Birthday Tea

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Today I wanted to share the lovely belated

birthday tea I spent

with my friend Gloria yesterday!

Have I mentioned how much I love having friends

come over for tea?

Gloria is in her latter 70’s now and is kinda like a

grandmother to me.

She and I met in The Victorian Tea Society here in

Riverside Country, California, some

seventeen years ago and we’ve been friends

ever since…

Our table this day was set with white linens and rose-covered

china pieces, my favorite brand of lemon curd

my sister-in-law’s raspberry jam

and some homemade mock

Devonshire cream!

“The very act of preparing and serving tea encourages conversation. The little spaces in time created by teatime rituals call out to be filled with conversation. Even the tea itself–warm and comforting-inspires a feeling of relaxation and trust that fosters shared confidences.”

Emilie Barnes, If Teacups Could Talk

Here’s the scone recipe we shared

Fresh Apple Cinnamon Scones

recipe from King Arthur Flour

2 2/3 cups flour (original calls for King Arthur unbleached all-purpose)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
3/4 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. apple pie spice or ground cinnamon
1/2 cup (8 Tbsp.) cold butter
3/4 cup chopped fresh apple, in 1/2″ pieces
(recipe says about half a medium apple ~ I used a whole apple)
3/4 cup cinnamon chips
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup applesauce, unsweetened preferred

Topping:

3 Tbsp. coarse white sparkling sugar
(I just used more granulated sugar)
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Directions:

1) In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and spice.

2) Work in the butter just until the mixture is unevenly crumbly.
It’s okay for some larger chunks of butter to remain unincorporated.

3) Stir in the chopped apple and cinnamon chips.

4) In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla
and applesauce.

5) Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir
until all is moistened and holds together.

6) Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
If you don’t have parchment just use the baking sheet
without greasing it.
Sprinkle a bit of flour atop the parchment or pan.

7) Scrape the dough onto the floured parchment or pan
and divide it in half. Gently pat and round each half into
a 5″ – 5 1/2″ circle about 3/4″ thick.

8) To make the topping: Stir together the coarse sugar and cinnamon. Brush each circle with milk and sprinkle
with the topping.

9) Using a knife or bench knife that you’ve run under cold water slice each circle into 6 wedges.

10) Carefully pull the wedges away from the center to separate them just a bit; there should be about 1/2″ space between them
at their outer edges.

11) For best texture and highest rise, place the pan of scones in the freezer for about 30 minutes, uncovered.
(I did this beforehand with just the batter and it worked, too.
This relaxes the gluten in the flour, which makes the scones more tender and allows them to rise higher. It also chills the fat, which will make the scones a bit flakier.)

While the scones are chilling, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

12) Bake the scones for 18 – 22 minutes, or until they’re golden brown. When you pull one away from the others, it should look baked all the way through; the edges shouldn’t look
wet or unbaked.

13) Remove the scones from the oven and cool briefly on the pan. Serve warm. When they’re completely cool, wrap in plastic and store at room temperature for up to several days.
(I freeze mine and they freeze well. Yum!)

Scones can be reheated by lightly tenting with aluminum foil. Warm in a preheated 350 degree F. oven for approx. *10 minutes. Yield: 12 scones. ~ printed from website 10/6/12.

Sidenote:

To make free-form rather than wedge-shaped scones, increase the applesauce to 3/4 cup. Using a large ice cream scoop or spoon, dollop the scone dough in 1/3-cupfuls on to a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake the scones in a preheated 375 degree F. oven for about *10 minutes.

***Here’s where I’m pretty sure whomever wrote the recipe up for King Arthur Flour Company made a mistake. ***
The side note said in this section to “Bake scones in a preheated 375 degree F. oven for about 30 minutes.”
I corrected to 10 minutes.

You may have to play with it to find out the correct time — Barb 🙂

A little bit of cleaning happened over here
getting ready for this tea,
and not all of it was in my outward surroundings…
Sad to be putting away all of the lovely
Christmas decor but with a new year comes
rebirth and renewal…

a favorite old teacup and saucer!

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink,I was a stranger and you invited me in,” Matthew 25:35

I hope that by sharing this tea and these lovely things

with you ~ in a way I invite you into my home.

That’s my New Year’s resolution to you.

🙂

Blessings to you,

Birthday Tea