RECIPES:

Cucumber and Sprouts Tea Sandwiches

Egg Salad and Avocado Tea Sandwiches

Vanilla Bean Cream Scones

Raspberry Lemon Curd

Herbal Iced Tea

My fascination with all things English began as a young woman when my friend gave me my first issue of Victoria magazine. I would pore over it for hours, wishing I could be in those photographs—to sit in the lush green gardens with their bowers of roses and borders of lavender. Each picture was dewy and romantic, like a John Singer Sargent painting.

Some of the most beautiful articles in Victoria I can remember featured garden picnics or sumptuous tea parties. The food was always gorgeous—scones and tea sandwiches, sugared flowers, or tarts covered in berries.

Though we’re not tea drinkers in our family—herbal tea or lemonade is more our style—I love trying to re-create the magic of those tea parties. They are the perfect way to gather the family together for a small, intimate celebration.

For our Garden Tea Party, I found a spot at a park near our home that had a bench and cobblestone walkways. Everyone dressed up, donned their best manners, and off we went. Since the weather was warm and we had no means to heat a kettle, we brought iced herbal tea. It was the perfect complement to our tea sandwiches and scones.

The beauty of a tea party is that everyone can enjoy it. Since it’s not a major meal, if my daughter wants to skip the sandwiches because they don’t resemble candy, I’m okay with that. Teatime food is open to interpretation, and that takes the pressure off everyone.

Celebrate your own tea party somewhere lovely. It could be at your dining room table, in the backyard, or even at a park. Use the time to talk about books you are reading, individually and as a family. Encourage children to leave arguments and complaints at the door and focus on positive conversation.

Cucumber and Sprouts Tea Sandwiches

In my American brain, no tea party is complete without cucumber sandwiches. I made these with German pumpernickel I found at the local grocery store, but any brown bread will do. Makes 16 small tea sandwiches

1⁄4 cup sour cream

2 ounces cream cheese

2 teaspoons lime juice

Pinch of kosher salt

1 teaspoon dill weed

1 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley

8 slices thinly sliced pumpernickel bread

1 English cucumber, very thinly sliced

Handful of radish or alfalfa sprouts

1. In a small bowl, combine sour cream, cream cheese, lime juice, salt, and herbs. Spread on 8 slices of bread. Top 4 of the slices with cucumbers and sprouts. Press the remaining 4 slices of bread, spread side down, on top of the cucumbers and sprouts.
2. Wrap sandwiches with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight. With a very sharp knife, remove crusts and slice into triangular wedges.

Egg Salad and Avocado Tea Sandwiches

Not too long ago, I discovered the delights of pairing ripe avocado with egg salad. Though similar in texture, they form the perfect complement. Makes 16 small tea sandwiches

6 hard-boiled eggs, roughly chopped

1⁄3 cup mayonnaise or Vegenaise

1 tablespoon coarse mustard

4 mini sweet pickles, finely chopped

Pinch of kosher salt

8 slices thinly sliced sourdough bread

1 avocado, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature

1. In a medium bowl, combine eggs, mayonnaise, mustard, pickles, and salt.
2. Spread egg mixture onto 4 slices of bread, and top with avocado slices. Spread the other 4 slices of bread with the butter, and press onto the avocado. Wrap with plastic and refrigerate for 20 minutes. Remove plastic, and with a very sharp knife, cut off crusts and slice each sandwich into 4 long rectangles.

get creative:

Encourage everyone to practice his or her best manners, and make a game of it. Anytime someone makes a faux pas, the person to correct them must use their very best posh accent: “Chahhlie, dahling, would you kindly take your elbows off the table?”

Vanilla Bean Cream Scones

Adding vanilla bean to both the dough and the sugar on top, takes these simple scones to a whole new level. If you can’t find vanilla beans, or you find the price inhibitive, you can simply leave them out, and the scones will still be delicious. No worries. Makes 8 scones

1 vanilla bean

1⁄3 cup sugar, plus 2 tablespoons

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling

21⁄2 teaspoons baking powder

3⁄4 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1 cup heavy cream, plus 1 tablespoon

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Cut the vanilla bean in half. Slice each half the long way, and scrape the seeds. Put the seeds from one half into a large bowl, and scrape the seeds from the other half into a small bowl.
3. In the large bowl with the vanilla bean seeds, add 1⁄3 cup sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk to combine. Add butter pieces, toss to coat, and then, using a pastry cutter or your hands, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal.
4. In a separate bowl, combine 1 cup cream, egg, and vanilla extract. Pour into flour mixture, and stir until just combined.
5. Dust a board or countertop well with flour. While handling it as little as possible, place the dough on the flour and pat down to 1 inch thick. Use a 21⁄2-inch cookie cutter to cut the dough into circles. Place scones on the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart.
6. Mix reserved vanilla bean scrapings with remaining sugar, using a fork or your hands to make sure it is fully incorporated. Pass through a sieve, if desired, to remove vanilla bean fibers.
7. Brush tops of scones with heavy cream, and sprinkle with vanilla sugar. Bake for 12–15 minutes, or until just barely golden brown around the bottom edges.

variations on a theme:

If you don’t have a garden to host the party, pick a local park or prepare a deck or rooftop with potted plants.

Raspberry Lemon Curd

A few years ago, I posted a recipe for Raspberry Lemonade Bars on my blog, which ended up being a big hit. This Raspberry Lemon Curd is nearly the same thing, minus the cookie. It’s faster to make, and you can eat it with a spoon. Makes 11⁄2 cups

1 cup frozen raspberries, defrosted (after they’re defrosted, they look like about 1⁄4 cup)

Zest of 2 lemons

5 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

3 large eggs

1⁄3 cup lemon juice (from about 2 lemons)

Pinch of salt

1. Press raspberries through a fine sieve to extract all the pulp. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, cream together zest, butter, and sugar with the back of a wooden spoon. Incorporate eggs one at a time, and mix until smooth. Add raspberry pulp, lemon juice, and salt. The mixture will be curdled.
3. Pour mixture into a medium saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 10–12 minutes, or until it is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. Strain through a fine sieve into a bowl and cool completely. Keep in the refrigerator or freezer until ready to serve.

books to inspire:

The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Linnea in Monet’s Garden, by Cristina Bjork, Lena Anderson, and Joan Sandin

Tom’s Midnight Garden, by Philippa Pearce

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll

Herbal Iced Tea

This iced tea is half herbal tea, half juice—a perfect way for different preferences to meet in the middle. Serves 4

1 cup boiling water

4 bags fruit-flavored herbal tea, such as Lemon Zinger from Celestial Seasonings

1 cup cold water

1 cup 100% fruit juice, such as white grape, apple, or cranberry

2 cups ice

1 lemon, thinly sliced

1. Pour boiling water over tea bags. Let steep for 2 minutes, then remove tea bags.
2. Place cold water and fruit juice in a pitcher or carafe. Slowly pour in hot herbal tea. Stir in ice and sliced lemon.

music to set the scene:

Violin Concerto no. 1, by Johann Sebastian Bach

Concerto for Guitar, Strings, and B.c. in D Major: I. Allegro, by Antonio Vivaldi

Concerto a 5 in B Flat, op. 9, no. 1 for Violin, Strings, and Continuo, by Tomaso Albinoni