Afternoon tea High tea, cream tea, the tea party TEA!
The menu‌
Afternoon tea Legend has it that afternoon tea was started in the mid-1800s by the Duchess of Bedford. Around this time, kerosene lamps 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 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.
AFTERNOON TEA (The traditional 4 o'clock tea)
• This is a small meal, not a drink. Traditionally it consists of tea (or coffee) served with the following: • Freshly baked scones served with cream, lemon curd and/or jam • Afternoon tea sandwiches – for example thinly sliced cucumber sandwiches with the crusts cut off. • Assorted pastries
Cream tea aka
Devonshire tea, Devon cream tea or Cornish cream tea
• Freshly baked scones served with clotted cream, lemon curd and/or jam • Cream teas are offered for sale in tea rooms throughout the United Kingdom (especially South West England) and the rest of the Commonwealth, or wherever someone wants to give an impression of British influence
High Tea Basics Traditionally, high tea was a working class meal served at the table at the end of the workday, shortly after five PM. It was 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 onions cakes) and other heavy foods (such as baked beans and cheesy casseroles).
High tea was more of a working class family meal than an elite social gathering.
Scones, cream, curd & jam
It’s all in the cream Clotted cream cream
Double Devonshire cream
accompaniments Jam Preserves Jelly Curd
Tea service set-up
Croquembouche
The Croquembouche is a tower of profiteroles (choux pastry puffs filled with vanilla pastry cream) which are coated in a thin crust of crispy caramel. The “glue” which holds the puffs together in their stunning pyramid shape is melted toffee or chocolate ganache. The delicious pyramid usually rests on a base or stand made of edible nougatine.
http://www.wedaholic.com/archives/croque mbouche_discover_the_new_trend_in_weddi ng_cakes.php
♥ webs of spun sugar cascading down the sides ♥ sugared almonds sticking out in between the puffs and scattered around the base - you could choose dragees or Jordan almonds ♥ a small cake topper or ornament for the top of the tower traditionally made of nougatine ♥ small flowers either studded around the base of the tower and/or sat on the top peak ♥ curls of ribbon ♥ drizzles of melted white, dark or milk ♥ fresh strawberries or other fruit placed around the base of the tower
Nougatine garnishes