The stark winter landscape evokes a quiet mood, suggests an elegant simplicity in entertaining. Subtle cream, ecru, silver, gold, and white are the palette of a winter’s tea. A fire or candlelight adds a touch of warmth. Cosset guests with a menu of epicurean delights including chestnut, black truffle, and pear. Champagne is the ideal chilled beverage and a strong black tea is preferred. Embrace the pleasures of winter until the light of spring returns again.
For Dad, an Elegy
The rains began on the day of your death
And the piper, gritty as a highlander,
Stood in the freezing drizzle
To pipe your coffin into the grave.
Now you rest beneath a pepper tree
Safe with our sacred mother,
Forever in the sweet damp earth.
I will miss the way you loved to look at trees,
The way you noticed shades of gray
In the winter sky.
You would have marveled
At today’s mist
And the bright blossoms
Just being born among the deep
Azalea leaves.
The rains began on the day of your death
And the piper, gritty as a highlander,
Stood in the freezing drizzle
To pipe your coffin into the grave.
Now you rest beneath a pepper tree
Safe with our sacred mother,
Forever in the sweet damp earth.
I will miss the way you loved to look at trees,
The way you noticed shades of gray
In the winter sky.
You would have marveled
At today’s mist
And the bright blossoms
Just being born among the deep
Azalea leaves.
Menu
Beverages:
Assam Tea
French Pressed Coffee
Decaffeinated Green Tea
Champagne
Hot Buttered Rum
Savories:
White Bean Pate on Crostini
Turkey, Brie, and Crisp Pear on Fluffy Caraway Rolls
Truffled Potato Gratins
Rosemary Skewered Scallops with Lemon
Breads:
Hot Buttered Crumpets
Sweets:
Poppy Seed Shortbread
Chestnut Bavarian
Moist Chocolate Marble Cake
Classic Eclairs
Chocolate Grand Marnier Truffles with Gold Leaf
Beverages:
Assam Tea
French Pressed Coffee
Decaffeinated Green Tea
Champagne
Hot Buttered Rum
Savories:
White Bean Pate on Crostini
Turkey, Brie, and Crisp Pear on Fluffy Caraway Rolls
Truffled Potato Gratins
Rosemary Skewered Scallops with Lemon
Breads:
Hot Buttered Crumpets
Sweets:
Poppy Seed Shortbread
Chestnut Bavarian
Moist Chocolate Marble Cake
Classic Eclairs
Chocolate Grand Marnier Truffles with Gold Leaf
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Recipes Included:
Hot Buttered Rum Though Henry James immortalized summer afternoons in his writings, we’d like to celebrate the more subtle charms of the winter afternoon. It presents an exquisite opportunity to warm yourself, as well as friends, with this traditional hot toddy, Hot Buttered Rum. Once the simple batter is made, it keeps all winter long, patiently waiting for you to stir a heaping spoonful into a glass of hot water and rum. Packaged in little jars with instructions attached, a recipe of Hot Buttered Rum Batter makes a lovely party favor. White Bean Pate This delicate spread works well with any type of toast or cracker and can be whipped up in the food processor in no time. If you have fresh thyme growing in the garden, use it. The other ingredients are most likely already in the pantry. Turkey, Brie, and Crisp Pear on Fluffy Caraway Rolls These interesting and delicious sandwiches are just what their name describes. Their charm comes from the intriguing contrast in both taste and texture among the slices of turkey, Brie and pear. Start with 6 very fresh fluffy caraway rolls from a good bakery and slices of moist turkey breast from a deli or leftover turkey if you have some. Split the rolls in two, place a generous slice of Brie on the bottom halves and top with a slice of turkey. You may have to fold the turkey slice over to fit the roll. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the turkey and top with a slice of fresh pear. (The pear does not need to be peeled, but cut out the core.) Butter the undersides of the tops of the rolls and press gently over the pear slices. Use decorative toothpicks to hold the sandwiches together, place them on an attractive platter and serve immediately. Truffled Potato Gratins The popularity of the distinctive taste of truffles has risen with the availability of truffle oil and truffle butter. Fresh truffles have a short season, and besides being costly, are not widely available. Here, potatoes are infused with the essence of truffle from truffle oil (black or white) or truffle butter. Most gratins feature cheese, be we are showcasing