The Journey Continues with the Victorian Tea Society… Themed Teas and Menus
I love to develop menus around themes as it allows me to be creative. One of our most successful Victorian Tea Society teas was our Princess Tea. Adults and children were invited to come in costume as desired. Of course, all our little princesses wore their best outfit and we had a lot of adult princesses as well. Two menus were planned: one for the adults and one for the kids.
Princess Tea Kids’ Menu
- Snow White Scone, Devonshire Cream and Strawberry Jam
- Mr. Toad Jello Jigglers
- Cinderella Cream Cheese & Jelly Sandwich (crown shape)
- Prince Charming Fruit Kabobs
- Tweedle Dee Stuffed Celery
- Magic Carpet Meatballs
- Princess Jasmine Ice Cream Hat
- Peter Pan Pink Lemonade
Princess Tea Adult Menu
- Snow White Scone, Devonshire Cream and Strawberry Jam
- Cucumber Open Faced Sandwich (round)
- Egg Salad Sandwich (closed on wheat bread)
- Chick Little Chicken Salad in Lettuce Bowl
- Prince Charming Fruit Kabobs (same as kids’)
- Magic Carpet Meatballs (same as kids’)
- Tinkerbell Lemon Trifle
- Royal Hot Tea
Although I learned a lot in developing this menu and I certainly would not put Ice Cream Hats on the menu again, although it was a cute plate. It was a challenge to find menu items that would suit both adults and kids; however, it makes preparation so much easier to serve adults and children the same menu. This tea experience was so much fun! It was fabulous seeing all the princesses, small and large, having fun. The little princesses were led on a parade through the rose garden. My own granddaughter Lauren (shown in the above photo) attended and still talks about this tea.
Witches’ Brew Tea
Another great themed tea was our Witches’ Brew Tea. Although we advertised this as a tea for all ages, few children attended. However, we had a whole colony of adult witches! This surprised me that so many of our adults dressed up. Regardless of age, everyone had a great time!
Shades of Earl Grey Tea
A few years ago, I chaired our March tea which is usually in the Kellogg House and is our smallest tea (guest wise). I chose the theme as “Shades of Earl Grey” playing on the ever popular “50 Shades of Grey.” Plus TeaTime Magazine had just done an article on the Earl and Lady Grey that piqued my interest. On our promotional flyer I wrote, “Enjoy all things Earl Grey as you are treated to both the history and the flavor of Earl Grey and his tea. Meet Lady Grey who popularized Earl Grey Tea. Members of the Victorian Tea Society dressed in period attire will serve a delicious assortment of sweet and savory morsels along with scones and, of course, Earl Grey tea.”
At the tea, the Earl and Lady Grey regaled our guests with how the tea got started and some of the history. Even Mr. Twining was there. At that time, we had members who were period enactors and they played these parts quite well. In my research I found out that the Earl Grey Estate has a tea parlor. So, I looked at their menu and tried to replicate their menu as much as possible. Plus, I chose menu items that incorporated Earl Grey tea into the recipe. That’s how I discovered the Earl Grey chicken salad—that was my creation. We made the Victoria tea cake and found out that making multiple batches would prove challenging. Here is the menu:
“Shades of Earl Grey” Tea Menu
This tea menu was developed based upon some of the famous cakes served in the Earl Grey Teahouse at Howick Hall (Home of the Earl Grey family) and upon the flavor of the earl grey tea leaves.
- Cherry Scone with Jam & Devonshire Cream
- Brie & Raisin Crostini
- Gingered Pea Tea Sandwich
- Earl Grey Chicken Salad Cup
- Ham & Radish Tea Sandwich
- Cumin Cream-Cheese Crudité
- Victoria Sponge Cake
- Rhubarb Lemon Cake
- Earl Grey Tea Cake
- Peanut Butter & Toffee Bar
- Dark Chocolate & Earl Grey Tea Cookie
- Accompanied by hot Earl Grey Tea, of course!
Tea Organization and Planning
Many of these recipes I found in TeaTime Magazine. Just a few notes on TeaTime Magazine. Another reason I love to create tea menus is because I get to look at all my TeaTime Magazines, Victoria Magazines, Celebrate Magazine, TeaTime books, and all my other cookbooks (and I have many!). TeaTime Magazine certainly inspires me and I have used dozens of their recipes over the years.
