Saturday, May 2, 2009

A Mad Hatter's Tea Party

A Mad Hatter's Tea Party
Everything you need to know about throwing your own


Recipes
Cucumber-mint tea sandwiches

Ingredients

1 large cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
Salt and white p
epper
16 thin slices white bread
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
16 fresh mint leaves

Directions
Sprinkle the cucumber slices with salt and pepper and set aside in a colander for 10 minutes so any excess liquid can drain out. Pat d
ry with paper towels.
Using a cookie cuter, cut two 2-inch rounds from each slice of white bread. Coat each circle on one side with a very thin layer of butter.
Layer cucumber slices on top of the buttered side of 16 bread rounds.
Add a tiny dab of butter and top with a mint leaf. Place another bread round on top, butter side down, and press the sandwiches together gently. Serve immediately or refrigerate, wrapped in plastic.


Cream cheese, rooibos tea, and edible flower tea sandwiches

Ingredients
1 cup cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons brewed and chopped rooibos (or other herbal) tea leaves (excess water squeezed out)
12 thin slices white bread
20 edible flower petals (such as from roses or nasturtiums), chopped

Directions
Mix together the cream cheese and brewed t
ea leaves. Set aside.
Using a 2-inch round or flower-shaped cookie cutter, cut 2 pieces of each slice of bread. Spread a thin layer of the cream cheese mixture on 12 of the bread rounds and sprinkle with the chopped floewrs. Cut a small circle out of the middle of the 12 remaining bread rounds and place on top of each sandwich. Press each sandwich together gently
and serve immediately or refrigerate, wrapped tightly in plastic.

"Eat Me" Cupca
kes

Ingredients
2 1/4 cups flour
1 1/3 cups su
gar
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 large eggs

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cu
pcake pan with paper liners.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add shortening, milk, and vanilla. Beat for 1 minute on medium speed. Add eggs to mixture. Beat for 1 minute on medium speed. Scrape sides of bowl and beat for 1 minute 30 seconds until well mixed.
Fill paper liners with batter until 1/2 to 2/3 full. B
ake 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean. Once cupcakes are cool, frost with frosting. Using colored decorator icing (can be bought at the store) write "Eat Me" on your cupcakes. Enjoy!

Other food ideas
-Serve iced tea (or hot tea, whatever you prefer) in wild flavors
-Make cookies in the shapes of hearts and spades
-Make a cake in the shape of a mushroom or a tea pot

Decorating
Ideas
-Use wild tea pots and tea cups of mix and matching styles and colors
-Create paper labels that say "Eat Me" or "Drink Me" and attach them to food and drink
-Have a stuffed mouse like the Dormouse in one of the tea pots
-Use a mixture of chairs with varying size, shape, height, and color
-Hang colorful lanterns and streamers above the table
-Scatter playing cards and chess pieces around the room.
-Make rabbit paw tracks that lead throughout different places in the house/garden
-Put clocks all over the r
oom that are stopped at tea time
-Hang a branch from the ceiling with the Cheshire cat's grin attached to it
-Use a mix of colorful flowers on the table and in vases around the room

Games
-Lawn croquet
-Pin the grin on the Cheshire cat
-Chess
-Buy basic hats and let the guests decorate them with odd supplies and things (buttons, ribbons, stuffed mice, check
er pieces, clocks, etc.)