Tea Room Recipe #20 - The Old Vanity Fair Tea Room (Los Angeles, Calif.)

This week I decided to try a new cookie recipe I came across in a very old cookbook. It calls for dates and nuts and nutmeg, and the result was a most complex — and luscious tasting! — cookie flavor. It's rare to come across a cookie that strikes the tastebuds as truly new and different, but these sure did.

I found the recipe for these Brighton Rock Cookies in this delightful 1927 cookbook, "The Old Vanity Fair Tea Room — Recipes gathered from far and near." Written by a Caro F. Chamberlain (not Carol, but Caro), the book notes that "these recipes are used in the Dining Room of the Women's Athletic Club of Los Angeles, Calif." The introduction notes that "in compiling this little book, it has not been our object to introduce a comprehensive cook book, but to pass on to our many friends these recipes which we have tried and liked and found most satisfactory."

Here is what the recipe looks like in the book. The directions, what there are of them, are quite easy. Notice anything missing? I sure did! I've noticed in a lot of old recipes they seem to assume the reader knows that the foods must be cooked and for how long. So I had to guess about these things!

For those of you who don't like to guess, here's how I made these cookies. It must be said that I tried and liked them and found them most satisfactory!

Brighton Rock Cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 heaping cup of chopped dates (I used dried dates)
1/2 cup melted butter
2 eggs, beaten
1 scant teaspoon baking soda
1 cup of chopped nuts (I used a mix of almonds and pecans)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir just until combined. Drop by teaspoons onto cookie sheets prepared with cooking spray and bake for 8-10 minutes, until tops are no longer shiny and edges are just starting to brown. Yields approximately 4 dozen cookies.

Roux Maison Sweet Tea Laundry Detergent

The nice folks at Roux Maison were kind enough to send me a bottle of their Essential Detergent, and I was delighted to try this detergent because of the particular variety ...

... Sweet Tea! Roux Maison is a new line of eco-friendly laundry products which uses natural ingredients. Since so many people have ingredient allergies and sensitivities these days, I am always happy to hear about new products which meet a need, whether it's a tasty gluten-free product or a detergent whose fragrance is "custom blended with 100 percent natural essential oils that are synthetic and preservative free." I must admit I also like that Roux Maison's products are influenced by "southern heritage and hospitality," so bonus points for the southern-ness!

But did the detergent clean my laundry? Yes, beautifully! Just two capfuls washes an entire load, and the citrus scent so reminiscent of lemony sweet tea is a lovely, lovely bonus. If you'd like to learn more about this detergent, go here to see it and more of Roux Maison's products.

"The Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society" by Darien Gee

If you're a fan of tea or a fan of scrapbooking, I have a terrific new book to recommend, "The Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society" by Darien Gee. If you're a fan of both these things, you've probably already read the book!

Set in the midwestern town of Avalon, Ill., this charmingly-written tale centers around Madeline's Tea Salon and the goings-on of the Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society. It's rare to find a book with so many characters you're rooting for: the tea shop owner and her young assistant; a female plumber trying to escape her past; the wife and mistress a local dentist left behind when he died; a young mother desperate to adopt a little girl from China; and the steamrolling (if aging) scrapbooking consultant, Bettie Shelton, who appears to have turned Avalon into the U.S. town with the highest per capita percentage of scrapbookers. Now normally if a book has more than about three important characters I get befuddled along the way, but not this time. Each character is presented clearly and distinctly, and soon even the more wayward souls had found their way into my heart.

The book also has a few recipes at the end, including some for the Amish Friendship Bread which is important to Avalonians and which was central to Gee's first book, "Friendship Bread." (I haven't read that one, but now I must!) I am always so very pleased to come across a book that's truly a pleasant read, nothing gruesome, and yet with a good storyline and a nice philosophical something to ponder. I pretty much enjoy any book that features strong female characters and even stronger female friendships, and this one provides plenty of both. I missed these ladies when it ended, and I can only hope I'll get to see these characters again one day in another Darien Gee book on down the road!

Tasting Honest Tea

The other day at Kroger, I spotted two new flavors of Honest Tea that needed tasting.

Now it turns out that, actually, I had indeed tried the Half & Half flavor before, but I didn't realize it because the packaging has been updated. As before, I greatly enjoyed this drink that's a blend of half organic tea and half lemonade. "Just a tad sweet," it says, and it is! It's sweetened with organic cane sugar, and I like that the whole 16.9-ounce bottle is 1 serving of only 100 calories. I can remember drinking bottled teas in the past and discovering, to my dismay, that I had just sipped the equivalent of a candy bar!

Honest Tea also gets points for their packaging and descriptions, which are quite clever. Look at the large "T" here. Did you notice how it's showing an old-fashioned jar of sweet tea? I love that. I also like that they call it (not too) Sweet Tea. And again, it's 100 calories for the whole bottle of tea. I'll be taking a road trip soon, and I hope to pick up some more Honest Tea along the way. Honestly!