Just an organizational tool to keep my tea recipes—I copy (in color of course) the recipes I intend to use from the magazine or book of which usually has a photo. Then I put the copy of each recipe into a plastic notebook sleeve. I keep all my tea recipes in a jumbo binder at my disposal. I also make notations on the recipes that I have used as to whether I liked them and any other important detail. That way, I know whether to use the recipe for another tea.
Since I put on so many teas a year at my home and plan a lot of the menus for the Victorian Tea Society Teas, I also organize recipes for a tea in a small binder. After the tea is finished, I file the recipes back into my jumbo binder of recipes. Using plastic sleeves also protects the recipes as we all know what happens to a recipe card when we cook.
Since planning tea menus is a creative process for me, I don’t always like to use the same recipes for all teas. I give myself the liberty of choosing about two new recipes for savories and two new recipes for the desserts. That way I don’t get bored. My daughter, who you will find out about later is even braver, sometimes uses all new recipes!
Over time, I have gotten better at choosing recipes that are simple to make and delicious to eat. And I have learned to do a trial cook/bake on new recipes. My neighbors and friends love these trials!
Liz and Her Scones
I would be remiss if I didn’t finish off this section of the Victorian Tea Society with my story about Liz and her scones. Liz is the Englishwoman who served us my first-ever tea in the Kellogg House several years ago. She was one of the main reasons I joined the Victorian Tea Society. Liz continues to be one of the leaders and driving forces in our organization. And she also makes the best scones ever! I have included the recipe that she uses. I don’t think she originated the recipe, but she makes it the best, so we call them “Liz’s Scones.” Here is the recipe:
Traditional Scones
Makes about 24 scones
- 3 cups self-rising flour
- 1-1/2 sticks of butter
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 cup milk
- 1 egg white (save the yolk)
- ¾ cups currants or raisins or dried cranberries
- 1-1/2 TB grated orange peel
Heat oven to 450 degrees
Put flour, sugar and butter into a food processor to blend until mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Put into a mixing bowl. Add the dried fruit and orange peel.
Add the egg white to the milk and mix together with a whisk. Add this liquid a little at a time to the other ingredients, stirring until it forms a soft dough. You may not use all the liquid, or you may have to add a little more…it varies!
Turn out onto a floured surface and knead very lightly. Handle the dough as little as possible.
Roll out to ½ to ¾ inch thickness and cut with a 2” round cutter. Place scones on ungreased baking sheet. Mix the reserved egg yolk with a little milk and use to brush the tops. Bake about 10-12 minutes until they are golden brown on top.
Other Themed Teas
Also, on the grounds of the Heritage Museum is a turn of the 20th century Victorian farmhouse called the Maag House, named after the original owners of the home. Since a citrus grove is adjacent to the two museum houses, a theme for one of our harvest teas, “Mrs. Maag’s Farmhouse Tea”, was citrus. Here is the menu for this tea that I developed.
Mrs. Maag’s Farmhouse Tea
Menu
- Lemon Cream Scone, Lemon Curd, Devonshire Cream
- Orange Marmalade Chicken Drumstick
- Egg Salad Sandwich
- Ham Salad Sandwich
- Apple & Cheese Sandwich
- Pickled Cucumbers & Onions
- Lemon Zucchini Mini Muffin
- Berry Cobbler
- Orange Pound Cake
- Pumpkin Cookie
- Chocolate Oatmeal Drop
This menu had to be a little more rustic as it came from a farmhouse using garden and farm ingredients. I soon discovered that developing a menu only around citrus flavored dishes was very difficult! So, I added the harvest and farmhouse touches which made for a very well rounded and tasty menu. Plus, I made sure I had my essential egg and ham salad sandwiches and a chocolate dessert on the menu.
The Downton Abbey Tea hosted in 2015 was so popular that we repeated it in 2016 and will again in October 2019. We’ve also had a quilting themed and a hat themed tea. Probably our favorite tea is our signature “Holly Berry Tea” we hold in early December of every year. The Victorian Tea Society decorates the Kellogg House in holiday finery. Our Kellogg House dining room and office have become coveted spots to eat so we have added a “silver service” tea opportunity which costs a few dollars more. Guests are seated in the dining room and/or office (adjoining the dining room) and are served champagne and get other small perks that our other guests do not get.
The Victorian Tea Society teas are labor intensive as we plan for months ahead and work the entire day of the tea. We have worked in rain and with a failure of electricity. We almost always do all the clean-up ourselves and sometimes have cleaned the Kellogg House ahead of time. With that said, I would not trade this experience for anything else! Over the years we’ve had a lot of fun, I’ve made great friends, and, of course, I have learned lots about planning teas.