Afternoon tea quantities

[KeepOnCleaning]

I'm making an afternoon tea for 25, teens and adults. I can't figure out how much I need. I'm a chronic over caterer, but my greatest fear is not providing enough! I've got the sandwiches sorted and will be buying the scones as time will be limited. I only have that morning to prepare so I'll buy what I can, and will have time to make 2, maybe 3 cakes.

I need ideas on quantities, and what can be bought and what is nicer or very easy to bake myself. I'm thinking something like one loaf cake (lemon drizzle? banana? coffee and pecan?), one tray bake, and one traditional cake.

Is it acceptable to buy rather than make a Victoria sponge? How many cakes do I need for this number of people? What else should have I forgotten?

Please help with ideas for easy shortcuts and quantities. I still it want it look lovely, even though I don't have masses of time.

A gingerbread which can be sliced and served along with the scones. Definitely a tray bake like lemon drizzle. Mary Berry does a lovely lemon drizzle tray bake which would serve twenty five. Perhaps individual fruit tarts. You can but the pastry shells, add strawberry, kiwi etc and skoosh cream on top. I would make two cakes and buy one which is too fiddly to make for those numbers. Sounds a lovely thing to do

Personally, I'd make the scones and buy in the cake. Scones are best when they are super fresh, they're really very easy to make and it's no problem to make the dough a few hours earlier so you just have to slap them in the oven a few minutes before.

Having said that, cakes can easily be made in advance too. I think you need different flavours so you could make your own or buy in, something chocolatey, something fruity (lemon/strawberry etc) and something like a banana slice.

For 25 people, I'd be looking at 50 scones and at least 3 cakes plus sandwiches.

@MrSeptember what recipe do you use for scones?

It's in my mother's recipe book. If you still want it, let me know and I'll track it down tomorrow. It's quite good and easy actually, although I've always had to figure out how to adapt for her use of margarine. I'm out right now otherwise would send it now.

From one of my recipe books: a garden party for 25 people.

20 slices of ham to 500g cream cheese - 20 rolled ham cornets.
1.5 cups SR flour gives 24 mini savoury scones.
375g mince gives 20 mini meatballs.
5 slices of bread, toasted and quartered gives 20 something on toasts.
1 large chicken breast, 1 sheet puff pastry gives 20 chicken asparagus rolls.
1 packet sponge cake baked on a sheet gives about 40 petit four thingies.
3/4 cup flour, 1/3 cup gr almonds gives 30 drop types.

I hope this gives a guide. Proper instructions available if you need them.

That doesn't sound like afternoon tea at all.

I would make the scones, they're a million times nicer than bought ones. Buy clotted cream ( Rodda's) instead of whipping your own, and a good quality jam, 50 small scones.
With cakes I agree with pp about different flavours, eg a lemon drizzle, a chocolate iced cupcake and a gingerbread. Or substitute one for a mini pavlova which you could do with bought meringue nests( Tesco finest are nice) topped with whipped cream and fresh berries, and a bit of coulis on top. Use the best ingredients you can, so whip your own cream, don't use squirty or uht, real butter in buttercream etc. If you're serving on tiered plates it looks nice to have a few strawberries dotted round the cake tiers.
When looking at recipes they always say how many it serves so you can judge quantities from that.

What scone recipe do you use? I'm thinking from the responses that I should make these instead of buying them. Does anyone know if they work with dairy free milk/butter? Can I use a muffin tray for them?

I had considered a pavlova but ruled it out as more of a dessert than afternoon tea. Do I need anything else savoury besides the sandwiches?

I would have made the sandwiches and scones and bought the cake too. For an afternoon tea you really need an assortment of gorgeous mini cakes, not a slice of Victoria sponge.
For cakes you can buy minis, mini sponge, mini tart, mini eclair, macaron etc. No one gets that excited about sandwiches really, what makes afternoon tea more of a thing is the cakes.

If anyone has any recipes to share for cakes that I can easily portion up in advance, please share. I will be buying mini cakes and making cupcakes, but I would like to make a couple of other cakes. And an easy, fail-safe scone recipe.

On the cakes - is there no time at all a couple of days before?

If there is, you could do something like a brownie up to about 4 days before, or I have a super easy chocolate cake recipe that can be done 3-4 days before.

Victoria sponge I think has to be on the day or day before.

Lemon drizzle I think you can do up to 2 days before.

I'd always go for classic cakes for something like this just because I can pretty much make them in my sleep.

On quantities, I think you need to assume people will want 2, not huge, slices of cake per person.

So I would expect an 8 inch sponge to serve between 12 and 16, a lemon drizzle probably to do 12.

I tend to agree on making the scones because they are better really fresh but it also sounds like you haven't made them before. I don't think I would be prepared to try a new recipe out when I was catering for 25.

Overall, if I had a single morning to produce that catering I would have to buy some of the cakes in I think.

If I could have done the chocolate cake 2 or 3 days ahead (I'll find you the recipe if you want it, most cakes won't cope that well, this is a particular one that does) , and didn't need to make the sandwiches that morning, then I think I could do it.

I'd go as follows:

1. First thing to do is the Victoria Sponge, because it needs to cool to be iced. Probably take 20 minutes to half an hour to get it into the oven.

1. Then do the lemon drizzle while Victoria sponge is baking because that needs to cool after drizzling so it doesn't break when you get it from the tin.

Then I'd make the scones.

Then ice the Victoria sponge - i like mine with jam and butter icing though I know there are mixed opinions on that.

Then done. I reckon if I worked as quickly as I could I could be done about 3 hours for that lot but it would probably actually take 3.5-4 so I would have to compel myself not to underestimate.

The biggest issue for me would be that I wouldn't have enough cooling racks so if I didn't remember to borrow off a friend it would be a total pain.