June 2013 Romantic Homes magazine

Romantic Homes is a magazine I've read off and on over the years, but after being so impressed with the last four issues, I finally realized it was time to save myself a little money and simply subscribe. The June issue has a rose theme, which I knew I'd like, but I was quite happy to tuck into the pages and find more than a few mentions of teatime!

Now I've still yet to ever view an episode of "Downton Abbey" (note to self: borrow my friend Deberah's DVD's next time I see her), but I know from reading my tea friends' blogs that the show is a huge hit with tea lovers. I suspect the article on "A Downton Abbey Afternoon Tea" will help sell quite a few copies of this issue!

And if that weren't enough, there's a piece called "Tea for Two" about a collector whose decorating is inspired by her Georgian teacup collection. When I first glanced at the opening for the spread, I didn't realize that the large teacup in the middle of the page is actually a large painting by the collector's husband. Besides all the lovely features on roses, this issue also has a feature on vintage campers (want one!) and a bridal shower inspired by vintage teacups. If you haven't been reading Romantic Homes, I highly recommend you take a look into this terrific issue!

Mint garden in a teacup

When I was at Lowe's the other day looking for plants for my mom for Mother's Day, I was delighted to find they also had a nice selection of mints. So that meant it was time to replant my oversized teacup planter with a little mint garden!

The plants are all from Bonnie Plants in neighboring Alabama, and they all looked nice and healthy. The first one to catch my eye was a variety I've never heard of before, Grapefruit Mint. When I crushed a leaf between my fingers I did indeed detect a rather citrusy scent.

The Sweet Mint, at left, smells so sweet you can practically taste the sugar, and of course Chocolate Mint, at right, is a necessary plant for obvious reasons if you're a chocolate lover.

The smallest of the plants was this Peppermint plant, and I was happy to find it.

Once planted with all four plants, I thought the combination of leaf shapes, colors and sizes was actually quite attractive!

And to add a little pizzazz, I popped in this plant stake that was a gift from tea friend Linda last year.

I often use mint in my iced tea during warm weather. Sometimes I use it to make a simple syrup (go here for easy instructions), and sometimes I just tuck a sprig directly into the glass for the subtle flavoring it gives. This year, it's dawned on me I could also experiment with using chopped mint leaves as an ingredient in foods such as salads and tea sandwiches. If you're a mint lover too, I'd love to hear which varieties you grow!

Tea Room Recipe #19 - Victorian Tea Room (Warm Springs, Ga.)

This week's recipe comes from a tea room I visited about 20 years ago, the Victorian Tea Room in Warm Springs, Ga. Warm Springs is best known as the home of "The Little White House," the place where President Franklin D. Roosevelt hoped to find a cure for his polio. Warm Springs today is a charming town filled with cute gift shops, restaurants and antique stores. Many years ago I ate in the tea room, although I remember it more for having "ladies who lunch" type fare than afternoon tea.

I had been trying to find a well-priced copy of this book (doesn't that sound better than "cheap"?) for years now, and I came across this one at What's in Store for just $4 recently! This book was published in 1991, and according to the introduction it features the most-requested recipes from the tea room at that time.

This recipe is called Tea Room Macaroni Salad, and having tried it I can see why it was a favorite. This is one of those contains-everything-but-the-kitchen-sink type recipes, and with all these great veggies and a bit of ham, I knew it was going to be quite tasty, and it was. I especially like that it is dressed with mayonnaise and Italian dressing.

Tea Room Macaroni Salad

1 pound small elbow macaroni (I used shells instead)
1/4 cup celery, chopped
1/4 cup onion, chopped
2 tablespoons bell pepper, chopped (I used a yellow bell pepper to vary the colors in the dish)
2 hardboiled eggs, chopped
1 small cucumber, diced
1/2 cup diced ham
1/4 cup sliced black olives
4 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
1 large tomato, diced
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup Italian dressing
1 cup mayonnaise

Cook pasta according to package directions and drain. Toss with remaining ingredients and chill until serving time. This recipe says it serves 6-8, but I'd say 10-12 is more like it!

Blue transferware tea & toast set

This has been the perfect week to really savor and enjoy some of my new birthday goodies, and this blue transferware tea and toast set from my friend Sandra is something I was so excited to receive! I've been so smitten with blue wares this year, and now I even find myself looking for Blue Willow and flow blue when I'm out at antique malls. I don't believe I've ever seen a blue transferware tea and toast set before, and I absolutely love this one!

I always enjoy the scenic views you find on these pieces, such as this one on the teacup. (And in case someone is wondering, there is no name of a maker on the bottom, just a deep blue mark of lions and a crown.)

