Table of contents for November - December 2006 in TeaTime

I love the fact that, as the year comes slowly to an end, we have two great holidays to celebrate. Somehow, these joyous celebrations help me forget that another year is almost over, and it’s time to mail greeting cards, make resolutions, and buy new calendars. I can’t think of a better way to mark the passage of time than by having family and friends come for a Thanksgiving tea, or just for cake and tea. To help with your planning for such an event, we’ve included great recipes, sure to become your treasured favorites. About 12 years ago, I started collecting little Christmas books—you know the ones—they are typically much smaller than other books, they tell a story about the holidays, and they are easy reads. Around mid-November, I…

Tis the Season With the holiday season just a jingle away, we turn our attention to searching out perfect presents for family and friends. There’s no need to fret, just sip a merry cup of tea while browsing through a few of our favorite finds. 1. For a pretty presentation, bundle a bevy of tasty tidbits in a beribboned basket. Tria Market, 205-776-8923. 2. The simple charm of vintage teacup pillows with embroidery details reminds us of the lovely linens in Grandmother’s home. Anthropologie, 800-309-2500. 3. This peacock proudly splashes its plumage on dessert plates and demitasse cups in bright Christmas colors.Kate Spade, 866-999-KATE christmas tidings 1. For the Uptown girl on your list, try the sophisticated scent of “Park Avenue” by Bond No. 9. Sold exclusively at Saks, 877-551-SAKS.…

Home for Christmas To witness the shining, light-filled spectacle of London at Christmas, to see the stories-tall Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center in New York, or to tour the famed Christmas markets of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland—all sound as magical as the holiday itself. But a Christmas tableau filled with friends, with family, and all the comforts of home is truly an experience not to be missed, for those are the moments of which memories are made. Consider the setting before you: a warming pot of tea for two, a crackling fire, and a perfectly iced cake, just waiting to be sliced and served. The scene practically plays itself out on the page—you and yours savoring the quiet grace of the moment, pondering little more than the pleasure of each…

Q. Tell us the story of how Ruth came up with her signature “Constant Comment” tea. A. My grandmother—Ruth Campbell Bigelow—developed “Constant Comment” as a result of believing that the quality of tea in America was not what it should be in the 1940s. The name actually came from all the “comments” she received whenever she served her unique and one-of-a-kind orange and spice tea. Q. Was Ruth involved in the tea business before “Constant Comment?” A. This was her very first venture into the tea business, although my grandmother was also involved with spices and tapioca. Q. It was rather revolutionary for a woman to head a company at that time. What qualities enabled her to compete in a traditionally male field? A. My grandmother had a burning desire…

An inviting fire dances in the hearth, warming the myriad of guests dressed in full feather, both family and friends, young and old, who have gathered for Christmas Eve festivities in the Stahlbaum home. Young Clara Stahlbaum receives a gift from Herr Drosselmeyer, a skilled clock- and toymaker: a handsome nutcracker. Eventually the festive evening winds down and the weary Stahlbaum household settles down to await the arrival of Christmas Day. Clara falls asleep cradling the toy in her arms. And that’s when the real magic begins. Based on the book The Nutcracker and the Mouse King by E.T.A. Hoffman, the familiar German ballet, The Nutcracker, is a treasured Christmastime ritual for many of us who have loved the tale of Clara and her adored nutcracker-turned-prince since our childhoods. We…

Q When I get up from the table at an upscale restaurant before the meal is over, I loosely fold my napkin and leave it on the seat of my chair. Invariably, when I return, the server has refolded it and placed it on the table to the left of my plate, which is where I always place it at the end of the meal. Which is the proper etiquette: leaving it on the table or on the seat of the chair during the meal? A You are, of course, perfectly correct about the napkin placement, but the real question is this: Does the restaurant wait staff understand correct napkin placement? The placement of the napkin on the chair is a “silent signal” that “I’m not finished with my meal…

To the Swiss youngsters, the sweet, unearthly sound of the bells heralds the arrival of Christkindli, a veiled angel in white, who, according to legend, plows through the snowy drifts of Switzerland on a reindeer-drawn sleigh laden with Yuletide gifts for each house and each child. Among those gifts are fresh and fragrant Christmas trees of every shape and size. These are handed over to parents who in turn shoo their children away to decorate them, gilding the tree’s branches with glowing candles, foil-wrapped chocolates, fruits, nuts, and the country’s premier Christmas cookie, Basler brunsli. The children of Basel no doubt take a particular pride in this fact, as the cookie is named for their city, where the cookie originated. A chewy, bittersweet chocolate confection, Basler brunsli is made with…

SNOWFLAKE fairy tea A Winter’s Day Tea For Four Shrimp Mousse with Saffron Aioli in Phyllo Cups Roasted Beef Finger Sandwiches with Kalamata Mustard Butter Caviar Supreme Honey Scones Apricot Preserves Brandy Cream in Chocolate Cups Almond Butter Cookies Lemon Glazed Miniature Tea Cakes The latest addition to the TeaTime family is one we hope will serve you, our readers, for many tea parties to come. Celebrating Tea: A Collection of Menus & Recipes for Teatime is just that—an assortment of tea menus and more than 100 recipes to suit any occasion or season—but in these pages, you will find so much more. Celebrating Tea is also written as a guide for hostesses, offering helpful information on how to prepare for, organize, and orchestrate special occasions with ease and elegance.…

