New scones and new snack sets

When my friend Teresa decided to get out of the catering business last year, she also decided to part with some of the pretty wares she had accumulated. To my surprise I was gifted with a lovely and unusual set of fruit-themed snack sets (also known as tea-and-toast sets or tennis sets). I love these handy little plates with their easily gripped edges and built-in indentations for the teacup.

Though I have quite a few of these sets, I'd never seen a set of these snack plates with fruits on them. Won't these come in handy?

Such pretty designs!

This one is just waiting for a certain plum recipe I'll be trying once plums are in season.

And strawberries ... oh my! Maybe I'll even plant a few strawberrries this spring!

This weekend, I decided to make up a new scone recipe used some pomegranate-flavored Craisins I came across at the grocery store. It just seemed right to make something fruity to serve on one of my new snack sets, so I used my favorite basic scone recipe with the addition of 1/2 cup of pomegranate Craisins and 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts. I love the combination of fruity and crunchy!

With a little dollop of grape preserves served on the side, I was ready for a fun new snack—and snack set!

Tea Room Recipe #10 - Wenham Tea House (Wenham, Mass.)

As soon as warmer weather comes I promise I'll stop featuring these hearty, comfort-food recipes from my old tea room cookbooks. But until that day comes, I must confess I've gone all Paula Deen on us again this week with another rich and delicious recipe, this one for Asparagus-Ham Casserole.

This recipe comes from my 1992 Wenham Tea House Cookbook from Wenham, Mass. Happily, this tea room is still in business! The tea room is owned by the Wenham Village Improvement Society, which according to the tea room's web site is "a philanthropic organization which turns profits back to the community through scholarships, summer programs, and other philanthropies." You can go here to read more about it.

Now I love-love-love asparagus, partly because it's such an elegant looking vegetable, and I love to "roll up" foods for casseroles and tea sandwiches, so this recipe was perfect for me—and so easy!

I was a little nervous about making the cream sauce with cheese, but I needn't have worried.

It baked up beautifully with a sauce as smooth as velvet!

Asparagus-Ham Casserole

1 pound asparagus, fresh or frozen (I used fresh)
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste; I'm not much of a salter)
Pepper to taste
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon grated onion
1-1/2 cups milk
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons lemon juice
8 thin slices of ham (I used Black Forest ham from the deli)
2 cups cooked rice

Cook asparagus until tender-crisp and keep warm. Melt butter in a saucepan, then whisk in flour, salt, pepper and mustard. Add onion. Continue to whisk over low heat, stirring constantly, for a couple of minutes. Slowly add milk in several additions, again whisking constantly until mixture is thick and smooth. Add cheese and whisk some more. Drain asparagus and sprinkle with lemon juice. Roll up asparagus in the ham slices (I used about three spears per roll-up). Spray an 8- or 9-inch-square baking dish with cooking spray and spoon in the rice. Add ham rolls, then top with sauce. The cookbook recommends broiling 6 inches from the heat source until golden brown. Broiling makes me nervous, however, so I just cooked mine at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. And. Man. Was. It. Good! Yields 6 servings. (Or more, if you have a little restraint!)

Feeling SPORTea?

A magazine advertisement offered a free sample of SPORTea, a new tea billed as "The Ultimate Daily Beverage!" Naturally, I went online and requested my free sample.

As often happens, I had forgotten about it by the time it arrived, and when I saw the word "SPORT" on the return address I *almost* threw it away until I remembered it was "SPORTea." Interestingly, the teabag was protected with bubble wrap, a first!

Also a first: I can't ever remember opening a teabag before that instantly made me sneeze, but this one did! I think it's because when I took a sniff I inhaled some of the fannings (yes, I've snorted tea now), and that wasn't a pleasant experience. But the smell was nice and lemony, so I was eager to taste this tea "with Green Tea, Vitamin C, Electrolytes & Siberian Eleuthero Root," according to the flyer that came with it. As I sipped I kept trying to remember what this reminded me of. It wasn't good, from a tea-drinking standpoint, but it was a familiar taste that wasn't dreadful, either. Then I remembered what it was: Theraflu! If you've ever tasted it with its remnants of something vaguely sourish in the cup, well, that's what SPORTea reminds me of. The sports-minded may find this worth a try, but I'll just stick with green tea as my go-to "healthy" tea for now. Have any of you tried SPORTea, and would you? I like the idea fine, I just didn't care for the taste!

