Planning an Afternoon Tea

If you've been around the Yankee-Belle for any length of time, you know that I love tea. But one thing I love more than tea is a tea party where I can gather with friends for lively conversation and some yummy finger foods. 

Not long ago, my friend Debbie (who loves tea as much as I do) and I decided to host an afternoon tea luncheon for the ladies in our Sunday school class. Like I said, tea is a nice respite. A break from our fast-paced lives where we actually take the time to sit down and talk and enjoy the company of others. What better way to get to know each other.

The table was set with plain white plates, crystal goblets and, of course, an array of beautiful tea cups I'd inherited from my grandmother, aunt and mother. But what about the food? 

A traditional afternoon tea consists of three courses, so to speak. Sandwiches and savories, scones and desserts. And with so many yummy things out there to choose from, nailing down that menu can be quite a challenge. We knew we wanted to keep things feeling rather fallish, so we opted for recipes that included things like apples, pumpkin, pecans and cranberries. This is what we ultimately came up with.

Typically, the food is served on three-tiered stands with each course on a different level. But since the only three-tier stand Debbie and I had between us held dessert-size plates and we had twelve ladies to feed, we had to improvise.

While my table was large enough to accommodate all of us, there wasn't a lot of room for the food, so desserts were relegated to the buffet behind the table.

These Salted Caramel Cheesecake Bites were amazing. You can find the recipe here.

And Pecan Tassies are always a hit.

Debbie's scones were a feast for the taste buds. The savory apple, cheddar and thyme is on the left, while the sweeter apple ginger scones are on the right.

I think my favorite thing of all, though, was these Cranberry Brie bites.

Brie, cranberry sauce and a sprinkle of chopped pecans all nestled in a Crescent roll cup. Oh, my word, they were amazing. And super easy to make.

Of course, I couldn't let our guest go home empty-handed, so each of them got to take home a little token to remind of them of our time together.

I found this cute little teapot cookie cutter, so I made up a batch of my favorite cut-out cookies (recipe here), then added some simple decorations before tucking each in a cellophane bag and tying it off with some frilly tulle. Easy peasy.

What a fun time we all had. The bond always grows stronger the better you know someone, and this was a delightful way to bring such a sweet group of ladies together and do just that. And when all was said and done, we decided we'd like to do it again. Perhaps in the spring. Oh, just think of all the wonderful food and colorful table settings.

Have you ever thought about hosting an afternoon tea? Perhaps for a bridal shower, baby shower or just friends getting together. What would be on your menu? 

Three time Carol Award finalist Mindy Obenhaus lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, the youngest of her five children and two dogs. She passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. When she's not writing, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her grandchildren. Learn more a mindyobenhaus.com.

Chicken Apple Salad Tea Sandwiches

My friend Debbie and are planning to host a tea later this year, so we ordered several sample-size packages of tea from Tea Embassy in Austin, Texas . 

We're looking, in particular, for dessert teas, which is why so many in the picture are fruity.

Of course, one can't simply sip tea after tea without something to eat, so we put together our own little informal tea party.

Tea for two, if you will.

Debbie brought some delicious cream scones.

Trust me, I'll be hounding her for the recipe for these babies.

Since we're thinking fall for our tea, I made some miniature spice cake cupcakes.

With cream cheese frosting, of course.

But we needed a savory. Something, preferably with apples and maybe a hint of spice. So I grabbed an apple, pulled a leftover grilled chicken breast out of the fridge and set to work.

When you're talking miniature food, these big ol slices of chicken just won't do, so I chopped them up fairly fine.

Then I tossed the chicken into a bowl and set to work on the apple, chopping it into tiny pieces, also.

I added the apple to the chicken, along with about a half teaspoon of cinnamon (because cinnamon goes very well with apples), and stirred everything together.

Next, I chopped up some toasted pecans and added those, along with approximately three tablespoons of mayonnaise. You're welcome to add more if you like, I just didn't want the mayo to overpower all of the other flavors.

