Afternoon Tea Recipes

Afternoon Tea (also called 5 O'Clock tea) is a tradition in quite a few countries - not only Britain where it originated. You can have afternoon tea more or
less anywhere in the world in a high-end hotel. Countries like New Zealand and Australia also keep up the tradition. Also, when school finishes between
3 and 4 in the afternoon, this is just the ticket to serve to your hungry kids.

Afternoon tea usually consists of sandwiches (small and dainty if you have time), small cakes and of course a cup of tea. It can be just sandwiches and
tea or just cakes and tea. Cakes and tea are not to be confused with the tradition of cake and coffee which is enjoyed in the afternoon in many parts of
Europe. In Austria, for example, this would mean a large slice of a lovely chocolate or black forest cake - any gateaux or 'torte'. In Britain, you can simply
enjoy a piece of swiss roll or a scone and jam with your tea.

This means that not only can you fall back on a huge selection, but really anything goes. If you don't have anything homemade to offer, it's perfectly fine to go to the local backery. Here are some ideas:

Swiss Roll with jam or jam and cream
any sort of pound cake
scones with jam or jam and cream
shortbread
any sort of biscuits
various tea breads

If you have friends coming around and you serve them a nice steamy cup of tea and
toasted raisin bread (bought from the local supermarket) with butter, you'll be a
hero. Simple is best. The supermarket around the corner no doubt has a tin or
assorted biscuits - serve them with tea and that's enough.

If, on the other end, you really want to make something special to make the
occasion memorable, then here are a few recipes you can use. Most even freeze
well. Freeze them in portions so when you want to have afternoon tea, you can
take out a small variety to impress your guests. In fact, whenever you make
something you could use for afternoon tea, freeze a small portion just for that.
In no time, you'll have a variety of goodies in your freezer that you can use!

This is a special scone recipe which will impress your guests (don't forget to feeze a few for another occasion):

Orange Poppy Seed Scones

2 1/2 cups all purpose four
1/3 cup of sugar
3 tablespoons of poppy seeds
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
3/4 teaspoon of baking soda
1/4 teaspoon of salt
3/4 cup (that would be 1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
2 teaspoons grated orange peel
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 large egg

Preheat oven to 400F.
Flour large baking sheet lightly.
Mix flour, sugar, poppy seeds, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.
Add butter and rub into mixture until it resembles coarse meal.
Mix in the orange peel.
In another bowl, whisk egg and orange juice together and add to flour mixture, stirring until just blended (don't
   work dough too much)
Turn dough onto lightly floured serface. Knead gently until smooth and cut in half.
Pat each half into 3/4 inch thick circle and cut into 6 wedges. Repeat with other half.
Put wedges on baking sheet and bake about 10 minutes.
Serve warm with jam and thick cream.

This above recipe comes from http://home.att.net

Serving scones warm from the oven and a good quality jam and cream. Add freshly brewed tea and you definitely have a winner!

This is just one recipe you can use to have a great afternoon tea. It's simple to make, freezes well and you can present it with flair. Your guests will want to come again!