thin slices of brown bread, 1 day old
20g butter
Hard-boil the eggs; chop them finely with mango chutney and some watercress, and spread the [buttered bread] sandwiches with this mixture. [Remove crusts. Makes 3 rounds, or 12 small sandwiches.] The Gentle Art of Cookery, by Mrs C. F. Leyel and Miss Olga Hartley
Egg and Prawn Sandwiches
An excellent mixture of flavours, this sandwich is equally good for the tea table, a picnic, or a television snack.
2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
180g unshelled prawns, or 85g shelled prawns
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
sea salt and black pepper
6 thin slices of brown bread, 1 day old
85g unsalted butter
1 basket of cress
Mix the chopped eggs with the prawns cut in small chunks (3 to each prawn). Moisten with the mayonnaise and season with salt and pepper. Spread the bread thinly with butter, and lay the egg mixture on top. Scatter the cress over the top, then cover with the remaining slices of bread. Cut off the crusts before serving. Makes 3 rounds, or 12 small sandwiches. AB
Lobster Sandwich
A fabulous sandwich, the best ever. Ideal for a pre-theatre snack, with a green salad and a glass of white wine, or after the theatre, with some hot consommé. Not as extravagant as it sounds: a small lobster will feed two people.
1 x 450g lobster, or 120g lobster flesh, chopped
30g finely chopped celery
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
sea salt and black pepper
4 thin slices of brown bread, 1 day old
30g unsalted butter
You should have roughly 2 tablespoons of chopped celery to 8 tablespoons of chopped lobster. Mix the two together and moisten with the mayonnaise, adding salt and pepper to taste. Spread the bread thinly with butter, and fill the sandwiches with the chopped lobster. Cut off the crusts before serving. Makes 2 rounds, or 8 small sandwiches. White crabmeat can be used instead of lobster. Adapted from Vogue
Potted Shrimp Sandwiches
I remember eating these when I was just eighteen, at Goodwood Races. Potted shrimps are no longer so delicious as they used to be, thanks to modern technology. They are also extremely expensive, but fun on occasion. Potted shrimps can also be made at home (see opposite); when made on holiday, with freshly caught shrimps, these are a revelation.
120g potted shrimps
4 medium-thin slices of brown bread, 1 day old
30g butter
a few drops of lemon juice
freshly ground black pepper
If using bought potted shrimps, turn them out of their cartons while still very cold and discard most of the butter. (Ignore the manufacturer’s instructions about warming the cartons in the oven.) Spread the bread with fresh butter, lay the little shrimps on it and sprinkle with a few drops of lemon juice. Add a little freshly ground black pepper, and make into sandwiches, removing crusts. Makes 2 rounds, or 8 small sandwiches. AB
Potted Shrimps
These should really be made with clarified butter, otherwise you will get a watery deposit in the bottom of the dish. Small prawns can be used instead of shrimps; they are less fiddly to shell, although lacking in flavour.
450g unshelled shrimps, or small prawns
85g butter, preferably clarified (see below)
¼ bay leaf
freshly ground black pepper
a pinch of mace, or nutmeg
(To clarify butter: put 120g butter in a small pan and heat it slowly. When it boils, let it bubble for a few seconds, then pour it into a bowl through a small strainer lined with muslin. Leave to cool, then chill until it has set. Tip out of the bowl and scrape the sediment off the bottom.)
Shell the shrimps, put the (clarified) butter in a bowl standing over a pan of simmering water. When it has melted, add the shrimps and stir gently to mix with the flavourings. Leave over the heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then discard the bay leaf, spoon the shrimps into a straight-sided dish (or 2 oeuf en cocotte dishes), and pour over enough of the butter to almost cover them. Leave to cool, then chill in the refrigerator. Serve in the dish, or dishes, as a first course, with warm brown toast, fresh butter and lemon wedges. Or tip out of the dishes, discard the butter, and use to make sandwiches. Serves 2 as a first course; makes 2–3 rounds of sandwiches.
Potted shrimps can be kept for 1–2 days in the fridge. If covered with a second layer of clarified butter, after the first has set, they may be kept for up to 2 weeks. AB
Sole Sandwiches
This unusual sandwich is perhaps best suited to a late-night supper or TV dinner, as it is too filling for tea, and rather fragile for transporting on a picnic. I use the minimum of butter, and add a little mayonnaise.