Now for the sandwiches. But what if there was something we could do in leu of sandwiches. Something small and fun. I had some frozen phyllo cups, so I filled four of those. But since I still had plenty of chicken salad left over, I decided to do a few sandwiches for comparison purposes. One might taste better than the other.

They were both delicious, but Debbie and I agreed that the phyllo cups were just a tad better. Maybe because they were out of the ordinary.

Over the next two hours, Debbie and I ate, sipped tea and talked until our jaws hurt. Some of the teas were hits, others not so much. This is why the small packages are so nice. And we set a date for our tea. The next mission--come up with a menu. You know that'll be fun.

Have you ever hosted a tea? What are some of your favorite bite-sized morsels?

Three time Carol Award finalist Mindy Obenhaus lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, the youngest of her five children and two dogs. She passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. When she's not writing, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her grandchildren. Learn more a mindyobenhaus.com.

Sunday Afternoon Tea

You know, sometimes life gets crazy. That's when it's extra special to take a timeout with a friend or two and do something fun and relaxing. And if it happens to involve food, it's even better.

My friend, Debbie, and I met for afternoon tea this weekend at one of the bed-and-breakfasts in our little town. By the way, did you know that there is a difference between afternoon tea and high tea? Afternoon tea is what most of us think of. It typically has three courses made up of tea sandwiches and petite savories, scones with clotted cream and jam, and then rounded out with bite-sized desserts. High tea, on the other hand, is served later and is more of a full-size meal served with tea. One website referred to it as a working class family's evening supper. So there you have it. When it comes to tea-time, you are in the know. 

One of the things that always makes afternoon tea feel extra special is the pretty plates and cups. I don't know about you, but I'm a sucker for chintzware.

But the food is the star of the show. 

The savories...

The scones, one savory, one sweet. Here we have a Pimento Cheese scone and a Cookies and Cream scone. The Pimento Cheese one was amazing.

Finally, it's onto the sweets.

And lest we forget the teas. One fun thing about going to tea is getting to sample a couple different varieties. On this day we had Cream Earl Gray which is a pleasant, more delicate version of traditional Earl Gray, and Chocolate Mint Rooibos. That one didn't do much for me, so I stuck with the first tea.

Of course, the best thing of all is sharing that time with friends, catching up on all the things that have gone on in our busy lives. That right there is worth the price of admission.

What would be your favorite part of afternoon tea? The food, getting together with friends or all of the above?

Three time Carol Award finalist Mindy Obenhaus lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, the youngest of her five children and two dogs. She passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. When she's not writing, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her grandchildren. Learn more a mindyobenhaus.com.

Christmas Tea

Sunday I had to privilege of meeting a friend for Christmas tea at one of the bed and breakfasts in our little town. Tea time is always fun, but Christmas tea is an extra special treat. After a week of decorating and hosting a Christmas party, it's a fun way to kick back, relax and savor the season.

This little reindeer proudly announced our table.

And the menu had us full of anticipation as soon as we sat down.

Notice that one of the teas is called Apple Butter. It was an herbal tea blend and I don't know how they did it, but it truly tasted like apple butter. I mean, how one gets a buttery flavor into tea is beyond me.

We started with the scones, mostly because we were quite intrigued by the Pancetta & Romano savory scone.

And it did not disappoint. Tons of flavor and those bits of pancetta... Delicious.

We decided to wait on the Fresh Cranberry and White Chocolate scone until we'd finished our savories.

Besides, the little Goat Cheese and Pomegranate tarts were hard to resist. The goat cheese was smooth instead of overpowering, as it can sometimes be, and the pomegranate seeds were the perfect accompaniment. The flavors blended together in a festive harmony. This is one I may have to try at home.

Don't be fooled by those generic-looking finger sandwiches, though. The Pepper Nut one on white bread was amazing, with bits of yellow bell pepper, pecans and red onion blended with cream cheese. A simple delight.

