When our British friends Sally and Trevor, who live south of us, called and said they'd be up in Beaune for the day, we were thrilled, as we haven't seen them in a while. They're COVID-cautious, so when we offered to get together for lunch, they declined, but said, "We'll come for afternoon tea, on your balcone!"
Now I've had the task of serving a lot of English friends a spot of tea, and I have an English son-in-law. So I know that the Brits and even other Europeans are most particular about their tea. Loose tea is best, but tea bags are acceptable, unless you're serving royalty. Milk is poured in after the tea is poured. Milk is only served with black tea, but not with Earl Grey, though this is subject to opinions that are as strong as a good cuppa.
Let the water boil a few seconds, then immediately pour it in the teapot over the tea bags, and it must steep for the proper amount of time, subject to individual taste. Do not let it "stew", this is a mortal sin. Don't even think of putting the tea in a mug, a teapot is de rigeur. Pinkies out!
By the way, while Americans sometimes refer to a fancy afternoon tea as "high tea", Brits do not. High tea means supper. Tea in the afternoon is just a Tea, or a Cream Tea, if it's served with scones and clotted cream.
And what to serve with my low tea? I didn't dare compete with the English and make homemade scones, so something else would have to do.
Fortunately I have a favorite new recipe: raspberry shortbread bars. I paired these with cucumber sandwiches and chocolate macarons from our patisserie.
I love these easy cookie bars and they are very versatile. Serve them with tea or coffee (or breakfast!), or make an impressive dessert by serving them with a side of vanilla ice cream and sugared fresh peaches, giving them a French pêche melba vibe.
My tea was a success, but Sally asked for a tisane and Trevor drank water, so the tea-making was was easy! Some of us may have even opted for a glass of wine--it was, after all, cinq heure, quelque part: five o'clock somewhere!
RECIPE: Raspberry Shortbread Bars
This recipe was inspired by one from the Washington Post. For company, serve with ice cream and peaches on the side, especially in summer.
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2 cups flour
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1/2 cup sugar
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1/4 teaspoon salt
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16 tablespoons (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
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1 1/4 cup raspberry jam
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1/2 cup sliced almonds
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Press a long piece of aluminum foil into a 9-inch square pan to create a sling, leaving several inches of overhang on two opposite sides so you can use it to pull the bars out of the pan later. Grease the foil with cooking oil spray.
Combine the flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse the mixture until crumbly. Reserve 1 cup of the crust mixture for the crumb topping.
Press the remaining crust mixture into the bottom of the pan. Bake (middle rack) for 25 to 30 minutes, or until lightly browned.
Remove from the oven; spread the jam over the hot crust. Sprinkle the reserved crumbly crust mixture over the filling, making sure to cover most of it, then scatter the almonds on top.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the topping starts to turn golden brown and the almonds are fragrant and lightly browned. Let cool (in the pan) on a wire rack for 1 hour, then remove the slab using the foil sling and cut into 16 bars.
OPTIONAL: To fluff up this dessert , go for the classic peach melba flavors. Serve with vanilla ice cream, and something peachy: fresh peach slices, or sliced peaches doused in sugar and lemon and marinated in the fridge for a bit; or even a nice glass of creme de pêche if you have some on hand.
In the COMMENTS: Mindy has some great French diner stories, what fun! Paula, thanks for the Korean pancakes idea, I'll have plenty of time in lockdown to try them out. Delia, that yellow bus gets around!
Favorite READS: Our Book Critic in Residence, Natalia, has another good one for us, which she describes as "charming": Little Antique Shop Under the Eiffel Tower, by Rebecca Raisin. Since we just got locked down for a month, I'm looking forward to this one! And speaking of Paris and of charm, has everyone been watching Emily in Paris on Netflix? A fun bit of fluff that will make you smile.