1 Dover or lemon sole (or plaice), skinned and filleted (approx. 340g fillets)
55g butter
2 tablespoons milk
sea salt and black pepper
6 thin slices of brown bread, 1 day old
3 tablespoons mayonnaise (optional)
3 teaspoons finely chopped parsley
GARNISH
½ bunch of watercress, cut in sprigs
Fillet a sole and cook it between two plates in the oven. [Dot with 15g of butter, add 2 tablespoons of milk, salt and pepper, and cook for 12 minutes in the oven at 180°C/gas 4, or laid over a large saucepan of boiling water.] Let it get cold. Cut some thin slices of brown bread and butter, lay a thin fillet between [dab with mayonnaise, if used, and salt and pepper], sprinkle with powdered parsley, and serve the sandwiches piled up on a dish with cold watercress as a decoration. [Remove crusts. Makes 3 rounds, or 12 small sandwiches.] The Gentle Art of Cookery, by Mrs C. F. Leyel and Miss Olga Hartley
Watercress and Shrimp Sandwiches
A very good combination for the tea table: sandwiches of white bread filled with fresh shrimps (or prawns), laid on a dish alternating with sandwiches of brown bread filled with watercress.
6 large slices of brown bread, crusts removed
45g butter
½ bunch of watercress
6 large slices of white bread, crusts removed
450g shrimps or prawns, in the shell
juice of ½ a lemon
freshly ground black pepper
Cut brown bread and butter it; pack sprigs of watercress closely all over half the slices; press the top slices firmly down upon the under slices. Do not trim off the characteristic little frill of green leaflets that escape beyond the brown edge of the sandwich; their stiff green border proves the freshness of the sandwich, and adds to its enjoyment. A delicious sandwich is fresh brown bread and cress alternated with white bread sandwiches of pink shrimps. [Shell the shrimps, or prawns, and lay on slices of buttered white bread. Sprinkle with lemon juice and freshly ground black pepper, cover with more buttered bread, press down, then cut each one in half. Arrange both lots of sandwiches on a large flat plate. Makes 3 rounds, or 12 small sandwiches.] Food in England, by Dorothy Hartley
Watercress and Walnut Sandwiches
½ bunch of watercress (4 tablespoons leaves only, finely chopped)
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
4 large thin slices of bread, brown or white
30g unsalted butter
Remove the watercress leaves and chop them quite finely, add the chopped walnuts, and bind with a tablespoon of mayonnaise. Butter the bread thinly, divide the watercress filling in half, and use to make sandwiches as usual. Remove the crusts and cut each round in 4. Makes 2 rounds, or 8 small sandwiches. Adapted from June Platt, in Vogue
SWEET SANDWICHES
Apple Sandwiches
An unusual sandwich, refreshing in hot weather.
4 large thin slices of brown bread
15g unsalted butter
2–3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 Granny Smith, cored and cut in quarters
Spread half the bread thinly with butter, the other half with mayonnaise. Slice the unpeeled apple quarters fairly thinly and lay on the buttered bread. Cover with the rest of the bread and press together lightly. Remove the crusts and cut each sandwich in quarters. Makes 2 rounds: 8 small sandwiches. Adapted from Lady Sysonby’s Cook Book
Cream Cheese and Walnut Sandwiches
This was a very popular combination, often found on the tea table. It is capable of many variations, as you can see.
Basic Sandwich
4 thin slices of brown bread, 1 day old
15g unsalted butter
2 tablespoons cream cheese
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts (8 halves)
Spread half the bread with butter, the other half with cream cheese. Scatter the chopped walnuts over half the slices, and make into sandwiches. Remove crusts, and cut each one into quarters. Makes 2 rounds: 8 sandwiches.
Variation I
Make as for Basic Sandwich, adding 2 tablespoons of chopped dates (4 dates, stoned).
Variation II
Make as for Basic Sandwich, spreading 1½ tablespoons of thick honey over the buttered slices of bread. Add chopped dates as well, if you like, for a very sweet sandwich.
Variation III
Make as for Basic Sandwich, adding 2 tablespoons of chopped stem ginger (2 pieces). Adapted from contemporary sources
Honey and Oatmeal Sandwiches
A delicious and unusual combination.
