Afternoon Tea

[timeforanewnametoday]

I am catering an afternoon tea for the extended family.
How many slices of bread should I allow per person? All adults.
I am planning to serve with sausage rolls mini ones, some sort of crips and coleslaw.
Also does anyone know the best square shaped bread to buy and how many slices in each loaf.
Cakes I will do a choice of three, vic sponge, some type of traybake and scones.
Have I missed anything, strawberries maybe?

I’d say two slices minimum. I would also include mini savoury pastries

I would order sandwiches from your local supermarket, we did this at Christmas & probably worked out cheaper with far less hassel

Don't bother with strawberries if the afternoon tea is imminent, they aren't very nice at this time of year. Maybe a selection of jams and some clotted cream for the scones?

You don't mention clotted cream but I assume you're getting that for the scones?

As it happens I made afternoon tea for a couple of relatives at the weekend. It was just an informal thing and we're quite small eaters so I won't comment on quantities but I normally get Morrisons or Aldi own brand clotted cream but it was out of stock so had to get Roddas but it was really runny so disappointing and made a mess because it went everywhere.

So try not to get Roddas, supermarket own is better.

Also if you're not making your own scones, Morrisons The Best square scones are the only ready made ones that are edible.

I agree with this! Saves so much time and hassle, sandwiches seem to take way longer to make then you think 🤔

Jam and cream with the scones is somewhat too similar to Victoria sponge cake though.

Plus you get more selection

Or go to Aldi and purchase several packets of ready made sandwiches and cut the two rounds into 4

Most people will eat 3/4 rounds of sandwiches so 1 packet per person

I did miniature pork pies and sausage rolls

Many afternoon tea have something like a lemon posset with a tiny biscuit

I'd say cream scones were an essential of Afternoon Tea! But I'm from Devon where we take our cream teas very very seriously...

https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/ProductDisplay?storeId=10151&productId=1558550&langId=44&deeplink=true&gclsrc=aw.ds&&cmpid=cpc&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=11354430451&utm_content=shopping&utm_term=%7Bsku%7D&utm_custom1=106571615210&utm_custom2=759-449-0952&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=11354430451&gbraid=0AAAAAD17J_Ars9uANwpGmcxqQX6fVdBCi&gclid=Cj0KCQiAnJHMBhDAARIsABr7b86PehS4kl-fy3upW9ItF4ttDnt1DGYtaZMDXes9xpKiFKHkNkSZilQaAk9FEALw_wcB

14 quarters for £10 for ready made from Sainsbury

4 quarters for £1.99 https://www.aldi.co.uk/product/eat-go-brie-bacon-with-tomato-chilli-relish-sandwich-000000000398787010

TBH I think the selection and variety is far better in Aldi

https://www.aldi.co.uk/product/eat-go-classic-selection-sandwich-000000000400820003 6 quarters for £2.59

https://www.aldi.co.uk/product/eat-go-chicken-bacon-club-with-mayo-sandwich-000000000400820004 6 quarters for £2.59

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/lemonpossetwithlemon_85812

this is very very easy to make - decorate and pop in tiny glasses and looks lovely

Scone and cream essential, Victoria sponge much less so. I'd swap that out for a lemon drizzle, sliced into fingers.

Im not following this part at all

I would do bought sandwiches, tiny sausage rolls, cheese straws, no crisps or coleslaw, I love both but they aren't afternoon tea things IMO. Then scones, clotted cream and jam (Roddas has always been fine for me), chocolate cake (brownie?), something lemony, the lemon posset is a good idea, and maybe some of those pretty coloured macarons.

A Victoria sponge is a plain or vanilla sponge cake filled with jam and cream

A scone is filled with jam and cream (or cream and jam, depending on preference)

Two plain baked goods filled with cream and jam.

Sounds delicious op. I would add some mini pastries and maybe mini sausage rolls, pork pie minis. Cucumber sandwiches and strawberries, grapes. I would go for three slices of bread per person.

Some things have been added to afternoon tea which just don’t go. One place included tomato soup. I don’t like to see the food arranged on wooden shelves and other gimmicky things. My perfect afternoon tea would be:
Assorted dainty finger or triangular sandwiches
Tiny savouries
Plain scones with strawberry jam and clotted cream
Assorted fancy cakes, inch some fresh cream ones
All served on bone China tiered plates
Chosen varieties of tea in dainty cups and saucers
I have only found one place which does it perfectly

its like suggesting putting peppercorn sauce on a roast dinner, as gravy is a sauce

You get more of a selection too which saves you having to buy lots of different fillings.

A victoria sponge doesn't necessarily have jam and cream in it. It can just have jam or jam and buttercream.

Are we now going to start an entire thread sidetrack about what makes a victoria sponge?

I was thinking to just have jam in the victoria sponge as otherwise it needs to be kept in fridge, but have little pots of fresh cream to serve with it. May change it to a lemon drizzle again with cream served on the side

great idea about the Aldi sandwich packs !!!

good idea to do plain scones and will have clotted cream with them.

Not sure if Aldi do it but you can order a platter of sandwiches online for click & collect at most supermarkets rather than the ready made sandwiches, it will work out to be cheaper but depends how many you have coming

with the sandwiches, when you need to take them out of the packets to slice into smaller triangles, lay a clean, damp (ie well
wrung out!) tea towel over the top till just before serving. It stops the bread going dry.

I wouldn’t want crisps and coleslaw with an afternoon tea.

Definitely just sandwiches, scones and cakes.

I quite like a petit four and little brownie bites (buy the ones in the tub, no need to make yourself).

And you have to have jam with the scones.

No one wants a scone with just cream on it. 🥴