This week marks Afternoon Tea Week, but Afternoon Tea doesn’t need to just be about sandwiches.
We’ve shared some incredible recipe inspiration below that will have your mouthwatering and create excellent additions to the classic Afternoon Tea!
We all love a good selection of sandwiches and cakes, but sometimes something different can really hit the spot and impress your guests.
Heritage Tomato Salad with Yorkshire Wensleydale Pesto and Mousse
Ingredients:
For the salad –
- 4 – 6 heritage tomatoes
- 50g walnuts
- 2 tablespoons of Yorkshire Honey
- 100g Yorkshire Butter
- Fresh salad leaves
- A handful of capers
- 50g Yorkshire Wensleydale
For the Wensleydale Mousse –
- 500ml double cream
- 1 tablespoon of crème fraîche
- 100g Yorkshire Wensleydale
For the Wensleydale Pesto –
- 100g pine nuts
- 100g Yorkshire Wensleydale
- 1 bunch of fresh basil
- ½ garlic clove
- Yorkshire Rapeseed Oil
- Juice of half a lemon
- Sea salt
Method
1. Gently heat the honey and butter in a pan until combined.
2. Add the walnuts and cook for 5 mins until coated and slightly soft.
3. Remove the nuts with a slotted spoon, place on a lined tray and season well.
4. Roast the nuts in the oven at 180°C for 10 mins or until golden brown. Set a timer and check regularly to ensure they don’t burn, then remove from the oven and cool.
5. Cut the heritage tomatoes at interesting angles, macerate in Yorkshire Rapeseed oil, then arrange over crushed walnuts to hold them in place on the plate.
6. Blend the double cream and 100g of Yorkshire Wensleydale until smooth.
7. Transfer to a bowl, fold in the crème fraîche and whip until soft peaks are formed.
8. Gently heat the pine nuts in a pan and toast until coloured.
9. Place the basil and half of the parsley in a blender and pulse until roughly chopped.
10. Add the toasted pine nuts and garlic and pulse until combined.
11. Crumble in Yorkshire Wensleydale and continue to blend until a paste is formed.
12. Emulsify the paste by alternating splashes of olive oil and Yorkshire Rapeseed oil, keep blending until vivid green. Season to taste with sea salt and lemon juice.
13. Shallow fry the capers in a pan over a gentle heat until they darken and open.
14. Garnish the tomatoes with pesto, mousse, capers, walnuts, salad leaves and parsley.
15. Finally, crumble the Yorkshire Wensleydale over the top and serve.
Yorkshire Wensleydale, Apple Chutney & Spinach Tartlet
Ingredients
- 200g Yorkshire Wensleydale
- 1 packet ready roll puff pastry
- 1 jar apple chutney
- 5 tablespoons walnut pieces
- Freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 bag baby spinach
- 1 large free range egg
- 1 tablespoon rapeseed oil
Method
- Roll the pastry into a large rectangle and place onto a lightly oiled tray.
- Prick the pastry with a fork leaving a neat border around the outside of the tart.
- Gently go around the border with a knife creating a slight indentation to frame the tart.
- Brush the border of the puff pastry with beaten egg wash and bake for 20 minutes at 180°C until golden and crisp.
- Remove from the oven and spoon the whole jar of apple chutney into the centre of the pastry, spreading to the edges to create a neat base for the tart.
- Place the spinach into a frying pan with a knob of butter and wilt for a few moments until tender, then add the walnut pieces.
- Place the spinach and walnuts on the top of the apple chutney taking care to leave the border of the pastry clean.
- Return the tart to the oven and heat for a further 6 minutes.
- Finally, take your Yorkshire Wensleydale and crumble it over the top, then sprinkle with freshly grated nutmeg.
Chargrilled Burgundy Broccoli with Toasted English Muffin – the perfect afternoon tea recipe
Ingredients
- 1 head of broccoli
- 2 English muffins
- 4 free range eggs
- 1 large pack of sliced smoked salmon
- 1 lemon
- Sea salt and cracked black pepper, to serve
- Pea shoots, to serve
- 1 avocado, optional
Method
- Cut the broccoli into chunky wedges and place onto a lightly oiled grill to gently cook
- Boil a deep pan of water and add 1 teaspoon of salt
- Toast the muffins
- Crack the eggs into four cups or ramekins
- Make a whirl pool with a spoon in the boiling water and gently drop the four eggs into the centre
- Poach lightly until cooked (this should take approximately 90secs)
- Remove the eggs from the water and pat dry
- Place the toasted muffin onto a plate and arrange the broccoli pieces over the top
- Arrange the smoked salmon and eggs on top
Serve with a topping of pea shoots and season
- 200g Chevre goat’s cheese
- 2 sprigs thyme, chopped
- 4 tbsp clear honey
- Handful of baby rocket leaves
- Handful of fresh basil leaves
- 4 tbsp pine nuts, toasted, to serve
Method
- Preheat the grill to Medium.
- Thinly shave the courgettes width ways using a mandolin, grating any leftover pieces.
- Cook the peas in boiling salted water for 2 minutes, drain and place in iced cold water. Once cooled, drain and crush slightly. Mix the peas with the courgette slices.
- Zest and juice the lemon, putting the zest to one side. Put the lemon juice and zest into a bowl, whisk in 2 tbsp olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Spoon half over the courgette and pea mixture.
- Slice the goat’s cheese and arrange on a piece of greaseproof paper on a baking tray. Drizzle with the honey and remaining olive oil and scatter over the chopped thyme and season with some freshly ground black pepper. Pop under the grill until just starting to melt.
- Put the warm cheese onto the courgette and pea mixture and scatter over the spinach, basil, pine nuts and rocket.
- Pour the remaining dressing over the top and serve immediately.
Peas and Shrimp and Asian Vegetable Rice Paper Rolls – an Asian twist on afternoon tea
Ingredients
- 50g vermicelli rice noodles
- 150g peas, defrosted and slightly crushed
- 1 avocado, peeled and cut into chunks
- sea salt flakes & freshly ground black pepper
- 12 x 20cm round rice paper wrappers
- 18 cooked tiger prawns, cut in half lengthways
- a handful of coriander & mint leaves
- 1 small carrot, peeled and cut into ribbons
For the dipping sauce:
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 small red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
- 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger
- 1 tbsp golden caster sugar
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- juice of 1 lime
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
Method
- To make the dipping sauce, put all the ingredients into a food blender and blitz.
- Soak the rice noodles in a bowl of hot water for 15 minutes and drain well. Cover the peas with boiling water to defrost. Crush the peas and mix with the avocado and season with some salt and pepper.
- When you are ready to make the rolls, dip one of the rice papers in a bowl of hot water, moving it around until the whole wrapper is soft – this will take about 10-15 seconds – then drain on a tea towel.
- Place a rice wrapper on a board and at one edge of the wrapper, add a few mint leaves, then 3 prawn halves. Place some pea and avocado mix on top of the prawns, followed by some noodles, some herbs and finally some beansprouts and carrot ribbons. Be careful not to overfill the pancakes or they will be hard to roll.
- Lift the edge of the rice paper wrapper nearest to you over the filling and, holding the filling in position with your fingers, start rolling up tightly.
- When you’re about halfway, fold the ends of the rice paper in and over the filling so that it is completely enclosed.
- Keep on rolling tightly until the whole rice paper wrapper is rolled up. To serve, cut the rolls in half on the diagonal and serve with the dipping sauce.