the flavor of the truffle and don’t want to distract from the star ingredient. “Gratin” also refers to the shallow oval ceramic dishes in which the recipe is traditionally baked. They come in many sizes, ranging from large to serve family-size dishes to little 4-ounce sizes used for individual servings of crème brulee. Any small ovenproof ramekin will also work. Rosemary Skewered Scallops with Lemon These elegant scallops add a touch of luxury to our Winter Tea menu. Present the plump scallops atop grilled lemon slices, echoing the grilling method used to prepare the scallops. Fresh rosemary is used in the marinade and as aromatic and decorative skewers. Ask your produce person to order a bunch of fresh rosemary, or in mild climates, pick from the garden. Hot Buttered Crumpets Hot Buttered Crumpets are a welcome treat on a chilly winter afternoon. Your guests will love them, covered with warm, melting butter. Crumpets are made with a yeast batter, which will need about an hour to rise. You will also need a set of Crumpet Rings, to keep the batter from spreading in the skillet, where the Crumpets will be cooked like pancakes. Poppy Seed Shortbread Here is a velvety shortbread enriched with poppy seeds. We suggest using vanilla bean paste which adds its own delicious specks to the pattern of poppy seeds. Always store poppy seeds in the freezer to preserve their freshness. Chestnut Bavarian A traditional winter food, the chestnut seems to have fallen out of favor as an ingredient or flavor for modern desserts. We are hoping you’ll help us change that by making our beautiful Bavarian, flavored with chestnut puree and complex notes of coffee and chocolate. This striking, molded dessert has a subtle but memorable flavor and a luscious, soft, barely set texture. It makes a stunning presentation, sprinkled with chocolate cookie crumbs and crowned with Chocolate Sauce. The response of our taste testers, none of whom had eaten Chestnut Bavarian before, was one of unanimous wonder, followed by requests of, “More, Please!” A Bavarian, sometimes referred to as Bavarian Cream, is a chilled and molded combination of gelatin, flavored custard and whipped cream. Our Bavarian is flavored primarily with chestnut puree. You can make your own chestnut puree with fresh chestnuts, but we’ve made your task much easier by using canned chestnut puree from France. Look for it in specialty food markets, or order it online as we did. It’s well worth the time and effort spent to indulge your guests with this rarely seen winter delight. Moist Chocolate Marble Cake While we love the high-contrast, sophisticated look of chocolate marble cake, we were less excited by the typically dry texture. This recipe delivers both a beautifully marbled appearance and a wonderfully moist crumb. Tasters commented on the deep chocolaty flavor: three-quarters of a cup of cocoa enlivened with hot coffee packs an intense chocolate taste. Serve your beautiful Marble Cake on a pedestal next to the Chestnut Bavarian. Those two will become close friends very quickly! Classic Eclairs Éclairs are puffy little French pastries filled with pastry cream and topped with glossy chocolate icing. They are made from choux pastry, a light pastry containing no sugar that is also used for cream puffs but can be used for savory appetizers such as seafood salad or chicken salad in pastry puffs. Choux pastry is made in a saucepan. For the Éclairs, we recommend making the pastry cream first to give it a chance to chill before you make the choux pastry. The final assembly of the pastry puffs, pastry cream and chocolate icing should take place shortly before your guests arrive, as choux pastry can get a bit soggy if it has to be refrigerated. The Éclairs will definitely add a note of French sophistication to your Winter Afternoon Tea. Chocolate Grand Marnier Truffles with Gold Leaf For our Winter Tea, we are evoking quiet elegance with a menu of luxurious indulgences. What is more lux than the darkest chocolate and real gold? Real gold leaf is edible and can be found at art supply stores or a local frame shop. By the sheet, it shouldn’t break the bank and will add a gilded note to the festivities. Use the best quality chocolate you can find, such as Valrhona, Scharffen Berger, or the imported Belgian chocolate, under the store label of Trader Joe’s. |
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