The plate, too, has such great detail on it!

Here's a close-up view of the scene. I do love my collection of tea and toast sets, and I'm so happy to have a new one that sings the blues!

A tray full of teatime

My girlfriends really outdo themselves for my birthday, and my baking friend Susan (who will end up on Food Network one day) surprised me with this lovely gift. Her packaging is always so pretty I decided to take a photo before I unveiled everything!

A tea tray, a tea chest and two adorable loves of tea bread!

Susan told me this was strawberry bread and she knew I'd made some strawberry bread recently. "Yes, but it's all gone," I told her, so I was delighted to receive some from her because she is one of the best bakers I've ever known. Her treats are always beautiful *and* delicious, something I can't always say of myself. (I can usually get them tasty, but they're not always pretty because I'm rather a sloppy baker!)

And funny enough, I picked up this very tea chest at T.J. Maxx the other day, admired it, but told myself no, I already have several tea chests and I couldn't justify buying myself another. But I can sure justify receiving another! Fun!

Tea Forté Coconut Mango Colada Green Tea

Coconut is one of those foods and flavors people seem to either love or hate. Me, I love it! I enjoy coconut cake, coconut macaroons, coconut-topped ambrosia, and of course, coconut-flavored teas. I came across several new coconut-flavored teas at The Fresh Market in Peachtree City recently, and the Mango Colada was calling my name!

It occurs to me this is the third box of Tea Forté teas I have bought lately, so they're obviousy marketing well to my tastebuds. It wasn't until I got home with this tea that I realized it wasn't black tea, as I had assumed, but green tea. I would say, "I should have read the box," but in reality if it's got coconut in it, I don't care what type of tea it is so it doesn't matter if I read the box or not!

This tea had me at first whiff. Mmm, was it good! The steeped tea smells wonderful as well, and happily the flavor lives up to its fragrance. This tea has that nice sweet finish I associate with "dessert" type teas, and now I'm thinking I need to try the other new coconut teas from Tea Forté as well. Any coconut fans reading today? If so, got any coconut teas to recommend?

Tea gifts from a teatime friend

It is always so much fun to open a birthday gift from a "teatime friend" who knows my tastes so well. That's definitely the case with my girlfriend Beth, who dropped off a beautiful bag of gifts last week!

The pretty spring floral design on this tea mug is perfect, and it will have a spot right next to the new iMac in my new home office. (I'll try not to wear out the word "new" this week, but lots of things are new to me right now!)

And of course Beth knows my fondness for vintage things as well, so she included this gorgeous Lefton chintz tidbit tray. I have a tea and toast set in this same pattern. Hmmm ... a new collection, maybe?

And finally, she included this bag of yummy Caramel Wafers, one of my all-time favorite teatime treats. These cookies get all gooey in the middle when steam from your tea hits them, and they're great for dunking in tea as well (yes, I dunk!). It's so lovely to be remembered by someone who knows me so well!

The winner of Teatime Favorites is ...

Shari from Houston, Texas, who recently sipped a chocolate chai while sitting outside talking to neighbors. Congrats! If you'll send me your snail mail address via the e-mail button at right, I'll get the magazine headed your way. And thanks to everyone for sharing what you've been sipping lately, as you've given me quite a few new flavors of tea to look for!

A cup of possibilities!

Today is a day I've been looking forward to for quite a while now, and it's so meaningful to me personally I wanted to share it with all of you. After 25 years in journalism I decided to launch out on my own, and so today I begin my new life as a fulltime freelance editor, writer and blogger! Most of my blog readers would never have known anything is different in my life, but because I have so many local friends who read this blog as well, I thought it appropriate to let you know what I'm up to. There have been so many changes in print journalism in recent years, I took stock of where my writing career was headed and decided it was time to shake things up a bit. I may be a mild-mannered tea sipper on the outside, but I've got a longing for new challenges on the inside, and I'm always thinking about ways to create a bigger life for myself. Two truths I greatly believe in are: 1) A favorite verse from the Bible: "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11) and 2) From the movie "Thelma and Louise": "You get what you settle for." In a bit of fine and divine timing, I finished working my two-week notice on May 3, and I turned 49 on May 4. I have said for years that I would have a new career when I turn 50, and I can hardly wait to see what all I can get done in the next year!

Now I'm not really afraid of risk (if you wake up in the morning and get out of bed you're taking a risk, after all), but I had so many dear friends at the office that I was afraid of saying goodbye to them, so I tried to get most of the goodbyes in early. My fellow employees were (and are) some of the brightest, most hard-working, most loyal and most *fun* people I've ever known, and I am so glad I will still get to see many of them, in person as well as through regular visits on Facebook. My friend and co-worker Christy said she didn't believe me when I told her I was going to work on my books and other freelance writing projects. "No you're not," she said. "You're just going to drink tea all day and move your teacups around!" Now friends, if I could get paid for that, indeed that is precisely what I would do all day! But instead I will continue this blog (which has opened up some new doors for me), polish up that mystery novel I've been writing, work on the sequel to "Dainty Dining," do some writing and editing for others, and more. One new venture I'm looking forward to is that I have just joined the Clever Girls Collective (you'll note the blue badge at upper right), where I will be doing some paid blogging when the opportunity is right.

