How to Make the Perfect Afternoon Tea

Hello there!

With restrictions slowly lifting, I was able to spend some time with my parents which was lovely. To celebrate being able to see them I made afternoon tea. I decided to go all out by making (nearly) everything from scratch. If you're a keen bakery too, or simply want to make a few cakes and sandwiches, follow these steps so you can achieve the perfect afternoon tea at home. Enjoy!

How to Make the Perfect Afternoon Tea 

1. The Menu 

For me, afternoon tea is all about a range of flavours and textures. As they say 'variety is the spice of life' and I think that's why I love it so much. 

When designing your menu, think about a range of baked goods like varying pastries (from choux to shortcrust), sponges and scones as they all have a different eating experience. This is a good tip even for if you are buying treats rather than making them yourself. Also think about using contrasting flavours like berries, citrus, creamy, chocolatey, nutty etc. Chocolate is delicious, don't get me wrong, but it can often be too overpowering in an afternoon tea and be far too rich so I would recommend having it as a drizzle or icing but avoid it dominating the cake stand. For the savouries, again, use a range of textures such as different breads and pastry. 

This is the menu I chose based on what my family enjoy and to create a range treats:

2. Buying Ingredients 

If you decide to make some of the cakes or savouries yourself, you may be thinking that it will be very expensive, but you can plan your menu and buy ingredients in a cost-effective way. For my menu, I used some similar ingredients across a variety of items, such as making a crème patisseries to fill both the choux buns and tartlets. Most sponges have the same base ingredients of butter, sugar, flour and egg so they were used in the lemon and coffee sponges, then flavours were added from there. 

Whilst it may seem expensive, it would be far more to have afternoon tea in a restaurant or café than at home, but you have the added bonus of choosing your favourites!  

3. Planning Ahead

When making the treats for your afternoon tea, you can easily plan these ahead as many you can freeze or make in advance. For example, for my menu, I made the scones, coffee and walnut sponge, mini quiches and tartlets cases in advance and froze them. The day before I could make the crème patisseries, choux buns and lemon drizzle then leave just the sandwiches to make in the morning.  

If you can make some of the items a little ahead of time then just decorate last minute you'll enjoy the experience much more and not feel any pressure to get lots done at once. 

4. Setting the Table 

It isn't essential to have a cake stand but it does make all your treats look very elegant. You can find them at a fairly affordable price from Amazon or sometimes in charity shops. If you are worried about storage, most of them can be disassembled for ease. 

In addition, a large plate to present sandwiches on is also a nice touch if they don't fit on the cake stand with the sweet treats. Ramekins for clotted cream and jam are a must if you're having scones. If, like my family, you don't have tea cups then mugs are also fine (plus you can fit more tea in them!) but if you wanted some they can also easily be found in charity shops. Since this afternoon tea is in the comfort of your own home, you can be as relaxed or elegant as you want and that's the beauty of it!

5. Enjoy!

Afternoon tea is definitely a treat and one to celebrate with friends and family! I hope my tips help and inspire you to consider hosting an afternoon tea party. What is your favourite afternoon tea treat? 

Love tea? Why not check out these other tea-related post:
Everything You Need to Know About Tea!
Review: Afternoon Tea at Caffè Concerto
To Tea, or Not to Tea? Review: Afternoon Tea at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre
Afternoon Tea in Covent Garden

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https://littlechefbeth.blogspot.com