2 tablespoons coarse oatmeal
4 thin slices of brown bread, 1 day old
30g unsalted butter
3 tablespoons thick honey
Bake the oatmeal in the oven until pale brown. [5–10 minutes at 180°C/gas 4.] Spread buttered brown bread with honey, and sprinkle the browned oatmeal over it [after it has cooled]. Complete the sandwich with top slice in the usual way. [Makes 2 rounds: 8 small sandwiches.] Lady Sysonby’s Cook Book
Toasted Marmalade Sandwiches
These are quite delicious: a welcome addition to any tea table. I cut them simply into 5cm squares. Untoasted marmalade sandwiches are also very good.
4 thin slices of white bread, 1 day old
30g unsalted butter
3 tablespoons orange marmalade
Make thin sandwiches well buttered and spread with orange marmalade. Remove the crusts and cut into pieces about 2.5 by 7.5cm. [Or cut simply into quarters.] These may be made in advance. Cover with a damp cloth till wanted. Then toast quickly on both sides [under the grill], and serve piping hot. June Platt, in Vogue
Rose Petal Sandwiches
When made with the whitest of white bread and bright-pink rose petals these are incredibly pretty. Damask roses have the strongest flavour, but even this is faint, though wonderful. The texture is also interesting.
30g rose petals, preferably bright-pink Damask or old-fashioned roses
55g unsalted butter
4 large thin slices of white bread, 1 day old, crusts removed
[Start 1 day in advance.] Line a dish with rose petals, then place in it some butter [loosely] wrapped in its own paper. Cover the whole with more rose petals, pressing them closely together until the dish is full. Put it in a cool larder [or refrigerator] overnight. Then cut thin slices of [white] bread and spread them with the butter, make into sandwiches, and place [a single layer of overlapping] rose petals on the top of the butter so that the edges of the petals show outside the sandwich. [Makes 2 rounds, or 8 small sandwiches.] The Gentle Art of Cookery, by Mrs C. F. Leyel and Miss Olga Hartley
LARGE CAKES
Iced Lemon (Or Orange) Cake
Simple iced cakes were very popular for teatime, both with grown-ups and children. This one is typical, based on the English pound cake, or French quatre-quarts system, whereby equal weights of eggs, butter, flour and sugar are used. It is quickly made in a food processor, and is also good without the icing.
120g unsalted butter, at room temperature
120g caster sugar
2 large eggs
120g self-raising flour, sifted
1 tablespoon lemon juice
ICING (OPTIONAL)
180g icing sugar, sifted
approx. 3 tablespoons lemon juice
Cut the butter in bits and put in the food processor. Add the caster sugar and cream until blended, then drop in 1 whole egg. Process again, adding 1 tablespoon of flour, then drop in the second egg and process again. Now add the lemon juice, then the rest of the sifted flour and process once more. Turn into an 825ml tin – I use a small rectangular loaf tin – buttered and lined with buttered greaseproof paper. Bake for about 35 minutes at 190°C/gas 5, until the centre is fairly firm when pierced with a fine skewer. Take out of the oven and allow to cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then turn out on to a wire rack to finish cooling.
When it has completely cooled, lay on a flat surface for icing. Heat the lemon juice, then pour it gradually on to the sifted icing sugar, adding just enough to reach the right consistency, so that it will spread easily over the cake. Beat hard until it is totally smooth. Then pour it over the cake, smoothing the sides with a palette knife. (Or just ice the top if preferred.) Leave to set before lifting on to a plate.
This makes a delicious small cake without being too rich; golden brown on the outside and creamy white within, and with a lovely texture. An orange cake may be made by substituting orange juice for lemon juice, and adding the grated rind of 1 orange to the cake mixture, to reinforce the flavour. Makes a 340g cake. AB
Chocolate Sponge Cake
This is an unusually good chocolate cake: easy to make and very light, without being especially rich. One of the nicest things about it is the crust, so do not be tempted to ice it.