@Ineffable23 I can do things 2 days in advance. I will no free time the day before. Then I have the morning of.

Also, no, I haven't made scones before but I'm a reasonable baker, so if they're easy I'm willing to do. I can do a trial batch a few days before.

Personally I'd say yes, I love cake but there should be a range of savoury too.
Sausage rolls seem to be a regular feature in the ones I seem advertised. Mini ones ideal. (Buy ready rolled puff pastry and fill with sausage meat to make your own)
Mini quiches could work well and be prepped in advance.
With everything, remember that most people will want to try lots if different things, so small portions ideal.
I've seen people make mini Victoria sandwiches by making little cupcakes and filling them. Although your scones will rather fulfil the jam and cream requirements already? Maybe have half the scones be fruit? .
Oh, cheese scones would be another savoury option.

Fruit cakes and ginger loaf both keep well.
A madeira cake (plain cake with cherries) could work well, looks a bit more delicate than a hunk of fruit cake and the colours of the cherries looks lovely.
I'd ideally go for a small diameter loaf, so you can cut slices and see the cross section of it.

Who are the 25 people? I'd probably plan differently for 25 60 yo ladies than I would a mixed family, or group including male teens!

I usually use this recipe for scones… any leftover, in the freezer and blast them at 45-60 seconds in the microwave for a scone “hit”whenever needed- obviously with lots of butter.

if dairy free, then switch the milk to dairy free (I usually use oat milk) and dairy free butter (the flora block stuff) or dairy free margarine (the stork stuff). You can also improve the dairy free milk by making “buttermilk”- adding some lemon juice and giving it time to curdle. Which also improves the flavour…

https://www.paulhollywood.com/post/classic-scones

Scones are so easy to make and a million times better than from the supermarket.

2 days in advance you can definitely do both lemon drizzle and a chocolate cake.

If you're a happy baker and can do a test batch definitely worth making scones! Home made are so tasty. I reckon Nigella's lemon syrup loaf cake is exceptionally reliable for lemon drizzle but I can't find her recipe online. Her victoria sponge is also good.

Nigella Victoria Sponge

Photos of the chocolate cake and scone recipes I use. As per the notes on the scone recipes, I double most of the quantities and also add an extra teaspoon of baking powder which really sorts the rise out.

I used to be a pastry chef and have made more afternoon teas than I want to think about. In your position I would do:
1 1/2 rounds of sandwiches each in ham & wholegrain mustard, cream cheese & cucumber and beef, rocket & horseradish

a small sausage roll preferably homemade which you can make in advance and freeze then cook on the morning

one scone per person (plain) with clotted cream and Tiptree little scarlet jam. I use a recipe similar to this one https://tumyumyum.com/blog/the-best-scones

Then three sweet items each, one biscuit like shortbread or American style cookie; one patisserie item eg mini pavlovas or meringue shells sandwiched with cream, eclairs, fruit tartlet and thirdly a slice of cake. Lemon drizzle is apparently the UKs most popular cake flavour so I'd make that. Or use your cupcake idea.
The Hairy Bikers lemon drizzle is my go to then I make a really crunchy crust by covering it after soaking with a thick layer of granulated sugar which absorbs the moisture
in my experience the savoury items are the most popular.

When you get a proper hotel "afternoon tea" you get
3-4 finger sandwiches
2 scones
3 small pieces of cake

For 25 people therefore

Sandwiches - about 60 slices of bread's worth.
50 scones
Cakes - assuming small slices so getting 16 slices from a cake that would normally be 8 slices - you'd need at least 5 cakes.

Make sure you have buckets of cream.

Again, who is coming?
Are any gluten or dairy free? Veggies? Vegan? Any other dietary requirements
If this was my family or even with certain groups of friends, a few people would have offered to bring something and I would have taken them up on the offer and asked what they wanted to bring so I then avoided that myself.
If I was doing it all myself:

• week in advance - Delia's last minute Christmas cake (which is a very good fruit cake)
• 2 days in advance - chocolate brownies (BBC good food) & gingerbread
• day of - scones, lemon drizzle, coffee & walnut & sausage rolls.

I would definitely need a helper to do all of that on the day and clean and prep

I would buy in some quiches and get a platter or two of sandwiches.

It's family, from teens to grandparents, including veggies and dairy free. That's a lot to do on the day! I was aiming for 1 cake I can make in advance (2 days beforehand), 2 I can make on the day, and everything else I will buy in so I have the rest of the time to clean up and prep.

You have received scone recipes so I won't bother sending mine unless you still need it.

But here's a really easy, large, chocolate tray bake recipe that is also dairy free and easily made the day before:

4 eggs
1tsp vanilla essence
1 cup oil (preferably something fairly neutral)
1 cup boiled, then cooled water mixed with 5-8 heaped tsp cocoa powder
2 cups sugar
2 cups plain flour
4 heaped teaspoons baking powder

Whisk the eggs, vanilla, water/cocoa and oil together. In a separate large bowl, mix the dry ingredients then add the wet ingredients and combine. Don't over beat but do make sure it's all melted in.

Pour into a lined roasting tin and bake at 180 for 25-30 minutes.

If you want to ice it and do so without dairy, I guess some kind of icing sugar, water and cocoa mix would work. We tend to make this cake without icing, just dusted with cocoa powder, but I have been down to pour chocolate ganache over.... but that's not diary free.

The thing is if you were paying to have afternoon tea somewhere you'd only be getting the amounts mentioned above

The issue with making this for family is that lots will be far hungrier so you'll need extra things on the side somewhere too like crisps and hummus with crudités and a pile of extra sausage rolls especially for the teens

Buy some cheap loaf cakes you can cut up into fancier long finger slices