Tea Party

I love tea parties / afternoon tea. They are cute and fun and most of the food is miniature. If you have them with the right people, you get to pretend to be fancy but there's not pressure to be actually pRoPeR. Where we live now though, places that serve afternoon tea average about $70 a head and won't accomodate allergies! Which is ludicrous.

However we have an amazing local tea shop. Most weekends they have tea flights (5 themed tea flavors, as much as you want) for about $10 a person, and 3 pots of tea usually cost a similar amount. And they let you bring outside food! So we can bring our own sandwiches and sweets and scones, that I can safely eat, and with just a little bit of setup get the full tea party experience!

Tea Party Components

1. Scones
2. Pastries / sweets
3. Sandwiches / savories

Scones

My wife uses the King Arthur Baking scones recipe. It works great with dairy-free substitutes. She usually just makes half because otherwise we can't finish the scones before they go stale.

You can also pick up a scone (or your favorite pastry) from a bakery, which is what I would do if the vegan options at bakeries were not the saddest "healthy" muffin you ever saw.

Make sure you remember to pack jam / clotted cream / whatever you're planning to spread on your scones! You can also add some fresh fruit to this tier. It looks pretty & tastes good!

Pastries / sweets

This is the tier that has tiny little desserts. If you're going all-out, you want 3-4 different tiny desserts. When I don't feel like actually making desserts, I get a store-bought cookie I can eat and just serve a few of them - siete has some cookies that are great for tea, and sometimes I find something store-brand that works.

Here are some ideas for going more all-out:

• Petit fours - I think these have gone out of style because I can't remember the last time I saw one on a tea menu, but I love them! They're definitely work, but they're super cute and travel well.
• Mousse - I once saved the jars from some fancy vegan mousse I bought. Now I can put whatever kind of mousse I want in them! It's mostly just the store-brand vegan mousse. Ideally, top with some whipped cream & berries (or chocolate shavings, or candied orange peel, or a sprig of mint, or...)
• Use phyllo shell cups to make mini pies / tarts! It's really easy to make this seasonal.
• Macarons - I really hope a bakery / company starts selling frozen macaron shells that I can fill with something dairy-free. When my sister lived in paris she found a macaron shop that used a marzipan-based filling so I could have EVERY flavor except coffee! I ate a lot of macarons when I visited her.
• Macaroons - these are really easy to make and tasty!
• Chocolate-covered strawberries
• Chocolate truffles
• Mochi
• Lemon bars
• Baklava

Sandwiches / savories

I absolutely love tea sandwiches! This is also the place to put mini quiche, sausage rolls, and other bite-size savory food. Similar to the sweet tier, you want 3-4 varieties. Also similar to the sweet tier, you can do something easier or go all-out on your miniature sandwich creations.

When I want to do something easier, I get a cheap loaf of white bread (usually cheaper bread has thinner slices, which is ideal for tea sandwiches) and make some easy sandwiches (minimal filling prep - many can be store bought) cut into quarters:

• Cucumber & herb cream cheese
• Egg salad
• Deviled ham, pickled onions & mayo
• Tomato
• PB & J
• Chicken salad

You can also use some freezer-aisle apps, as long as you have a way to keep them warm wherever you're going:

• Mini quiche
• Spanakopita
• Sausage rolls
• Bao
• Mini spring rolls
• Mini samosas
• Anything described as "bites"

When you want to take it up a notch, here are some suggestions. I always suggest miniaturizing your favorite sandwich to start, and you can always fancify classic tea sandwiches:

• Use baguette slices as the bread
• Use pretzel bites as mini buns
• Use a mini flatbread to make a... mini flatbread (or even a tiny little gyro!)
• Use microgreens
• Use quail eggs
• Crostini!