4 eggs, separated
180g caster sugar
120g chocolate
85g flour, sifted
½ teaspoon baking powder, sifted
FILLING
120g unsalted butter
85g icing sugar, sifted
Separate yolks from whites, add sugar to yolks with 2 tablespoons of cold water, and beat over hot water till thick and creamy. Meanwhile have the chocolate melted in 4 tablespoons of water, add it to the yolks mixture, add flour and baking powder. Now beat the whites to a stiff froth, mix whites and mixture very lightly together, pour into two well greased [18–20cm] sandwich tins and bake in a moderate oven [180°C/gas 4] for ½ hour. Cream some butter and icing sugar, put between the sponges, dust with [sifted] icing sugar. Food for the Greedy, by Nancy Shaw
Sticky Ginger Cake
An excellent ginger cake, moist and rich; best made a week in advance.
340ml golden syrup
120ml black treacle
85g soft brown sugar
55g unsalted butter
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon mixed spice
285g flour
½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
150ml milk
2 eggs, beaten
Put the syrup, treacle, sugar, butter and spices in a heatproof bowl and warm through for 30 minutes at 130°C/gas ½, or until the butter and sugar have melted. Then remove from the oven and turn up the heat to 170°C/gas 3. Stir in the flour, sifted with the bicarbonate of soda, then finally the milk and beaten eggs. Turn into a 1.5 litre capacity loaf tin which you have lined with buttered greaseproof paper and bake for 1–1½ hours. Take out of the oven and leave for about 20 minutes, then turn out on to a rack to cool. Then wrap in foil and store in an airtight tin or crock for a week or so before using. Cut in thick slices to serve, spread with unsalted butter. Makes a large cake, about 1.15kg. Mrs Arthur James
Madeira Cake
In the eighteenth century, a plain cake of this kind was often served in the morning, with a glass of sherry or Madeira, hence its name. By the twentieth century it was to be found on the tea table, or served with a fruit fool as a pudding. It is one of the best of all plain cakes.
180g unsalted butter
180g caster sugar
3 eggs
45g ground almonds
grated rind of ½ lemon
180g flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder, sifted
1 tablespoon water
This can be made by hand, or in a food processor. (I use a food processor.) Cream the butter and sugar, then add the eggs one at a time, beating (or processing) after each one. If the mixture shows signs of separating, add a spoonful of sifted flour. When all the eggs are incorporated, add the ground almonds and lemon rind. Then add the sifted flour and baking powder, and 1 tablespoon of water. Turn into a 720–825ml loaf tin lined with buttered greaseproof paper and bake for 65 minutes at 180°C/gas 4. On taking out of the oven, cool for about 15 minutes, then remove from the tin, leaving the paper intact, and lay on a rack to finish cooling. Once it is completely cool, wrap in foil and store in an airtight tin or crock. This excellent cake keeps well for several days, and is best eaten at least 1 day after making. AB
Rice Cake
Another of these plain cakes which I find irresistible. They cannot be bought and are rarely made at home. I find them an excellent staple to fall back on over a holiday: for tea, or as accompaniment to an ice, or a fruit compote, or just as a snack.
120g unsalted butter
120g caster sugar
2 eggs
120g self-raising flour
55g ground rice
grated rind of ½ lemon
Beat the butter and sugar to a cream. [Or blend in the food processor.] Beat in the eggs one by one [with 1 tablespoon of flour in between each egg]. Mix the [remaining] flour with the ground rice and lemon rind and stir into the creamed mixture. [All this can be done in the food processor.] Bake in a moderate oven. [45 minutes at 180°C/gas 4, in a small loaf tin holding roughly 720ml, lined with buttered paper.] When the Cook Is Away, by Catherine Ives
Seed Cake
Seed cake is an English phenomenon: enormously popular with some, but anathema to others. George Lassalle, author and cook, claims that, as a boy, he ‘was once frightened by a seed cake in a cricket pavilion’, but I find it delicious in a somewhat austere way. It was a regular feature on English tea tables between the wars, but is rarely seen nowadays.
180g unsalted butter
120g caster sugar
2 large eggs
225g self-raising flour, sifted
½–1 tablespoon caraway seeds
grated rind of ½ large orange
Beat the butter to a cream, sieve the sugar on to it and cream both together. [Or blend in the food processor.] Beat in one egg, and a little of the flour, then the second egg and more flour. When all the eggs and flour are in, add the caraway seeds and orange rind. [If making for the first time, try ½ a tablespoon of seeds, but if you are fond of seed cake use 1 tablespoon.] Beat altogether for about 10 minutes, lifting the mixture up to make it as light as possible. [Or continue to blend in the processor.] Pour the mixture into the paper-lined tin [I use a loaf tin holding 825ml] and bake in a moderate oven. [65 minutes at 170°C/gas 3.] When the Cook Is Away, by Catherine Ives
SMALL CAKES
Brandy Snaps
Brandy snaps were a favourite feature at children’s parties, often filled with whipped cream. They are not hard to make, but rolling each individual one takes a little time.
