Pumpkin-Ginger Scones and Tea ~

 I admit - I haven't made these scones, but I've had the recipe for a while and they sound so good ~ especially for this time of year ~ and I wanted to share it. So, the photo isn't mine, but one I found on Google images from a website called Brown-Eyed Baker found HERE.  I've heard Starbucks has a pumpkin scone, but I don't know for sure about that because there is no Starbucks in the small town where I live. I think these would be perfect with a spicy chai tea, pumpkin or cinnamon-spiced tea. Yum! 

Pumpkin-Ginger Scones:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

 
Sift together:
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon powdered ginger with 1/2 cup sugar
Add 4 tablespoons of chilled unsalted butter chopped into small pieces (soy or vegan margarine works great also). Gently work the flour-butter mixture with a pastry blender until the dough looks like coarse meal.

*Tip: Overworking the dough makes these pumpkin and ginger scones tough and heavy. Be gentle working in the butter/margarine.

In a separate bowl, beat together:
1 large egg, or 2 egg whites (vegans may substitute soy milk)
1/2 cup homemade or canned plain pumpkin puree
1/4 cup sour cream (you can use cream cheese, non-fat yogurt, or tofu substitute)
3 tablespoons finely chopped crystallized ginger
Add to flour mixture and stir just until blended.

If you are making large triangular scones, pat the dough into a circle and cut into wedges. Or you can roll out to 3/4 inch thickness and use your cookie cutter or selected shape.
If you are making smaller triangles, divide the dough in half, pat into two rounds, then cut into wedges.
Place on the baking sheet, bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden. Cool on wire racks.

Drizzle with ginger icing:
Mix ½ cup powdered sugar with 1 teaspoon finely chopped crystallized ginger and 1-2 tablespoons milk, cream, or soy milk.

Serve warm. Makes 12 large scones or 24 small scones
 

If you make them, please email me and let me know how they were! Maybe one of these cool, rainy autumn days, I'll bake up a batch of them myself to have with my afternoon tea. ~

Until next time,

Cindy

Linking to Potpourri Friday at 2805
and
Sarah's Homemaking Link-up Weekend on Hope in Every Season

The Art of Sophie Anderson ~

I recently discovered the art of Sophie Anderson (1823-1903) while doing research online about another artist. I can't believe I'd never heard of her before, or saw any of her paintings, but I love her work! What's even more amazing is that she was largely a self-taught artist, except for a brief period when she studied portraiture with Charles de Steuben in Paris in 1843. Here are a few of my favorite paintings by her. I hope you'll enjoy them, also!

The Time of Lilacs

 Far Away Thoughts

Love in a Mist

Sophia Gengembre Anderson was born in Paris, but her family left France for the United States in 1848 to escape the Revolution. They first settled in Cincinnati, Ohio, then moved to Manchester, Pennsylvania. Later, Sophie married British artist, Walter Anderson. They lived in New York and London, but eventually retired to Falmouth, Cornwall, England, where Sophie died in 1903. Her husband passed away the same year.

The Turtle Dove

Reading Time

Picking Honeysuckle 

Opportune Moment

Until next time, enjoy!



~ Afternoon Tea ~

"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea." ~Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady

Afternoon Tea,1880, Marie Bracquemond, French (1840-1916)

Five 'O Clock Tea, 1880, Mary Cassatt, American (1844-1926)

Cassatt lived most of her adult life in France

The Cup of Tea, 1879, Mary Cassatt, American (1844-1826)

Tea, Frederick Carl Frieske, American (1874-1939)

Frieseke resided in Giverny, France for fourteen years

Tea Table in the Garden, 1925, Esther Borough Johnson, British

(1867-1949)

 Private Thoughts, Joe Bowler, American (1928- )

Afternoon Tea, Everett Lloyd Bryant, American (1864 – 1945)

In the Spring, Harold Knight, British (1874-1961)

How Do You Take Your Tea?

I drink my tea from a big ceramic mug...not a dainty china cup. I like strong, black English Breakfast tea every morning. No coffee for this woman! There's something so comforting about cradling my favorite mug in my hands in the morning, inhaling the brew and taking a nice, long sip, as I look out the window and think about the day ahead. Especially in the wintertime, when it's frosty and cold outside, I love nothing better than to warm my hands around my tea mug, as I curl up on the sofa with a good book, perhaps covered with my favorite afghan. However, I absolutely love the look of fragile, flowered tea cups - and they have their place, too, at a special tea party or afternoon tea with a friend. Or just to collect and display - they're so beautiful to look at!

