Worldwide, tea is a far more popular beverage than coffee, according to the Pew Research Center.
Americans, however, tend to drink three times as much coffee as they drink tea.
Of all the tea varieties of tea we consume, black tea is the favorite by a wide margin — 80 percent to be exact.
(Betsy Crisp)
And, when it comes to hot tea versus cold, cold wins by a whopping 80 percent.
Personally, I may start my day with a good “cup of joe” — but after just one cup, I switch to hot tea during the chilly days of winter.
As a Florida native, I must admit that I do tend to follow that coffee with some good old Southern Iced Tea, especially during the hot summer months.
But, the popularity of tea is undeniable.
Tea has been around for ages and has been the center of attention on many occasions. It had a headline role in the protest against taxation that led to the Boston Tea Party in 1723.
It has become part of many celebratory parties.
In 1840, Anna, the Duchess of Bedford, is credited with creating the English tradition of the afternoon tea, with hot tea and sweet breads, precisely at 4 p.m., to “ward off that sickly feeling.”
Later, High Teas became popular with more substantial offerings at 6 p.m., when the working class came home from work.
Mother’s Day is a time that we traditionally honor our “mums.” We celebrate how much we love them and thank them for all they do for us throughout the year by presenting them with cards, flowers, cakes, chocolates, flowers and family meals.
This year, why not honor them in the English tradition of an afternoon tea (or even breakfast in bed) with some special scones?
The scone is actually a Scottish single-serving quick bread.
Originally, the recipe was made in a triangular shape with oats and baked on a griddle.
Today, the recipe has changed to be more of flour-based dough made with cold butter and baking powder that is baked in an oven. They can be made sweet (with fruit) or savory. They come in many different shapes, such as triangles, rounds, squares and diamonds. When round, they somewhat resemble our good old American baking powder biscuit, but we tend to serve ours as a bread with breakfast.
I can honestly say that before I started working with Extension in 1988, I had never had the pleasure of eating a scone. A co-worker and traveling companion to national meetings really loved them and shared that joy with me. To this day, I am more tempted to splurge with a scone than a donut!
If you would like to try your hand at making scones, here’s a basic recipe, including some possible variations, that may come in handy for a Mother’s Day tea.
Betsy Crisp is a Professor Emeritus, UF/IFAS Extension – Family & Consumer Sciences
Simply Delicious Scones
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup very cold butter, cut into ½-inch cubes
1 cup whipping cream, divided
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 450° F.
- Stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
- Cut butter into flour mixture with a pastry blender until crumbs are pea-size, and place in freezer for 5 minutes to chill.
- Add ¾ cup plus 2 Tablespoons cream, and stir until dry ingredients are moistened (don’t over mix).
Note: At this point, you could select add-ins from the lists below.
- Turn dough out onto a sheet of waxed paper or parchment. Gently pat or press dough into a somewhat crumbly, 7-inch round shape.
- Cut the round dough into 8 triangle wedges, place on a lightly-greased baking sheet and separate 2-inches apart.
- Brush tops with the remaining 2 Tablespoons of cream until just moistened.
- Bake at 450°F., for 13 to 15 minutes or until golden.
Sweet Variations:
Apricot-Ginger: Stir in ¼ cup finely chopped dried apricots and 2 Tablespoons finely chopped crystalized ginger with the cream.
Brown Sugar-Pecan: Substitute brown sugar for the granulated sugar. Stir in ½ cup chopped and toasted pecans with the cream.
Chocolate Chip-Cherry: Stir in 2 ounces mini-chocolate chips and ¼ dried cherries, chopped with the cream.
Cranberry-Walnut: Stir in ¼ cup dried cranberries and ¼ cup coarsely chopped pecans with the cream.
Savory:
Bacon-Cheddar-Onion: Omit the granulated sugar. Stir in ¼ cup real (not artificial) cooked bacon bits/pieces, ¾ cup (3 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese, 2 teaspoons dried/instant onion flakes, and ½ teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper with the cream.
Ham-Swiss: Stir-in ¼ finely chopped baked ham, ¾ cup (3 ounces) shredded Swiss cheese, and ¼ teaspoon dried mustard with the cream.
Published May 3, 2017