120g unsalted butter
120g caster sugar
120g golden syrup
120g flour, sifted and warmed
1½ tablespoons ground ginger
1–1½ tablespoons lemon juice
GARNISH (OPTIONAL)
275ml double cream, whipped
1 tablespoon vanilla sugar, or, for grown-ups only, 1 tablespoon caster sugar and 1 teaspoon brandy
Melt butter, sugar, and syrup, add the warmed flour, ginger, and lemon. Stir well and put out on a well-greased baking sheet in teaspoonfuls, 15 cm apart. Bake in a moderate oven until golden brown [180°C/gas 4 for 10–12 minutes], leave for a few moments to cool, then roll up over the thick handle of a wooden spoon and fill with whipped cream [after they have cooled. Makes about 3 dozen. If you find the rolling too lengthy, they can be left to cool flat, on a wire rack, and served as thin ginger biscuits]. The Constance Spry Cookery Book, by Constance Spry and Rosemary Hume
Coconut Pyramids
Coconut was much used as a flavouring in the inter-war years, mostly in sweet dishes like cakes and puddings, but also, to a lesser extent, in savoury dishes flavoured with curry. Rice paper can still be found in old-fashioned grocers, and is very easy to use.
2 egg whites
30g potato flour
180g desiccated coconut
85g vanilla sugar, or caster sugar
¼ teaspoon vanilla essence, if using caster sugar
rice paper
Whisk the whites of egg to a very stiff froth. Sieve the flour, stir it in lightly, also the coconut, sugar, and vanilla essence [if you have no vanilla sugar]. Divide the mixture into small heaps, put them on the baking sheet lined with rice paper and bake in a slow oven until they are light brown. [15–20 minutes at 150°C/gas 2. Once they have cooled, simply lift them off the baking sheet individually, breaking off the rice paper from around the edges. Makes about 12, using a heaped dessertspoon.] When the Cook Is Away, by Catherine Ives
Devonshire Splits
These small crisp scones are reminiscent of country teas in the south-west of England, where clotted cream often takes the place of butter. They are quick and easy to make, especially with a food processor.
180g self-raising flour
a pinch of salt
7g caster sugar
55g unsalted butter
75ml milk
15g butter, melted
Sift dry ingredients [flour, salt and sugar], rub in butter [or blend in processor], mix with milk to a soft dough. Knead lightly to free from cracks, and shape quickly into rounds the size of an egg. Place close together on a buttered tin [baking sheet], brush with melted butter, and bake in a quick oven [25–30 minutes at 200°C/gas 6].
When baked pull apart, and when cold split, spread with jam, and then with Devonshire cream [or thickly whipped cream] and put halves together. [Makes 8–10.] Lady Sysonby’s Cook Book
Melba Toast
My best friend’s grandmother lived in the Ritz, in Paris. I was taken to lunch with her there, when I was sixteen, and we had Melba toast. It became for me the hallmark of a good restaurant, one that is rarely seen today. I am grateful to Prue Leith for allowing me to use her method.
Cut dry white or brown bread into very thin slices and toast them lightly on both sides. Then cut off the crusts and carefully split each slice in two, so that you have twice as many slices, even thinner than before. Lay them, toasted side down, on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour at 130°C/gas ½. Serve after cooling, the same day as made. Prue Leith
Carberry Ginger Hats
These were a country house speciality: small ginger cakes usually served at tea. They also make a delicious pudding, served warm, with the creamy custard sauce (page 161), or the lemon and vanilla sauce (page 162), or with thick cream.