I admit, though, I like my tea with a little sugar and milk (unless it's herbal tea, which I prefer plain.)  However, these days, I'm trying to remove sugar from my life, so I'm making some changes...but in my tea? Well...maybe just a little sweet...especially on those days I need a little extra comfort and pampering. Surely just a little teeny, tiny bit of sugar won't hurt. So...how do you take your tea?

My favorite tea mug - a gift from my niece, Stefanie.

Outdoor Tea Party

Ah…the lazy, hazy days of summer! No better time to invite a few friends or neighbors to an outdoor tea party. Impromptu or planned, it’s easier than you may think. Set up a portable table in a corner of your yard or patio, or cover the picnic table with a colorful cloth and floral-pattern paper party napkins. For a centerpiece, gather blooms from your own garden (or from the local farmer’s market) and place in a vintage pitcher or vase. Even a few interesting-shaped branches will do. Lemons or limes placed in a clear glass bowl also make a lovely centerpiece for an outdoor theme party. For a more natural look, look for a few smooth, medium-sized stones and lay down the center of the table on a layer of moss (available from most craft or flower shops.) Intersperse votive candles among the stones to cast a warm glow. If you wish, you can even hang a chandelier or colorful paper lanterns from branches of a tree. Vintage teacups in a floral pattern and mismatched teaspoons add an elegant, yet fun and casual flair. Plus, they can be collected throughout the year at thrift sales and antique stores.

Offer different varieties of tea and set out milk, honey and sugar. Serve tea sandwiches, such as watercress, cucumber and cream cheese, or egg salad (with bread crusts removed.) Sweets might be petit fours, fresh berry tarts or mini-cupcakes. The idea is that no other cutlery other than teaspoons should be needed at an afternoon tea. Everything should be dainty finger-food, and it’s generally a good idea to serve both savory and sweet foods. For a traditional English tea, consider scones with jam and clotted cream (for an easy, delish recipe for homemade scones, see my previous post “Tea and Devon Scones.”) For fun, you might want to ask guests to don fancy hats, or keep it simple casual dress. Anything goes, really, just relax and enjoy these first long days of summer!

　
Martha Stewart’s Crisp Vegetable Sandwiches:
4 ounces cream cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh herbs, such as flat-leaf parsley, basil, tarragon, or mint
8 slices wheat bread
1 piece (4 inches) cucumber, very thinly sliced into rounds
2 radishes, trimmed and very thinly sliced
2 tablespoons softened butter

Place cream cheese and herbs in bowl; stir with a rubber spatula until combined. Spread cream cheese on 4 slices of bread; layer with cucumber and radish slices. Spread remaining slices of bread with butter. Place, butter side facing down, on radishes. Trim crusts; cut sandwiches in half.

Great American Tea Rooms

The Great Tea Rooms of America by Bruce Richardson is a beautiful photo-guidebook for tea lovers, filled with 125 color photographs, narrative, and 65 recipes from 21 of the best tea rooms in the country. MSN calls Richardson "A leading tea expert involved in tea's American renaissance for over 20 years." Writer, photographer, and arguably America’s leading tea expert, Richardson is a frequent guest speaker at tea conferences across America.

Right about now, you may be asking yourself, "great tea rooms of...America? I thought really great tea rooms only existed in Great Britain?" This simply isn't true. You may be surprised - I know I was, to discover there are thousands of tea rooms across the country. Even the small, mid-western town where I live has a tea room, housed in a lovely, old, brick Victorian home. Mr. Richardson's book showcases the cream of the crop, of course, and included in his book is The Tea Room of Savannah, Georgia. Called "an elegant, yet quaint tea room in the Victorian style," The Tea Room offers everything from a pot of tea for one, to a full afternoon tea of assorted finger sandwiches, scones, clotted cream, preserves, sweets, fresh fruit and tea. The Tea Room also sells tea ware and accoutrements, and a wide variety of loose teas from around the world, both on-site and online. I can think of few places more fitting for a tea room than the city of Savannah. With its' cobblestone streets, moss-draped trees, and gleaming, white buildings, afternoon tea seems the natural thing to do. Tea is meant to be savored in a unhurried manner and in some places - it's an absolute art form.

http://www.savannahtearoom.com/