What is High Tea?
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Hat, Gloves and a china cup, or a chipped mug in a dimly lit kitchen, circa 1969 "To Sir with Love?"
I've always had a vague awareness of the tradition of English Tea. Partly due to the historic Tea Party incident in Boston Harbor, taught in elementary school; and, I believe, a Charlie Brown (Peanuts) cartoon.
And, like most Americans, find my family ancestry is a bit jumbled. While my mother is Czech (50%) with a mixture of English/Welsh/and a drop of Irish (from her father); my father is English/Clan McGregor ( his mother), Sicilian/Irish/Native American (from father). Believe it or not, traditions from each culture seems to find a way into each generation. Some traditions and temperaments are stronger then others. The dominance of these traditions seem the most pronounced in the eldest (myself and paternal grandmother) and the eldest son.
What do I know about tea? Spending a great deal of my childhood in the southern states, I'm familiar with the abomination they call iced Sweet Tea. Also, there is the tea for the masses--Lipton black leaf tea, fashioned in a dunkable bag, string and green tag attached. Neither of these which qualify me to be an authority on the Great Britain ritual of Tea Time.
So, after doing a little bit of research (writers love to conduct research), I tried loose leaf, organic, and herbal tea. I also set out my Royal Albert tea cup and saucer, and my Pioneer Woman tea pot.
(Do not judge me 😊.) Numerous seasons of "Downton Abby" , Princes William and Harry's BBC sound-bites, and now the birth of baby Sussex: Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, have brought Royal traditions front and center here in the U.S.
Afternoon Tea is a tea-related ritual, introduced in Britain in the early 1840s. It evolved as a mini meal to stem the hunger and anticipation of an evening meal at 8 pm. (High Tea because it was eaten at a table.)
Afternoon Tea is a meal composed of sandwiches (usually cut delicately into 'fingers'), scones with clotted cream and jam, sweet pastries and cakes. Interestingly, scones were not a common feature of early Afternoon Tea and were only introduced in the twentieth century. (Afternoon Tea because it was eaten while seated on a chair or sofa.)
Since I do not dine at 8pm, Afternoon Tea is of interest to me. Yes, I also learned that the tea time has evolved to combine the two traditions. However, I'm going to skip over that fact and jump into a plate of sandwiches. This was when I discovered tradition was 2 meals a day were consumed: Breakfast and Dinner. Afternoon Tea was served 2:00-ish and would be the American lunch-hour.
This seems very attractive to me. This means during the weekends, I can indulge in Afternoon Tea while seated at my editing-desk, writing.
This will be so much more pleasant than my current routine of sliced carrots, broccoli, and an apple, a glob of cottage cheese, washed down with a cup of coffee before bolting back to my office.
Who knows, High Tea may even find its way into one of my novels. . .
Cucumber Sandwiches
8 oz cream cheese softened
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 teaspoons chopped fresh dill
1 teaspoon chopped fresh chives
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
salt & pepper to taste
1 long English cucumber thinly sliced
1 loaf sliced bread crusts removed
Instructions
With a hand mixer mix cream cheese and mayonnaise in a small bowl until smooth. Stir in herbs, garlic powder and salt and pepper to taste.
Spread bread slices with cream cheese mixture.
Thinly slice cucumbers. Layer over half of the bread slices. Top with additional herbs if desired.
Top with remaining bread slice, remove crusts if desired and cut each sandwich into 3 pieces.
Serve immediately or cover and store up to 24 hours.
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I do love a good cup of tea as I don't drink coffee at all. Never really liked the taste of it. I have switched my tea to White Tea. I find I like the taste better (it's a little sweeter) and it's supposed to have more antioxidants than Green Tea (which I really dislike). As for the cucumber sandwiches, I'll have to pass. I'd rather have your carrots, broccoli, and apple!
ReplyDeleteIn Kentucky we love "benedictine," a cucumber cheese spread. https://www.kentuckytourism.com/benedictine-spread/
ReplyDeleteI’ve had High Tea at the The Savoy in London. Posh and since it was the Queen’s 90th birthday year the menu consisted of her favourite sandwiches and cakes. the pasty chef used to work in Buckingham Palace so he knew her preferences. Her preferences are not mine. :) THEN later on the trip I had tea in an Irish village in the home of a family who serves lunch to travellers. It was delicious and I still try to replicate the sandwiches served. Egg salad made with salad cream, good Irish cheddar shredded into it and a bit of onion as well. And the scones were fresh out of the oven.... magnificent! High Tea is a big thing here in Canada. Tea Shops abound and I;ve gone several times with my daughters. Lovely, civilised and a break from routine for busy women...Go if you can!
ReplyDeleteI live in Victoria BC which is about as English as it gets in North America, a lot of British settlers back in the day and you can find High Tea and tea shops aplenty. If you come here, ask a local. I know the good ones; most are what I call 'tourist traps'. The Empress Hotel is world-renowned for their High Tea but it is costly. To this day, I make my tea in a pot which I pre-warm and cover with a cozy. None of this tea bag in a cup for me. Earl Grey is still my favorite.
ReplyDeleteI have lots of tea pots and cups but still searching for that perfect cup of tea. A hundred years ago I temporarily was in a school in York. Every afternoon they--the teachers had a tea break while the kids were at recess. Everyone gathered in the teachers' room. You could have coffee or tea and great snacks like the cucumber sandwich.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the recipe! I haven't had cucumber sandwiches in years! And the last time was at High Tea (which was more novelty than worth the steep price (haha get it, steep! I crack myself up). As for brewing tea at home, I like English Breakfast tea and London Fogs (supposedly a west coast Canadian thing).
ReplyDeleteOh, Connie, you crushed my feelings. How can you label our beloved beverage, known in the South as ICE tea—not iced? Excuse me while I wipe the tears from my cheeks before I squeeze a lemon wedge into this abomination in my glass. Note: when I grew up ice tea was not designated as sweet tea because sugar was always added. Calling it sweet tea would have been redundant. Plus, people would have looked at you as if you were weird. I think the label sweet tea came with northerners escaping the rust belt—and joyfully adopting the beverage of the south. *LOL*
ReplyDeleteJoan, YEARS AGO, as a student in Nottingham, England, we were shocked not to find ice tea. We had met some English boys and to show off, we asked where the ice was? They said it was for "drinks." They brought us some and we put it into our tea, as I said to show off. We were also making a point about our American tradition!
DeleteI want some of those cucumber sandwiches. I also love Southern ice tea. I grew up on it (in the North), but restaurants up here didn't used to offer it. They've evolved, though, and like Joan says, most places offer "sweet tea."
ReplyDelete