Table of contents for May - June 2014 in TeaTime

Even when the weather is warm, I still enjoy drinking hot tea. I live in the South, and, when someone says “tea,” they usually mean “iced sweet tea.” Such tea is often dark and heavily sweetened. I find that good-quality tea properly prepared rarely needs sugar, though some would argue that a touch of sweetener can enhance some flavored teas. At a recent dinner party, I served a variety of unsweetened iced teas—some flavored, some not—and told my guests that a pitcher of simple syrup was on the table for sweetening to taste. I suggested they try their tea selection first to determine if sweetener was even necessary. My friend Lisa took a sip of the raspberry white tea and remarked that though she normally prefers sweet tea, that tea…

Heavenly Bites Strawberry-flavored petits fours are a taste of heaven on a tea tray. ($40.95 for a box of 12, divinedelights.com or 800-443-2836) Strawberry Elegance Diminutive sterling-silver strawberry forks add style to the tea table. Left to right: Reed & Barton Francis I, Wallace Violet, International Royal Danish, and Wallace Grande Baroque. ($39.95 to $79.95; replacements.com or 800-737-5223) Berry Fruity Berry Blast tea from Chai Diaries is a smooth Indian black tea blended with hibiscus, pieces of strawberry, and raspberry flavor. ($10 for 15 pyramid tea bags, mychaidiaries.com or 562-801-9600) Teatime Fun Let Copco’s 2½-quart Strawberry Tea Kettle add a whimsical note to your morning cuppa. ($29.99, amazon.com) Berry Delicious Caffeine-free Wilde Strawberry combines green rooibos with strawberries and bilbury leaves. ($17.95 for a 3.3-ounce tin, zhitea.com or 888-944-4832) Pewter…

Country Ham Scones Yield: 25 scones | Preparation: 25 minutes Bake: 7 to 8 minutes 2 cups self-rising flour, such as White Lily 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper 4 tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces ½ cup finely chopped cooked country ham 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon cold heavy whipping cream, divided • Preheat oven to 450°. • Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside. • In a large bowl, combine flour and pepper, whisking well. Using a pastry blender, cut butter into flour mixture until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add ham, stirring until incorporated. • Add 1 cup cream, stirring until mixture comes together. (If dough seems dry, add more cream, 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough is uniformly moist.) Working gently, bring mixture together…

Ever since the first public document denouncing the British Parliament’s Tea Act was published in the Pennsylvania Gazette in 1773, citizens of this original colony have declared their independent streak, along with their love of tea. Now, 200-plus years later, tearooms are thriving throughout the state. Many wonderful options dot the map within a two-hour loop of Philadelphia, all located in charming historic towns and all offering warm hospitality, great food, and endless cups of tea. To take this tour, begin at Upper Darby, 10 miles west of Philadelphia, make a clockwise loop 100 miles west to Carlisle, and sip your way back, winding up at Wayne in Philly’s Main Line area. Not only will you meet delightful people and drink delicious tea, you’ll be treated to countless history lessons…

F or most of my life, I have favored the concept of tea over the cupful. While notions of genial propriety have swirled around the idea of teatime, I could not stomach the black brew itself unless it came camouflaged as a heavily sugared latte from a cardboard cup—usually with a Starbucks logo. I associated teatime with British old ladies or young girls at play, and thought the main purpose of china was to decorate cabinets. You may imagine my lack of excitement, then, when my mother, ever a lover of Alice in Wonderland, announced the theme for my bridal shower—a tea party. In an effort to establish my own unique tea set, my mother asked each guest to bring a teacup to the shower. On the day of the…

Treasured Family Heirlooms It was a lovely surprise to open your March/April issue and see my mother’s sterling flatware, Towle Old Master, gracing your masthead and the pages of your “Springtime Flowers” patio tea [pages 21–23]. When I was growing up, Old Master was an integral part of every family holiday celebration and company dinner. When my grandmother was no longer able to entertain elegantly, Nanu, as her grandchildren called her, passed her Old Master along to me. The pattern has been well loved and well used by both of us. Thank you for your beautiful magazine that unexpectedly sparked many happy memories. CARRIE KRILL HERSHBERGER Boca Raton, Florida I was delighted to see a knife and spoon in Towle’s Old Master on the masthead page of the March/April issue.…

