High Hopes for High Tea and Scones . . .

“Now they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.  Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” Genesis 3:8-9

Thank you so much for all your love and concern about my surgery! Glad to report I am in no pain now and feeling better by the day. Which brings me to the promised discussion of my holiday in England and the hunt for high tea.

I first visited the UK when I was in high school and even as a young person I was taken by the history and charm of this country. I had my first cup of tea in Wales, more milk than tea, but it turned me into a tea drinker.

As I think back on that first cup of tea, I don’t believe it was the taste of the tea that drew me in as much as the warmth, from the cup and from the family serving me. I was overseas as part of a band exchange between the USA and the UK and our band members stayed in the homes of the band families from the UK. In my host family tea played a vital part of family connectivity.

As mentioned I had never drunk tea before, but my host mom gave me the task of serving breakfast tea. She shook her head when she discovered I had no idea how to serve tea, but explained the steps and who took their tea with what. Milk was poured into the teacup first. No mugs.

I’ve served tea in a variety of cups and ways since that time, but I always try to serve it with the love, attention and connection that my host family modeled. They were busy, but not too busy to sit together and share conversation over tea. They were not even too busy for me, an extremely awkward high school student trying to drink tea for the first time.

Now a seasoned tea drinker and traveler, I walked into The Wolesley in downtown London with high expectations. My amazing husband, who is a surgeon but plays a travel agent on the side, had wisely booked afternoon tea before we ever left South Carolina.

Everything about the tea was magical, regal. I felt like a queen, being waited upon, offered amazing delicacies to go with my caramel black tea. The warmth of the tea, the unhurried conversation with my best friend, and the beauty of the room exceeded my expectations.

The room around us was bustling, but we had time to share and tea to drink. Not to mention three-tiered trays filled with scones and sandwiches and desserts to consume. The tray itself allows time to stand still; these are for you, take your time and enjoy.

So we did. We took our time and sipped and savored and talked. And not just at the Wolelsey. As we traveled throughout the countryside we found other places to drink tea, my favorite being Tiny Tim’s Tea Shop.

At Tiny Tim’s we stopped not because we were hungry, but because we had been in England for a week and had adjusted to the concept of high tea, that is stopping in the late afternoon for a refresh. I have come to realize that though high tea started because the queen was hungry in the late afternoon and could not make it to the evening meal without feeling faint, it continues out of tradition and mental, as much as physical, need. The world runs at a quick pace, the beauty of high tea is slowing that pace, regrouping, refreshing and remembering that there is more to life than work. Taking time to connect with others and to slow down just might improve productivity and definitely improves relationships.

In the book of Genesis, we infer that God and Adam and Eve were in the habit of walking and talking together at the end of each day; in the cool of the day. At least before sin entered the picture. The image of paradise, God and man communing together, walking and talking daily, no rush, nothing hidden, nothing stressful, that elusive concept may have been part of my hunt for high tea. Certainly I wanted the tea; count me in on the scones, clotted cream and preserves; but my heart’s longing was for the stoppage of time and a return to peace.

Peace, shalom, that Hebrew term that means so much more than a lack of war, can be hard to come by in my busy, messy, often chaotic (if enjoyable) life. Be it at the Wolesley or Tiny Tim’s or in your own home, the peacefulness of sitting down to a hot cup of tea every afternoon affords one a daily splash of peace; willingly chosen and planned for.

I don’t know if you will make it to England for high tea, but I do know you can achieve ‘high tea’ anywhere, anytime. If late afternoon is your busiest time of day, consider finding a different time in each day for a personal refresh. Alone or with friends, with tea or the drink of your choice, just stop everything else. Who knows, you may hear God asking, “Where are you?”

Scones come in a wide variety of shapes and flavors. Traditional cream scones are intended to be eaten with clotted cream and preserves. The scones are not difficult to make, but finding clotted cream here in the states can be difficult. Today I will share a recipe for Cream Scones as well as the way I make a clotted cream substitute that my husband loves.

Classic Cream Scones

• 2 cups Gold Medal Flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup butter, chilled
• 1/2 heavy cream
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup currants, raisins, craisins (optional)
• 1 egg mixed with 1 tsp water for glaze (optional)

Preheat oven to 425*. Lightly butter a baking sheet.

In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut chilled butter into 1/2″ cubes, distribute the cubes over the flour mixture, then cut in with a knife or pastry cutter. Mixture should resemble coarse crumbs. In a small bowl whisk together cream, egg and vanilla; add to flour mixture. Stir until combined. If mixture is too dry add a bit more cream. Stir in fruit if desired.

With floured hands, pat the dough into a 1/2″ thickness on a lightly floured surface. Use a floured, 2″ round cutter or a glass to cut scones. Place on buttered baking sheet. Brush tops of scones with the egg and water wash if so desired. Bake 10-15 minutes until browned.

Serve warm or cold with clotted cream and preserves. My family loves them with Strawberry Jam.

Clotted Cream American Style

• 1 pint heavy cream
• 2 tbsp confectionary sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

Pour cream into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using whisk attachment, beat cream until light peaks form. Add confectionary sugar and vanilla; continue beating until heavy peaks form. You will know it is done when you lift the whisk beater and the clotted cream does not fall of the whisk.