"Sweet Tea Revenge" by Laura Childs

Laura Childs' latest tea shop mystery, "Sweet Tea Revenge," was published this week, and I'm happy to report it's another winner! Can you believe this is her 14th book in the series? It amazes me that she can sustain the storyline about Theodosia Browning's Indigo Tea Shop and keep it fresh and new as she does. This book begins on the day Theodosia's friend Delaine Dish is set to marry her beau, and I don't think I'm giving away the farm to disclose (as the book jacket does) that the groom doesn't quite make it to the altar. As you might imagine, Delaine is devastated and Theodosia has to step in and help find the killer.

For some months now I have been working on writing a "cozy" mystery myself, and I can tell you it's hard work. I've read probably a dozen different series now to get a better feel for what readers of this genre expect, and I was surprised to learn that "heroines" aren't all as admirable as our beloved Theo. The one cozy I read with a main character who glibly drove while drunk just about sent me over the edge! Because of Laura Childs, I have high expectations of what a good cozy can be. I won't be submitting my own manuscript until it's the sort of book I personally would like to read, and the fact Childs has kept me interested for 14 books now tells me she has mastered the art of keeping us reading! I also appreciate the fact the author recognizes her characters need to change and grow, their tastes may need to wander a bit, and that happens, regularly, in the tea shop mysteries.

Another thing I have enjoyed about the tea shop series is that Theodosia and friends keep up with the latest in tea room trends. I'll let you read the book to discover which new sweet treats Haley and Drayton are serving in the tea shop these days. Like me, you'll probably nod your head and think, "Yes, she got that just right." As always the book concludes with some yummy sounding recipes. And even more exciting was a teaser for Childs' upcoming book "Living a Tea Shop Life," which is said to be "a nonfiction book that applies life lessons learned from tea shops and tea masters to everyday life." It will also include 100+ recipes and tea time tips, and I can't wait to read it!

Black Raspberry & White Tea Shampoo and Conditioner

My hair, my skin, my African violets … we all could use a little moisture thanks to the dry heat from staying indoors this winter. Now I'm not brand loyal to shampoo and conditioner at all, my only requirements being that the product smell good and moderately condition my hair without making it greasy. Last week, I came across some new Suave products I decided to try.

Now I've tried this Suave "Professionals" line before and must say I really like it. It's got a nice thick texture similar to the Pantene products I've often used, and the scent of this is a yummy berry scent but not overpowering.

I liked the way the shampoo lathered up, the way the conditioner conditioned, and of course I *love* that it has camellia sinensis leaf extract. If you haven't tried these products, you may want to look for them on your next trip to the grocery store!

A good weekend for tea finds

Can you believed it snowed on Saturday? My mother, aunt and I traveled all over the Marietta area and nearly froze (in Georgia that means the forties) in the light dusting of snow we got, but like the mailmain who delivers through rain, snow, sleet or hail, we can shop through all types of inclement weather as well—and as you can see it was a productive day!

First, I have been looking for months for a pretty and (key word) affordable turquoise teacup to feed my recent passion for all things aqua and turquoise. Finally, I found one I love at the Cobb Antique Mall, and for just $6. Perfect!

Now this is the sort of thing I debate over. This vintage package of shelf liner paper was $5, which isn't a lot, but I didn't technically need it.

Still, I just had a feeling that if I did *not* get it, I would next week find the perfect project calling for it and then I'd never see it again. Better safe than sorry!

I like to use old Christmas handkerchiefs as napkins at Christmas, especially since they're so pretty drawn through the handle of a teacup. This one will need a little cleanup work, but a) it was just $1, and b) I loved the "book" featured here. You open it and see ...

... a Christmas tree!

At the end of the day, we stopped by a new favorite haunt, the still-fairly-new Treasure Hunt Antique Mall in Powder Springs. We've all had good luck shopping there, and this time I found four ceramic teapot napkin rings for $10. I debated these for about half a second, just long enough to consider how pretty they'd be with my pink and/or green Depression glass plates!

Finally, I actually got these cupcake papers at a T.J. Maxx two weeks ago but accidentally left them at my mom's. For $2.99, I will be prepared the next time there's a royal event to celebrate! I've seen only one package of these in the six or so T.J. Maxx/HomeGoods stores I've visited recently, and I definitely think that all of us Anglophile tea lovers should scoop them up before the rest of the shopping public discovers them!

A Stampin' Up giveaway tea lovers will LOVE!

So last week when I spoke at Kiwanis, my friend and Stampin' Up demonstrator Phyllis Shepherd walks up to me before the program and hands me a giant gift bag. She indicates it's just a few things she brought for me along with duplicates of everything for a blog giveaway if I'm so inclined. I didn't get a chance to go through the bag until I got home that night, and great balls of fire, friends! Look at all these marvelous crafting goodies Phyllis has so generously given us!

First, there's a set of a dozen sheets of 12x12-inch "Tea for Two" Designer Series Paper. Each sheet is double-sided and features two different designs, so that means you're getting 24 possible designs to use, including two of my favorites shown here!