“Let us love winter, for it is the spring of genius.” —Pietro Aretino There is a certain still serenity in an icy winter landscape. The obtrusive sounds of everyday life are muffled between draping graphite skies and layers of forgiving, pristine snow that cover the frozen earth. The graceful silver and white palette extends an uncommon elegance to ordinary scenes as if they were touched by the wave of a wizard’s wand Winter’s argent hues provide a wealth of inspiration for creating a luxurious setting for tea. This exquisite out-of-doors color scheme translates beautifully when reproduced inside and lavished on a teatime tablescape. Begin with the foundation of a silvery, diaphanous tablecloth swirled with curls of snowy white. Assemble creamy dinnerware, edged in scalloped platinum banding, and smaller lucent plates…

The catalyst that helped propel the nation and Philadelphia into war more than two centuries ago, tea is making an elegant comeback. Tea has, at last, come full circle in Philadelphia. The tea timeline in the city known as America’s Cradle of Liberty begins simply as a beloved beverage and moves on to become first an emblem of elegance and, later, a symbol of social revolt. Today, more than two centuries after the passage of the Tea Act that helped ignite the Revolution, tea and all its lovely trappings have once more ascended to a place of prominence in Philadelphia. The city that has always revered all things beautiful, has reclaimed its roots in tea, and is willing, in the spirit of brotherly love for which Philadelphia is so rightly…

Inviting Words Page 9: Holiday greeting card by Karen Adams Design, available at Dorothy McDaniel’s Flower Market. Necessary Things Page 10, 12: Gourmet tea products, available at Tria Market. Vintage teacup, embroidered pillows, available at Anthropologie. Peacock dinnerware and book, by Kate Spade. Perfume, available exclusively at Saks. Paper products, available at Annabelle’s. Fragrances, by Thymes. Basler Brunsli Page 13: “Carlton Gold” by Royal Crown Derby dinner plate, hand-painted dessert plate, available at Bromberg’s. Tea Wares Page 14: Petit four server and bon bon server, privately owned. Lemon fork, sugar shell, and cream ladle, available at Beverly Ruff Antique Linens and Accessories. Enchanting Details Page 14: “Provincial Garden” dinnerware by Spode. Winter Interlude Page 21-23: Smoke glass goblets and compotes, dinner plates, mugs and saucers, and tea set, available at…

Treasured holiday customs vary from culture to culture, and family to family. Cookie swaps, candles in the windows, towering trees laden with an array of hand-crafted ornaments, advent wreaths to proclaim the season of the Christ child’s birth—the ways we celebrate the season are many, and reflect our personal choices. One custom that gets little attention, but which binds us together in celebration, is the time-honored practice of sending greetings at the coming of the holiday season. For our Christmas mailing, we’ve chosen a charming hand-glittered card from the collection by Karen Adams Designs, and we’ll add a personal note inviting our friends to come and share a cup of holiday tea.…

It’s not uncommon, while combing through vintage offerings of antique shops, to come across silver pieces that are quite unique. It may be easy to guess the use of some of these pieces, but for others, the purpose is something of a puzzle. A little investigative work will solve the mystery. The lemon fork has three, or less commonly, two, splayed tines and is about the same size as a salad fork. It is used to serve lemon slices, but can also be utilized for serving sliced fruit, melon balls, and butter pats. Piercing the slice of lemon releases the juices of the fruit into the cup of tea. A bonbon server is usually between eight and nine inches long and, as the name implies, is used to serve bonbons…

Though it is all too often viewed as little more than a preamble to Christmas and an excuse to overindulge in turkey and all the trimmings, no other national holiday symbolizes faith and perseverance quite as much as Thanksgiving. In 1623, the pilgrims in Plymouth faced not only a critical shortage of food, but also a devastating drought as well. Edward Winslow, who would one day serve as governor of Plymouth colony, wrote of the seemingly hopeless conditions. “Our beans also ran not up according to their wonted manner, but stood at a stay, many being parched away, as though they had been scorched before the fire. Now were our hopes overthrown, and we discouraged, our joy being turned into mourning.” At the height of their hopelessness, however, the colonists’…

Oh, the inexplicable pleasure of gathering one’s favorite book, reading glasses, a pot of tea for warmth and comfort, and a delectable scone, and retreating from the cares of the day. Such times define life, for it is in these pampered moments—especially during the holiday season—that we renew and refresh our sense of self. For these stolen moments, we chose a variation of scone inspired by the much-maligned fruitcake. However, the differences are greater than the similarities. The dense, moist interior, studded with an assortment of candied fruits, and enclosed by a crisp, outer shell, gives new definition to the term ‘fruitcake.’ VANILLA CREAM Makes 11/4 cups 1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, softened 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar 1/4 cup sour cream 1/2 cup heavy cream 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract 1.…