“You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.”
―
“I say let the world go to hell, but I should always have my tea.”
― Notes from Underground
“There is something in the nature of tea that leads us into a world of quiet contemplation of life.”
― The Importance of Living
“Surely a pretty woman never looks prettier than when making tea.”
― Lady Audley’s Secret
Tea is very special for me. It’s the way I learned how to care and share your love for others. My mom was gifted the love of tea and British inspired tea serving from my Grammie. It’s actually perhaps one of the reasons my sister and I exist (now that’s a story for another time).
My mother has a special gift of making teddy bears (a gift given her by my Grandma) and when my sister and I were little, she would make up bears to give or sell, but before she could, we’d sit down and have a tea party. The lace and linens would be draped over our kitchen table, the china set out with sweets and sandwiches. Our teacups would be filled with earl grey tea, and as we waited for it to cool down, we’d begin the naming of the teddy bears. For you see, every bear has a name and a story–we needed to write it down so that whoever became the owner of this bear would know just exactly what furry character they were getting.
When I went off to college, I brought tea with me. I would make it for myself when feeling homesick, or for a friend when they came over to my dorm room. I saw tea as a way to further my friendships. Making tea for others felt like I was sharing a part of myself with others–tea will always be associated with love, deep conversations, and joy.
So, when I discovered this tea cookie recipe, I had to try it out. The dough is quite simple and the balance of lemon and earl grey tea leaves is quite lovely. The recipe is here:
The result is a lovely shortbread consistency, and the flavor is subtle but fresh. Perhaps best with a cup of tea and a friend!
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