On this first Monday of my new writing life, I have so many new things I can and want to do, I am having to take a deep breath and remember I'm only one person. (You may be amused to hear that my husband has taken to calling me "Martha Stewart" and making regular references to "the empire.") For today, I think I'll just sip a nice cup of tea, organize my home office, do some writing, and lift my cup to a future filled with new possibilities! Wish me luck!

Tea Room Recipe #18 - Pauline's Tea Room (Troy, Ohio)

Don't you just love coming across a tasty, healthy new dessert recipe that's also low in fat and calories? Me too! Unfortunately, this is not it. But if you want a cobbler-ish, pudding-y new dessert that will satisfy your sweet tooth for weeks, maybe months, then this Chocolate Chip Date Cake, my friends, is it!

I found this recipe in the most charming old (but undated) tea room cookbook, "Sprigs of Parsley." Now I have to tell you this is one of my favorite little cookbook finds. I love the yellowed edges, the bent corners, the stains on the cover, the thoroughly homemade look and feel of this book. Love. It. I even love how Pauline Tate in the introduction thanked her husband Carl, family members Susan, Rick, Jeff and Randy (the kids?) and her 80-year-old Mother, who helped out in the tea room several days a week! Don't you just know this would have been a fun place to visit? And based on this recipe, it was a *tasty* place to visit as well! This cake recipe sounded so unusual I had to give it a try, not expecting it to turn out at all, to be perfectly honest with you. I was quite surprised with the unusual texture of this cake, and yes, I'd happily make this one again. I might even spoon it up in pretty glass sherbet dishes next time!

Chocolate Chip Date Cake

1 cup pitted chopped dates
1 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2 cups boiling water

Stir and let stand until cool.

Next: Cream 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup shortening and 2 eggs.

Add this mixture to the date mixture when cooled. Then add 1-1/2 cups sifted flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 3/4 teaspoon baking soda.

Mix and pour into a greased 9 x 13-inch pan. (Note: Mixture will be very thin and won't seem like batter at all.)

Finally, sprinkle over the top (just sprinkle--don't mix):

3/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans)
1 cup chocolate chips

Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. Cut into squares and serve with whipped cream. Mmm mmm mmm.

Teatime Favorites Giveaway!

This week I happened to receive a copy of the special issue from Tea Time magazine, Teatime Favorites, and since I already have a copy I thought it might be nice to give this one away here!

If you'd like to be entered to win, just leave a comment to this post telling me the last tea you sipped (I always like to know if y'all are sipping something I need to try). How easy is that? Just leave your comment between now and 7 a.m. EST Monday, May 6, and I'll announce the winner later that day. Good luck!

Yogic Chai's Original Masala Chai

When I got invited to sample some of the award-winning Original Masala Chai from Yogic Chai, I of course said yes but I must admit I thought, "Chai is chai. I'm sure it will be fine." I couldn't imagine it would taste very different from other chai teas I have tried, and oh, was I wrong!

First, this "proprietary blend" from Yogic Chai just looks so very inviting. The ingredients include Fair Traded Organic Assam Tea, Organic Cinnamon, Organic Green Cardamom, Organic Cloves and Organic Ginger. When I opened the bag, I got an absolutely intoxicating whiff of the super spicy blend, and I loved it!

To make the chai, I added a teaspoon of the blend to 1-1/2 cups of half-water, half-milk, and boiled it for 5 minutes before straining off the chai. I opted for skim milk, and I was absolutely delighted with the rich flavor in my mug. This chai was so supremely easy to make, yet it had that sophisticated, rich chai taste I associate with specialty beverage shops. Count me a fan! And if you want to try some for yourself, visit the Yogic Chai website here.

Kiss My Face Olive & Green Tea Soap

While zipping through the organic section at Kroger the other day, I happened to spy this Olive & Green Tea Soap from Kiss My Face. I was down to the last smidgen of the facial soap I normally use, so I decided to give this chunky bar a try.

This $3.99 bar looks like it will last me a long time, and I must say I love how rich and lush the lather is. It makes my face feel so clean *and* moisturized, all at once. My skin feels so soft when I finish washing with this soap!

And happily, I wasn't left to wonder where the tea is in this soap, since it's a prominent ingredient on the label. If you're a fan of facial soaps, I would certainly encourage you to give this one a try!