Teatime snack recipes

The spring issue of CVC’s Community magazine will feature lots of great tips about tea—from brewing the perfect cup, to knowing the difference between varieties. Many cultures—particularly those where tea is more common than coffee—wouldn’t dare serve their tea without something to eat. So we thought we’d share a few teatime snack recipe ideas that might pair well with tea.

Cucumber sandwiches

The cucumber sandwich, a traditional British teatime staple, is generally associated with the Victorian era. Give it a try to pair with your next cup.

Ingredients:

• One cucumber, sliced thinly into coins
• 8 oz. cream cheese or butter
• A loaf of your favorite bread (white is classic; whole wheat is healthier)
• Optional: dill, chives or basil to sprinkle on top or mix with cream cheese

Directions: Use a small, round cookie cutter to cut slices of bread into circles. Spread cream cheese or butter on one side of bread. Place cucumber slices on top of cream cheese. Sprinkle with spices, if using. Close with another bread circle. Serve with your favorite tea!

Some sweet things

If it’s something sweet you want, lemon, ginger and almond all get along nicely with tea. Try these sweet teatime snack recipes:

• Lemon bars pair well with the bitterness in tea.
• Crispy ginger cookies are good for dunking—and biscotti are even better.
• Need more? Here are all of Martha Stewart’s favorite tea recipes.

And, just for good measure, here’s a really delicious iced tea recipe:

Honey mint green tea

What you need:

• 32 oz. heat-resistant pitcher
• Ice
• 8 oz. package fresh mint leaves (or the equivalent from the plant in your backyard)
• Around four teaspoons of loose leaf green tea (follow water-to-tea ratio recommended on tea packaging)
• Honey to taste

Directions: Crush mint leaves and place them in your pitcher. Add a bit of honey now, or after brewing to taste. Steep your tea in 24 oz. of almost boiling water. Wait two or three minutes, or more if you prefer bitterer tea. Fill pitcher to top with ice and serve, or store in the refrigerator and add ice when ready to serve.

Check out our Healthy Eats Pinterest board for even more recipes! And don’t forget to check out the “Tea talk” feature in the spring Community magazine.