You & Me For Afternoon Tea!

 Well, here we are at the end of another working week, yet again wondering where the heck the time has gone. It's been an interrupted kind of week, so still no sewing finishes to show, but I thought I'd share some pics of the afternoon tea my Beloved Geek Boy and I hosted last Sunday ... cos we ALL like a good afternoon tea, right??!? :0)

GB's Mum has been struggling a little in the last little while and feeling a bit low ... her sister-in-law is in the last stages of cancer and she has recently found that one of her sisters' cancer has popped up somewhere else and the prognosis is not good ... so she is, understandably, a bit blue. So ... I thought a little change of scenery and a special afternoon tea might be a nice distraction for her. We opened the invitation to all of GB's family too, but with life being so busy, only one of his sisters, her hubby and kids were able to make it ... still a nice little gathering. :0)

Now ... I may grumble (like most of us!!) about the day-to-day meal preparation from time to time, but I do actually enjoy playing in the kitchen a bit, so afternoon teas and parties are a fun time to 'play' a little. Preparations began on Friday (My birthday!! How did I get tricked into working on my birthday?!?! A sneaky Mum! Tee! Hee! Hee!) when Mum and I dug out the recipe books ... she to do some market stall cooking and me to start prep for afternoon tea. There was then a bit more prep work on Saturday afternoon and a manic-panic on Sunday to get everything finished and looking pretty ... cos looking pretty is as important as taste, don't you think??

At last, all was ready and the table was set ...

A pretty tablecloth, lots of yummy home-made treats, some pretty plates and napkins (paper versions due to the gathering including small people!) and pretty flowers picked from the garden.

Mmmmmmmm !!! Home-made mini tart shells (Friday's efforts!) filled with caramel and home-made lemon butter, topped with a dollop of extra thick cream and some pretty mini meringues on the top tier. These tart shells are Mum's recipe and can be kept in the freezer ready for special occasions ... I think I will be making some more of these ... though a little tip from me to you is ... DON'T try to play with pastry on the hottest day of the month ... it's ... well ... CHALLENGING!!! :0)

Home-made sausage rolls ... YUMMO!! These are my 'invention'. The filling is the mixture from my Grandma's meatloaf recipe (a legend amongst our family and friends! Tee! Hee! Hee!) with a few little tweaks and rolled in lovely puff pastry ... a freezer staple in our household. They were so yummy that they were the first thing to disappear!! :0)

Another big hit was this cheese log. I got the recipe from one of my Friday night Sit N Sew friends ... SOOOOOOOO quick and simple to whip up when unexpected guests arrive for afternoon tea! There was also a plate of nibbles to mix and match with crackers and a dollop of my home-made chilli jam ... another hit for the day, especially with GB's brother-in-law who loves anything with chillies in ... the hotter the better! ... although my chilli jam just gives a hint of heat. 

There you have it ... afternoon tea with family at Edward House. A very nice, relaxing afternoon was had by all ... sitting at our lovely new table and looking out into our peaceful back garden. Not a bad way to spend a Sunday afternoon at all! :0)

If anyone is interested I might share one or more of these recipes on a future post ... if not, I'll just keep them to myself and INDULGE! Tee! Hee! Hee!

Hope you're all having a lovely week ... in theory we're nearing the end of our first month of autumn, but I think my birthday gift this year was to have an extra month of summer weather, cos it's been pretty warm hot, even here on top of our 'hill'. YAY! :0) I'm hoping, though, for the temps to be just a wee bit lower over the weekend so GB and I can play in the garden without melting ... it's time to dig over the vege patch and plant some goodies for winter crops ... and maybe some sweetpeas for their fragrance. If I'm VERY lucky, I might even squeeze in some sewing. :0) So what are YOU up to this weekend? Maybe you're going to have a yummy afternoon tea! :0)

Whatever you're up to, stay safe, be kind to yourself and enjoy the little things in life that make life so GOOD. :0) Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!
KRIS

PS. OPAMers ... it's almost THAT time of the month again, so make sure your sidebar lists are up-to-date and you email your final March tally through to my gorgeous Partner-In-Crime Sweet Peg or me!! xx