Afternoon Tea

Being the Anglophile that I am, I absolutely adore afternoon tea. On a sunny California winter day, I can still transport myself back to my beloved, gloomy London with a perfectly hot cup of Earl Grey paired with heart-shaped homemade scones and petite sandwiches made with a variety of breads and shapes, spread with either a small layer of softened butter or alternately with whipped cream cheese to help act as both a moisture barrier and savory “glue.” For this particular tea, I opted for the classic thinly sliced cucumber with dill and cream cheese; chicken salad with dried cranberries and garnished with chives; and sliced heirloom tomatoes with basil leaves. Once the sandwiches are prepared, all crusts are removed and the full sandwiches are cut into various small shapes (rounds, hearts, triangles, fingers) and decoratively arranged on a platter to be covered with a damp paper towel or two and then plastic wrapped before popping into the refrigerator until tea time.

As for my scones, I often use this tried and true Alton Brown recipe – I find his shows so informative, almost like a real cooking class from the comfort of my own couch! For this particular batch, I omitted the currants and, when the dough was rolled out, I used a heart-shaped cookie cutter to create these sweetly festive shapes:

Heart-Shaped Scones

2 c flour
4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/3 c sugar
4 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp shortening
3/4 c cream
1 egg

Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Mix well. Cut in butter and shortening. In a separate bowl, combine cream with beaten egg then add to dry ingredients. Stir in fruit. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Roll dough out and cut into biscuit size rounds (in this case, in Valentine’s Day themed heart shapes). Bake for 15 minutes or until brown.

Top: Topshop plaid cape (old)
Lips: Anastasia Beverly Hills Liquid Lipstick in America Doll
Brows: Anastasia Beverly Hills DIPBROW® Pomade in Auburn

Thinly sliced cucumber with dill and cream cheese finger sandwiches.

Homemade heart-shaped scones.

Chicken salad sandwiches with dried cranberries, garnished with chives.

Sliced heirloom tomato sandwiches with basil leaves