Afternoon Tea — From the COOKS.COM Culinary Archive.

AFTERNOON TEA

  An afternoon tea should have a simple menu as it it not intended to be a full meal.  Sandwiches of thin bread and butter, plain or with some delicate filling, sweet wafers, or small cakes, and tea or chocolate are sufficient.

TEA

  Use water freshly boiled.  Scald the teapot (earthen, granite, or china); for mild infusions allow one half teaspoon level for each cup; if strong tea is desired allow one teaspoon.  Put the tea in the hot teapot and pour boiling water on the tea; cover closely, and let it stand and infuse, not boil, for five minutes.  If you have a table teakettle, put the tea in a tea-ball; fill two cups at a time with boiling water, and hold the ball in the water until the desired strength is secured.  At afternoon teas and for iced tea, serve slices of lemon.

ICED TEA

  Allow one tablespoon of tea for one quart of water, unless you are using some of the choice varieties which do not require so large a proportion.  Scald the teapot and have the water just brought to the boiling point.  Pour it over the tea and let it stand and steep, but not boil for ten minutes, where it will keep almost at the boiling point.  Strain it, add the juice of one lemon and one cup of sugar.  Keep it chilled until ready to serve.  Half fill tall, slender glasses with chipped ice and fill with the tea.  Add sliced lemon and sugar as desired, and vary by adding a few cloves stuck in the lemon slices, or by a bit of preserved ginger.

RECEPTION CHOCOLATE

2 qts. milk.
1 lb. cocoa powder.
6 tbsp. white sugar.
1 pt. cream.
2 eggs.
3 tsp. vanilla extract.

  Bring milk to boil, work the cocoa in a little of the cold milk, then stir into the boiling milk till smooth.  Boil ten minutes, add the sugar and cream, and stir well while boiling.  Turn into a double boiler and keep the water in lower boiler almost at boiling point for half an hour.  Then beat the eggs very light, add them and remove immediately from the heat.  When cool add the flavoring.

  This can be made in the morning, and when ready to serve, put from one to two tablespoons of the preparation into the cup and fill with boiling water.  By cooking the cocoa we have a much more delicious flavor than that obtained by pouring boiling water directly upon the raw cocoa in the cup.  The eggs and cream give body and richness.  It will serve from sixty to eighty people.

CHOCOLATE FOR AFTERNOON TEAS

  Boil one and one half pounds of grated chocolate in two quarts of water with one pound of sugar until thick and smooth.  Then add two quarts of rich milk heated in double boiler, and keep it hot over boiling water until ready to serve.  Add thick whipped cream to each cup when serving.

FRUIT PUNCH

  Make a lemonade by boiling one quart of water and one pint of sugar for ten minutes, and steep it in the shaved yellow rind of half a lemon.  Add the juice of two lemons, strain and cool.  Add one pint of strained strawberry juice, one cup of cold tea, one pint of mineral water if you choose, and more sugar if needed.  Or, use any mixture of fruit juices you prefer; dilute with ice, and serve bits of fruit in the glass.

Milk and then just as it comes dear?
I'm afraid the preserve's full of stones;
Beg pardon, I'm soiling the doileys
With afternoon tea-cakes and scones.
 
  Sir John Betjeman — How to get on in Society