Finally, we made our way to the sweets, including the Fresh Cranberry and White Chocolate scones I mentioned earlier. 

Be still my heart. The salted caramel on those mini cheesecakes was incredible. You could not even tell that you were eating cheesecake, the caramel was that good. And the aforementioned cranberry/white chocolate scone? Perhaps the star of the entire show. It was the tartness of the fresh cranberries paired with the sweetness of the white chocolate that won me over. So good that I managed to leave with the recipe for those and the salted caramel sauce. Woot, woot!

But the best part of the day was sitting back, enjoying sweet conversation with a friend and remembering the real reason for the season. A baby born in a humble stable, who would be the Savior of the world. Two thousand years later, we're still celebrating that blessed birth. And isn't it the best birthday party of the year?

Okay, so take a look a that menu and the pics. What would be the first thing you'd try? And which recipe would you be most likely to ask for?

Three-time Carol Award finalist, Mindy Obenhaus lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, the youngest of her five children and two dogs. She's passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. When she’s not writing, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her grandchildren. Learn more at www.MindyObenhaus.com 

Taking a Break - A Foodie's Fun Weekend

Mindy here, fresh off a wonderfully relaxing weekend. Saturday, hubby and I decided to combine pleasure and business when we visited the home of Bluebell Ice Cream, Brenham, Texas. If you’ve never had Blue Bell Ice Cream, all I can say is that you’re missing out.

But Brenham isn’t all about ice cream. After our trip to Home Depot for floor tile, we took time to visit downtown Brenham for some lunch.

 

Must be Heaven came highly recommended by my friend, Becky Yauger, who used to live in Brenham. This long-time diner is well-known for their sandwiches and pies. I had the Texas Grill Monte Cristo but, alas, I forgot to take a picture. Probably because I was distracted by the pies.

 

Ever heard of Sawdust Pie?

In case you can't read it, the sign says, "Start with mixing equal parts of shredded coconut, graham cracker crumbs, sugar and chopped pecans to create that unique 'dry' sawdust look. Add egg whites and vanilla extract to make it look like 'wet' sawdust. Bake in a pie shell layers with sliced bananas and topped with a non-dairy whipped topping and sprinkled with finely chopped pecan pieces."

And would you take a look at these beautiful cheesecake slices.

If I hadn’t been so full of sandwich, I might have ordered one. Guess I’ll have to wait for our next trip.

After lunch, we stumbled onto a cute little corner bookstore.

 Well, actually I came to a screeching halt when I saw this display in front of it.

Do you recognize anything familiar?

And would you believe that the Christian fiction section was front and center when you walked into the store? Whoo-hoo!

On Sunday, I had the pleasure of meeting my sister-in-law and a couple of her friends for afternoon tea. Oh, you all know how much I love drinking tea, but afternoon tea is always a special treat. A time to sit and take a breather, enjoy some tasty treats and the company of others.

It’s always fun to drink from pretty tea cups and eat off of china.

Even the tea trivets are special.

 We had our savories.

Scones, one savory, one sweet.

And then the desserts.

 Be still my heart. The coconut lime cake was to-die-for, as was the strawberry shortcake trifle. I loved, loved, LOVED the little mason jars they served them in.

Okay, update on the big house reno.

Sheetrock starts going up today! Yay! However, we received word last week that our three new French-style back doors are going to be delayed because the manufacturer messed up and put door-knob and lock holes (also referred to as double-bored) in all seven panels as opposed to only three like they were supposed to. Boo!

In the meantime, we’re trying to knockout what we can, which generally involves more shopping. Which will, likely, mean another trip to Brenham.

Oh, boy! Cheesecake, here I come!

Now it’s your turn. Have you ever been to an afternoon tea? What was/would be your favorite part? 

 

Mindy Obenhaus lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, the youngest of her five children and two dogs. She's passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. When she’s not writing, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her grandchildren. Learn more at www.MindyObenhaus.com