Tea Time

Tea time is a daily occurrence in most English homes, but in American homes, the idea of having afternoon tea on a daily basis never really took hold. I can't imagine why. How nice would it be to carve out a few moments every day to relax!

Although we do not enjoy it every afternoon, we do love the occasional afternoon tea party. Whether daily or occasionally, the concept is the same and usually involves hot tea and other beverages, finger foods and sweets, especially scones.

At fancy tea parties, ladies dress up in their finest apparel including hats and gloves. If you are going to go to the trouble of hosting a tea gathering, why not go all out with the hats, gloves, beautiful table linens and tea recipes like those shown below?

For a more casual affair, visit our Tea Party Table Setting page for some ideas.

Featured Recipe - Tomato Tea Sandwiches

Every great tea gathering has finger sandwiches and one of our favorites are these Tomato Tea Sandwiches. A great food choice for afternoon tea because they are light, tasty and are very easy recipe.

Food Ingredients - Makes 40 tea sandwiches

• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayo
• 1 tsp. dried dill weed
• 1 loaf (24 ounces) sandwich bread
• 2 pounds Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
• 1 bunch fresh basil, for garnish

In a small bowl, combine the sour cream, mayo and dill weed.

Trim the crusts off the bread and cut into circles or squares big enough to hold 1 tomato slice.

Spread the bread with sour cream mixture and top with a tomato slice. Garnish the tea sandwiches with a piece of basil.

These open-face finger sandwiches are tasty and are especially popular with ladies so add them to your baby shower, wedding shower or ladies luncheon food menus.

Other Ideas For Tea Time

In addition to serving a variety of hot teas, like English Breakfast tea or Earl Grey, offer other warm and cool drinks like those below.

Choose a couple of savory bites like, Cucumber Tea Sandwiches or Roasted Red Pepper and Basil Canapes and then add some sweets, like one of the cupcake recipes or scones with jam.