Tea on Tuesday - A Springtime Tea

Tea in the Springtime! Imagine a lovely tea in a sunny garden with soft breezes scented with lilac, fine china adorns the table along with scrumptious tea time delicacies. Friends will be arriving soon wearing their best hats ready to chat and while away the hours. 

Enjoy!

Tea On Tuesday

It'll be short and sweet this week, but I think this quote says it all.

Tea and a book sounds lovely right about now......

Fariy Friday

Happy Spring! I almost missed Fairy Friday! Got caught up at work but I remembered just in time.

How wonderful that the first official day of Spring is on a Fairy Friday! It's felt like Spring for the last couple of weeks here in Southern Nevada, but now Spring is officially here! I love iris's and they are usually one of the first Spring flowers to pop out their heads to greet the sun. Enjoy the beauty of Spring!

Have a lovely weekend!

Tea on Tuesday

Time for Tea!

Since it's St. Patrick's Day, how about some Irish Breakfast Tea? Irish Breakfast Tea has a maltier flavor than English breakfast tea due to the strong Assam component. You can read the difference between the English, Irish and Scottish teas here. I didn't even know there was a Scottish Breakfast Tea. I'll have to search out and try it.

But, today is for the Irish so let's get out our Irish Tea Set

Now we need some goodies. I went to the Kerrygold website (the company that makes Irish butter and cheese) and they have a bunch of  recipes that use their butter. Click here for their full site, but here is the recipe for their Irish Scones:

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups (about 8 oz.) all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar, plus additional for sprinkling over tops

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons (2 oz.) cold Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter, cut into pieces

1/3 cup raisins

1/2 cup whole milk

1 large egg, plus additional egg for brushing over tops

Directions:

Heat oven to 425 degrees, sift together flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Using fingertips or pastry blender, rub or cut the butter into flour mixture to form coarse crumbs. Add raisins. whisk together mild and 1 egg. Make a well in the flour mixture; pour in milk mixture. Using a fork, stir just until a soft, moist dough is formed.

Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface; gently knead 1 or 2 times to incorporate loose pieces of dough. (Do not over knead.) Pat dough to 1 1/2 inch thickness. Using a well-floured 2 1/2 inch biscuit cutter or bottom of a glass, cut out about 6 rounds, recombining scraps as necessary. Place rounds on lightly buttered baking sheet. Brush tops with additional beaten egg; sprinkle with additional sugar.

Bake until golden brown, about 14 - 17 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking time for a more even browning. Serve warm with more butter and jam.

Enjoy!

Fairy Friday

Happy Friday All!

It's not officially the first day of Spring but, it certainly feels like it here in Southern Nevada! I love geraniums. Supposedly they are very easy to grow but, I don't seem to have much luck with them. I'm going to give it another try though. I just bought a beautiful, bright red geranium, just like here in the picture. I don't think a garden is true garden without geraniums.Wish me luck!

by Cicely Mary Barker

Have a lovely weekend!

Tea on Tuesday

Everyday is a good day for a cup of tea. But, Tea on Tuesday has a nice ring to it, so on Tuesdays I'll post a little something or other about tea. I need, no want, to post more on my blog. I've always felt that a person's blog is theirs to post as little or as much as they'd like, but I've been lagging way too much.

I like the idea of a regular tea time. Having tea is one of my favorite things and there is plethora of things to write about in regards to tea. Having said this I thing the best place to start is with how to brew a proper pot of tea. These instructions are via the Yorkshire Tea Company. 

Step 1:
Run the tap a little so the water is nicely aerated. Use water that has boiled just once - any more than that and the level of oxygen in the water is reduced and your tea can taste a bit ‘flat’.

Step 2:
Warm the teapot first by swilling boiling water around inside it, then warm the cups with the water from the teapot.

Step 3:
For a four-cup pot, use two teabags. For loose tea, use one teaspoon per person and one for the pot. (Our tea buyers like it really strong and use three or four.)

Step 4:
Add freshly boiled water to the pot, stir and leave to brew for 4-5 minutes depending on how strong you like it.

Step 5:
If you take milk, we recommend a splash of whole or semi-skimmed milk, with sugar if you take it.

Miffy or Tiffy?

People are very particular about their tea, but there’s one aspect of tea making that really sparks debate... milk or tea first? ‘Miffy or Tiffy?’, we call it. You’re bound to have your own theory, and if tea is brewed in a pot, there is no definitive right or wrong answer. If you’re making tea in a cup though, it’s never milk first - it reduces the water temperature so it doesn’t brew properly.

And there you have it! Be sure to use your very best tea china or favorite cup. Even if you're brewing a cup just for yourself, you deserve the very best!

Enjoy!