Bless Your Spoon

By Stephanie Williams Dean

Pay homage to the grand tea parties of the past by serving fresh, still warm buns and scones with homemade preserves alongside savory sandwich spreads and elevating them on vintage pedestal cake stands. Include a selection of sweet breads, tarts, mini cakes, and cookies as well.  Your guests will be impressed with your fancy cutouts, roll-ups, horns, and pinwheels.

Enhance flavor with a hint of fresh herbs and vegetables out of your garden. Preserves and marmalades give salute to texture, taste, and color. No tea party is complete without a touch of chocolate at your table too. The tradition has long enjoyed formality and elegance so it calls for your best linens and china. Long live the tea party!

SAVORY SPINACH

PINWHEEL

Dough

2 sticks softened butter

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup cottage cheese

½ tsp. salt

Filling

8 slices crisp, crumbled

   bacon

2 pkgs. chopped spinach (10 oz.)

2 tsp. garlic salt

2 small, chopped onions

2 cups grated cheddar cheese

Cut butter into the flour. Add cottage cheese and salt. Mix and form 3 balls. Chill at least 6 hours. Cook bacon until crisp and drain. Saute spinach and drain. Add salt, onions, and cheese. Crumble bacon into mixture.

Roll out dough on floured surface to 6 X 10 inches. Spread spinach mixture on dough. Roll up jelly-roll fashion. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 45 minutes or until golden. Slice into ½ inch pieces when cool. Makes 3 rolls.

MARMALADE BISCUITS

1 beaten egg

1/3 cup milk

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/3 Tbsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

¼ cup plus 1 Tbsp. solid shortening

1/3 cup any marmalade

In a mixer, beat egg and add milk. Add flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in marmalade and mix well. Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead lightly 10 times. Roll dough ½ inch thick. Cut with a 2-inch cutter. Bake in a 450-degree oven on an ungreased baking sheet for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown or done. Serve with butter and marmalade.

VIRGINIA WEBER’S ORANGE MARMALADE

2 chopped oranges

2 chopped lemons

Cut fruit into wedges, removing middle membrane and seeds. Measure one cup of fruit and add 3 cups of water. Let stand for 6 hours. Boil 20 minutes. Let set overnight. Take cup for cup of fruit and sugar and boil until it turns to jelly (about 25 min.).

CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI TEA BREAD

3 beaten eggs

1 ½ cup sugar

1 stick softened butter

½ tsp. vanilla extract

1 ½ cup flour

½ cup quick cook oats

½ cup cocoa powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp. salt

1 cup milk

1 cup grated zucchini

In a mixer, beat eggs. Add sugar, butter, and vanilla and mix. Add flour, oats, cocoa powder, soda, baking powder, and salt, alternating with milk and mix well. Fold in zucchini and mix. Pour into a greased loaf pan. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 30 min. or until done.

OLD FASHIONED LEMON TEA CAKES

1 egg

1 stick of softened butter

¾ cup sugar

1 ½ tsp. vinegar

½ cup milk

1 ¾ cups sifted, all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp soda

¼ tsp. salt1 tsp. grated lemon peel

Lemon Glaze

Mix ¾ cup sugar with ¼ cup lemon juice.

In a mixer, beat egg. Add butter, sugar, milk, and vinegar and mix well. Add flour, powder, and soda and beat until smooth.  Stir in lemon peel. Drop by teaspoonful on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-14 minutes or until golden or done. Remove and brush tops with glaze if desired.

CHOCOLATE LACE COOKIE

1 cup sugar

1 stick melted butter

¼ cup milk

¼ cup dark corn syrup

½ tsp. vanilla extract

¾ cup sifted all-purpose flour

½ tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

1 cup oats

1 cup chopped pecans

1 cup melted semisweet chocolate chips

In a mixer, combine sugar, butter, milk, syrup, and extract. Add flour, baking powder, salt, and mix well. Stir in oats and pecans.  Drop by teaspoonful, 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 6-8 min. until brown and done. Cool. Spread melted chocolate on the underside of a cookie. Freeze for 10 min.

SHORTBREAD WITH PRESERVES

1 stick softened butter

1/3 bar cream cheese

¼ cup sugar

1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour

1 ½ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. salt

½ cup flaked coconut

½ cup raspberry or any preserves

In a mixer, combine butter, cream cheese, and sugar. Add flour, powder, and salt until fine crumb consistency.  Add coconut, preserves and mix well. Drop by teaspoonful onto ungreased cookie sheet. Make a well in the center with your thumb. Fill center with 1 tsp. preserves. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 10 minutes or until browned and done. Sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar.

LAVENDER SCONE

½ stick softened butter

¼ cup sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 Tbsp. baking powder

2 tsp. fresh chopped lavender flowers

2/3 cup milk, plus extra

In a mixer, cream butter and sugar. Add flour and powder to form a mixture of breadcrumb consistency. Stir in the lavender. Add milk to make a sticky dough. Turn out on a floured surface. Shape dough into a round about 1 inch thick. Cut out scones with a cookie cutter. Brush tops with a little milk and sugar. Sprinkle bits of lavender on top. Bake at 425 degrees on a greased and floured sheet for 10-12 minutes until golden. Serve warm with whipped cream and jam.

FANCY SANDWICHES

CHICKEN SALAD HORNS

15 slices no crust bread

12 oz. chopped, cooked chicken

1 pkg. softened cream cheese (8 0z)

4 Tbsp. softened butter

2 minced scallions

2 tsp. curry powder

1 Tbsp. sugar

½ cup any fruit marmalade

Salt and pepper.

In a mixer, combine all ingredients. After removing crusts from the bread, cut off a corner, rounding it. Spread bread with a filling. Put rounded corner in front of you, and fold one side over the other. Stick the bread in position with a little of the filling. Chill for 30 minutes until firm.

ASPARAGUS ROLL-UPS

15 slices no crust bread

½ lb. crumbled blue cheese

1 pkg. cream cheese (8 oz.)

1 beaten egg

1 Tbsp. mayonnaise

1 Tbsp. melted butter

Caraway seeds

15 blanched asparagus spears

Mix all except asparagus. Spread on bread. Put asparagus spear on end and roll up.

OLIVE SPREAD FOR CUTOUTS

1 loaf of white bread

2/3 pkg. cream cheese (8 oz.)

1 can, 31/4 ripe olives, chopped

½ cup chopped pecans

2 tsp grated onion

¾ Tbsp. mayonnaise

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Mix well. Spread on bread cut out and top with cut out.

VEGETABLE CANAPES

1 loaf of wheat bread rounds or triangles

1 pkg. cream cheese (8 oz.)

1 ½ Tbsp. mayonnaise

¼ cup chopped cucumber

¼ cup minced green pepper

¼ cup minced onion

1 cup grated carrots

¼ tsp. salt

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

Mix well. Spread on one side of bread.

JEZEBEL PINWHEELS

1 loaf wheat bread

1 pkg. cream cheese (8 oz.)

1 apple jelly (10 oz.)

1 pineapple preserves (10 oz.)

3 Tbsp. of horseradish

2 Tbsp. mustard

½ tsp. hot sauce

Pepper to taste

Mix well.  Spread on bread, roll up and slice with sharp knife.

Tips: Bread should be thin. You can purchase specialty bread in a grocery deli and have them slice ¼ inches thick for tea sandwiches.