85g plain flour
85g self-raising flour
120g soft brown sugar, dark or light
7g ground ginger
a pinch of mixed spice, or allspice
55g treacle
55g golden syrup
120g unsalted butter
2 medium eggs, beaten
Put flours, sugar, ginger and spices through a sieve into a basin. Melt treacle and syrup with butter in a pan. When only just warm, mix it into the dry ingredients with the well-beaten eggs. [Turn into small greased tins.] Bake in a moderate oven [about 25 minutes at 180°C/gas 4. Makes about 12 small cakes, or 6–8 individual puddings, depending on the size of the tins]. Lady Elphinstone
Macaroons
Ground almonds were the flavour of the month in the 1920s and macaroons were immensely popular, both for tea and for desserts, where they were used as the basis for soufflés and mousses. Most of these dishes are too sweet for modern tastes, but the macaroons themselves are very delicious. Rice paper may be bought at good grocers; but they can always be made without if need be.
120g ground almonds
225g vanilla sugar, or caster sugar
15g rice flour, sifted
2 egg whites
rice paper
6–12 whole almonds, blanched and halved
Put the ground almonds, vanilla (or caster) sugar, rice flour and unbeaten egg whites into a food processor and blend for 2½ minutes. (If you don’t have vanilla sugar, add a few drops of vanilla essence.) Have sheets of rice paper laid on baking trays, and spoon the mixture on to them in round blobs. Bake for 15–20 minutes at 190°C/gas 5. Take out of the oven and press half a blanched almond into the centre of each macaroon. Lift the sheets of rice paper on to wire racks to cool. Later, after they have cooled, lift off each macaroon, breaking the rice paper. Serve the same day, or store in an airtight tin. Makes 12–24, depending on size. Adapted from Kitchen Essays, by Lady Jekyll
Orange Jumbles
These were a favourite teatime speciality in one or two country houses before the war. They are quickly made today, especially with the help of a food processor or mixer. I omit the cochineal.
85g unsalted butter
120g caster sugar
120g coarsely ground almonds
55g flour, sifted
grated rind and juice of 2 small oranges (about 5 tablespoons juice)
a soupçon of cochineal (optional)
Mix [either by hand or in a food processor or mixer, creaming the butter and sugar together first, then adding the other ingredients], and put on a slightly greased baking tin in quantities of about 1 teaspoon to each jumble, allowing room to spread, and bake in a moderate oven. [10–12 minutes at 180°C/gas 4.] They will be the size of teacup rims, and should curl their crisp edges, faintly pink as the underneath of a young mushroom. [Makes about 25. Good served with vanilla ice cream, at lunch or dinner.] Kitchen Essays, by Lady Jekyll
Small Sponge Cakes or Fingers
These were often served at lunch or dinner, as an accompaniment to a fruit fool or ice, as well as at tea. They are quick to make and freeze well. Fat sponge fingers – as opposed to langues de chat – should be made with a piping bag, but I find this too much trouble. I use a langues de chat tin, filling it half full for thin crusty langues de chat, and filled to the brim for big sponge fingers. I have slightly adapted the following recipe in that I prefer to separate the eggs and add the egg whites at the end, but the detailed instructions for preparing the tins are particularly good.
7g clarified butter, melted (see page 191)
55g + 1 teaspoon vanilla sugar, or caster sugar
55g + 1 teaspoon flour, sifted
2 eggs, separated
½ tablespoon milk
Brush the inside of the tins carefully all over with just warm melted clarified butter. If the butter is too hot it will not coat the tins sufficiently thickly. Sift together 1 teaspoon of caster sugar and 1 teaspoon of flour; put these through a hair sieve and mix them well. Coat the whole of the inside of the tins with some of this mixture. It will adhere to the melted butter, and the whole should look evenly covered. Any flour and sugar should be shaken out of the tin. When the inside coating is set, the tins are ready for use.
Beat the egg yolks, add the sugar and beat again over hot water until thick. Then beat till cold. Fold in the slightly warmed flour [alternately with the stiffly beaten egg whites]. No further beating must be done. The mixture is just ‘folded’ together till evenly mixed. Half fill the tins with the mixture. Dust the tops with [the remaining] sifted sugar and flour, and bake in a moderate oven. [180°C/gas 4. Langues de chat take 8–9 minutes, fat sponge fingers 12–14 minutes, and small sponge cakes 15–18 minutes. Makes 24 langues de chat, 12 fat sponge fingers, and 8 small cakes. Allow to cool for 3 minutes after taking out of the oven, then lift out of their tins carefully and lay on a wire rack to cool. Put in plastic bags for freezing, or in an airtight tin for 1–2 days, but best eaten the same day as made.] Good Cookery, by W. G. R. Francillon