And you know how that "Keep Calm and Carry On" saying is so popular these days? Well, here's a set of rubber stamps so you can make cards or other crafts featuring any variation of that saying that you like! I think I may try to work up designs that say "Keep Calm and Eat a Cupcake" or "Keep Calm and Shop On." Fun possibilities here!

Here's what the rubber stamps look like on the inside before you assemble them with their sticky labels.

And oh my goodness, the embellishments in this giveaway are just fun-fun-fun! Clockwise we have: White Tea Lace Paper Doilies; a package of bubbles and brads for decorating invites, scrapbook pages, etc.; a package of large rhinestone embellishments; a container of Tea Time Trinkets; and two different size rolls of Delicate Details Lace Tape! This stuff is gorgeous!

I had to open up my box of the Tea Time Trinkets so I could go ahead and show you what's inside. A teapot, tea mug, teacup, clockfaces, some lobster claw clasps ...

The details are so fun to contemplate using on an appropriately worthy tea-themed craft!

And yes, one lucky winner is going to have a very good day next Monday by winning these pretty papers and everything else shown here! This giveaway is open to residents of the U.S. and Canada. To be entered, just leave an "Enter me" comment to this post anytime between now and 7 a.m. EST next Monday, March 11. And if you just can't stand the wait and need to find some of these goodies for yourself right now, feel free to visit Phyllis' Stampin' Up page here. Good luck!

Tea Room Recipe #9 - Katy's Korner (Eureka Springs, Ark.)

For the second week in a row I am featuring a Eureka Springs, Ark. tea room cookbook recipe. This week's recipe was the curiously named Surprise Pie!

The old Katy's Korner Tea Room, I discovered, was actually at 44 Prospect St. in Eureka Springs, the same address as last week's Victorian Sampler Tea Room. So clearly this tea room was known as Katy's Korner and then became the Victorian Sampler. How fun to discover such a connection in this 1979 cookbook!

The recipe that immediately got my attention was called Surprise Pie, and indeed it's surprising for quite a few reasons. First, the ingredients include crushed soda crackers (which you'd never guess from the taste), and second, the pie makes its own crust, a feature I love! The yummy whipped cream topping pairs wonderfully well with the crunchy crust. This was so easy and turned out so perfectly, this is definitely a dish I will be taking to potlucks and family dinners in the future!

Surprise Pie

3 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 cup sugar
18 soda crackers, crushed
1 cup nuts (I used a mix of pecans, walnuts and almonds)
1 teaspoon vanilla

Topping:

1/2 pint heavy whipping cream
4 tablespoons (1 small can) crushed pineapple
3 to 4 tablespoons coconut

Beat egg whites until stiff. Add cream of tartar and beat, then sugar and beat. Fold in the crushed soda crackers. Add nuts and vanilla and combine. Pour into pie pan prepared with cooking spray and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. When pie has completely cooled, beat the whipping cream and add the pineapple. Spread on pie and sprinkle with coconut. Chill before serving.

A shop that's gone to pot(s)

You know the old saying about how a good friend will help you move, but a true friend will help you move the bodies? Well, my friend Liz is one of the truest of the true of my friends, and she would, without a doubt, help me "move the bodies." Liz is also my shopkeeper friend, and while lots of stores these days have up very unfriendly signs warning you not to take photos, Liz lets me snap to my heart's content. And of course when I saw her latest efforts at Cydney's Alley in Senoia, I wanted to share them here. Liz knows that I wish like crazy these were teapots instead of coffeepots, but then again, I'd be lusting over them even more if they were teapots! Still, isn't it great to have a whole wall of these on display? Cute, cute, cute!

This lamp immediately caught my eye as well with the enamel coffeepot pouring a stream of "light" into the teacup. Adorable!

Here's a detail from the lamp.

I think these may be reproduction pieces, but they are actually *ceramic* pots that look just like old French enamelware. I had to rap on one to convince myself it wasn't metal!

Nearby was a gorgeous ad for Maxwell House Coffee. So pretty!

Liz is a great storyteller, and I've noticed over the years she loves creating "vignettes" around a particular theme in her store. While "junkin'" recently, she came across this old men's vanity at back and created a mustache-themed scene. Fun!

Photography buffs (like me) will enjoy seeing all the vintage cameras.

And look at this old vanity case! Don't you wish such pretty things were still a part of daily life?

But mainly I was charmed by the hanging pots which take up much of a wall in her shop. Now where can we copy this idea, friends? Along a fence in the garden, perhaps? Hmmm ... it's fun to be inspired! (Special thanks to Liz for letting me take all the photos I want!)