By Marialisa Calta



Mother’s Day is a lovely day for a tea party. Think about surprising mom with a handwritten invitation and a well-set table. You might even dress up. If you plan it right and serve enough sandwiches and tea cakes late in the afternoon, you don’t even need to worry about dinner.

A new book titled “Tea Party” by Tracy Stern (Clarkson Potter, 2007) will give you all of the ideas you could possibly need. Stern, who created several tea product lines and who runs a tea salon in Manhattan, offers menus, decorations, music and table-setting tips for 20 themed tea parties -- from a spa-themed bridal shower (think goody-bags filled with travel-size spa products) to a clubby “gentlemen’s tea” (think martinis and Scotch). The book is loaded with decorating and serving tips (“Use conch shells as vases for single buds;” “Lollipops as stirrers for drinks: What could be more playful and festive?”) which some of us (we know who we are) tend to ignore. But the recipes are solid. You’ll find them for not only tea “classics” like tiny sandwiches and scones, but also for salads, wraps, soups, vegetables dishes and fruit desserts.

The “proper afternoon tea,” writes Stern, consists of three “courses”: scones (served with jams and clotted cream), tea sandwiches and pastries (tiny brownies or petits fours are perfect), all in dainty servings. The sandwich recipes here come from her book. The brownies and scone recipes are from the new “The Best Bake Sale Ever Cookbook” by Barbara Grunes (Chronicle Books, 2006).

Each Mother’s Day, volunteers from the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society send out invitations -- complete with Red Rose teabags donated by the tea company -- asking recipients to join “at the hour of three” to have a cup of tea and support the society’s fundraising efforts. These “pretend” tea parties are a way of raising money and awareness, and joining hearts and minds for a good cause. If you would like to host one of these parties -- perhaps combining it with a real tea party -- or simply donate to the society, log on to www.leukemia-lymphoma.org or call 888-220-4440. Ever since a friend began sending these invitations a dozen years ago -- in honor of her daughter, who was diagnosed with leukemia at age 3 (and who has now been cancer-free for at least 18 years) -- I think of “afternoon tea” when I think of Mother’s Day. Cheers!



Cucumber mint tea sandwiches

1 large cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced

salt and ground white pepper

16 thin slices white bread

16 fresh mint leaves

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

Sprinkle the cucumber slices with salt and white pepper and set aside in a colander for 10 minutes so that any excess liquid can drain out. Pat dry with paper towels.

Using a cookie cutter, cut 2 2-inch rounds from each slice of white bread; you should have 32 rounds. If you want the mint leaf to show through, cut a 1-inch round out of half the circles -- the ones you will use as the tops to the sandwiches. Coat each circle on one side with a very thin layer of butter.

Layer cucumber slices on top of the butter side of 16 bread rounds. Add a tiny dab of butter and top with a mint leaf. Reserve any extra butter for another use. Place another bread round on top of the sandwich, butter-side down, and press sandwiches together gently. Serve immediately or refrigerate, wrapped in plastic, for up to 3 hours.

Yield: 16 sandwiches

Recipe from “Tea Party” by Tracy Stern with Christie Matheson (Clarkson Potter, 2007)



Smoked salmon and chive cream cheese tea sandwiches

12 thin slices pumpernickel bread

8 ounces sliced smoked salmon

1/2 cup cream cheese, softened

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

Using a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut 2 circles from each slice of bread; you should have 24 circles. Using the same cookie cutter, cut 12 circles from the smoked salmon.

Mix the cream cheese and chives in a bowl until soft and creamy. Spread the cream cheese mixture onto half of the bread rounds, and then top with a piece of salmon and another circle of bread. Press down gently and serve immediately or refrigerate, wrapped in plastic, for up to 3 hours.

Yield: 12 tea sandwiches

Recipe from “Tea Party” by Tracy Stern with Christie Matheson (Clarkson Potter, 2007)



Toblerone brownies

1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces

2 ounces unsweetened (baking) chocolate

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts, pecans or other nuts

1 (2.52-ounce) bar Toblerone chocolate (Swiss chocolate bars available in most supermarkets), cut into pieces

Center a rack in the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Spray or grease an 8-inch square baking pan.

In a small, microwave-safe bowl, combine the butter and chocolate and heat on high for about 1 minute. Stir until smooth. If not melted, return to the microwave and reheat in 10-second blasts, stirring after each blast. (You can also do this in a double-boiler set over simmering water.)

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the eggs until light, about 2 minutes. Beat in the sugar and vanilla. Beat in the cooled chocolate mixture. Blend in the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. By hand, stir in the nuts and candy.

Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the brownies just begin to pull away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost dry. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool completely. With a small, sharp knife, cut the brownies into 16 squares.

Yield: 16 brownies

Recipe from “The Best Bake Sale Ever Cookbook” by Barbara Grunes (Chronicle Books, 2006)



Currant scones

2 cups all-purpose flour (preferably unbleached)

1/4 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons grated lemon or orange zest

2 teaspoons baking powder

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled

3 eggs

1/3 cup heavy (whipping) cream or half-and-half

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup dried currants

Center a rack in the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 F.

In a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, salt, zest and baking powder, and pulse until combined. Take the lid off the processor bowl, cut the butter into bits and distribute over the top of the flour mixture. Replace the cover and pulse just until the mixture forms coarse, flaky crumbs. Add 2 of the eggs, the cream and vanilla and pulse until mixed. Add the currants and pulse until distributed through the dough. The dough will be soft.

Turn the dough out onto a floured board and pat it into a 6-inch round. Cut with a 2-inch cookie cutter and place on a cookie sheet. Gather the scraps, pat down and cut into rounds. Beat the remaining egg lightly and, using a pastry brush, brush the tops of the scones with the beaten egg. Sprinkle with sugar.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden and toothpick or cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

Yield: about 8 scones

Recipe from “The Best Bake Sale Ever Cookbook” by Barbara Grunes (Chronicle Books, 2006)



Marialisa Calta is the author of “Barbarians at the Plate: Taming and Feeding the American Family” (Perigee, 2005). For more information, go to www.marialisacalta.com.

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