Is it any wonder that roses are Americans’ favorite flower? We grow them in backyards, in pots, and on arbors. We give them in congratulations, in appreciation, and in sympathy. And roses are the perfect expression of beauty, romance, and love. An intimate tea set among the blooms in a rose garden, complete with scones spiked with rose extract and cookies flavored with raspberry-rose tea, is a lovely way to mark the beginning of summer. Rose Cream Scones Yield: 15 scones Preparation: 20 minutes Bake: 15 minutes 1 cup all-purpose flour 1 cup cake flour, such as Swans Down ½ cup sugar 2 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar 4 tablespoons cold salted butter, cut into pieces ¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon cold heavy whipping…

May 10 Mother’s Day Tea 11:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Tea by Two Bel Air, Maryland Treat your mom to afternoon tea at Tea by Two Tearoom the Saturday before Mother’s Day. Live entertainment will be provided, and every guest will receive a Mother’s Day favor. The cost is $35 per person, and reservations are required. Call 410-838-8611 to make reservations, or visit teabytwo.com for more information. 11 Mother’s Day Tea Luncheon 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Celestial Café Boulder, Colorado Indulge in a Mother’s Day Tea Luncheon, complete with finger sandwiches, miniature savories and sweets, and herbal teas, at the Celestial Café inside the Celestial Seasonings factory in Boulder, Colorado. And afterward, take a free tour of the factory itself. The tea luncheon is $21 for adults and $10…

Photography by Marcy Black Simpson / Tea Pairing by Grace Tea Company TEA sommelier Accompany this gluten-free scone with an impressive tea, such as this selection from Grace Tea Company. Purchase by calling 410-838-8611 or online at gracetea.com. China Oolong Fine Ti Kuan Yin Cherry-Pistachio Scones Yield: 13 scones | Preparation: 15 minutes Bake: 17 to 19 minutes ½ cup chopped dried tart cherries, such as Montmorency 2 cups hot water 1½ cups gluten-free flour* ⅓ cup sugar 1½ teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon salt 3 tablespoons cold salted butter, cut into pieces ⅓ cup chopped roasted salted pistachios ¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon cold heavy whipping cream, divided ½ teaspoon vanilla extract Garnish: fresh cherries • Preheat oven to 350°. • Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.…

Tea has been a part of Mary Greengo’s life almost since the day she was born. “I’ve probably had a cup of tea every day since I was 2 years old,” says the owner of Queen Mary Tea Room in Seattle, Washington. Although Queen Mary (as she is known to her patrons and her employees) is a Seattle native, she has British great-grandparents on both sides of her family. “Drinking tea is just part of my DNA,” she says. Perhaps it’s no surprise that after earning both a culinary degree and a baking and specialty pastry degree, Mary decided to open a tearoom in her hometown 26 years ago. Some people thought she was crazy to start the venture in Seattle, where loose-leaf tea was an unknown commodity at the…

COVER Wedgwood Wild Strawberry ($129.95 for a 5-piece place setting) and teapot ($199.95); Wedgwood Countryware strawberry basket ($239.95); Gorham Chantilly Sterling Lion Anchor flatware ($349.95 for a 5-piece place setting) and strawberry fork ($84.95).* TITLE PAGE Page 2: Porcelain Treasures Margaret cup and saucer ($36.50), 888-832-5005, porcelaintreasures.com. Teapot from private collection. MASTHEAD Page 5: Lenox Sapphire Plume ($195 for a 5-piece place setting), 800-223-4311, lenox.com. Sferra Filetto dinner napkins in lagoon/white ($65 for a set of 4), 877-336-2003, sferra.com. Wallace Continental Bead flatware ($150 for 65-piece set).† Reed & Barton mint julep cup ($65) from Bromberg’s, 205-871-3276, brombergs.com. COME FOR TEA Page 7: Kentucky Derby hat (prices vary) from East Angel Harbor Hats, 509-233-8007, eastangelharbor.com. OUR FAVORITES: ICED TEAS Page 15: All iced-tea glasses from private collection. Overall favorite—Iced Tea…