Saturday 15 September 2012

Food Fitness for Tea Time Random Recipes

It's time again to roll the dice. In fact it's just one. Anyway, it's time again for September's Random Recipes. Let's go for it and have no fear. So far I don't know, why someone should. Up to now, all the things that randomly came up for me had been nice. Why not again.


At this go, things are a bit different. The sinister scheming of one man isn't enough anymore. That's why Dom at Belleau Kitchen conspired together with Karen from Lavender and Lovage and Kate from What Kate Baked. So we are not dealing anymore with Random Recipes, but ...
... with Tea Time Random Recipes. Well, you might have guessed something like that already by looking at the badge. 
How are we going to cope?
I tell you. This should be no big deal. I even can select the book myself and just have to randomize the page. After reading the challenge, it was absolutely clear, which book I would take - even without thinking (if that makes any sense).


That book should do: The Perfect Afternoon Tea. Well, that should be perfect. I even remembered where I bought the book three years ago.


The shop is on the right side. But we leave this travelling business behind us and get back to the book and therefore on to baking.
We need to get on with the random part. The randomizer said 42 ... that brings us to page 42 ... that brings us to ... Tea Cakes.
A brief glance over the ingredients reveals ... Well, I have all the ingredients in the house. How hard can it be?
A day went and another came. Time to start. Of course at a time that would let us finish about the time we would want our afternoon tea.
However, soon it would be revealed ... reality would bring us back to the ground.
What are the ingredients?
Flour, salt, sugar, milk, yeast, butter, currants, sultanas. Not too much. That should not be too complicated.
Well, cupcakes are for 'easy going', but those tea cakes are for 'fitness'.
In fact 'yeast' says everything. After gently sifting the flour and salt into a bowl and mixing the milk with the yeast and a bit sugar in a large cup, we are ready for action.
The yeast-milk has to be combined with the flour, salt, some more sugar and the butter to make a ... dough! That was to obvious. How could that be a surprise?!
Right, here now the recipe calls for at least 15 minutes of vigorous kneading. That's were we start our fitness. Honestly, already after just a bit over half the time, I wished I were through, but ... I had to go on and so I did.
Here you can see the result, at the beginning and at the end.




Does that not look beautiful? And on top of it, we have done some exercise. So forget about the gym and o more of baking. But as you see, there are no sultanas and no currants.
Before we go on with that, the dough needs one hour for rising.



What to do in the meantime? Ah, no worries.
Once the rising is over, we can add the dried fruits ...



... and work them in again. 
Then we make 10 small cakes and place them on two(?) baking trays. That brings us to further 40 minutes waiting.
Do something nice.
...
...
Finally we are ready to bake everything at 200°C for about 20 minutes.
When we calculate all through, we must come to the conclusion I started too late to be finished on time for tea time.
I was one hour late. But they were very nice to eat with some butter, or even with jam and ... I still have some left.





Indeed, it is always fun, to join in Random Recipes. This time I even did some fitness while doing so.

19 comments:

  1. Oh lovely, I would come to your afternoon tea :-)

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    1. Maybe I should start an afternoon tea giveaway. :-)

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  2. I feel like I need to get myself a cloak and dagger and stalk the streets of Victorian London... sinister scheming indeed!... glad it was clearly all worth the effort and fitness for you to come up with such an incredibly good random recipe entry... really rather wonderful and you learnt something too!... all good!... thanks so much for taking part x

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    1. Thank you for always coming up with such sinister ideas! Well, there is no end to learning.

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  3. Wow, they look lovely, well worth the effort.
    That house looks familiar, is it somewhere in the West country?

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  4. Your tea cakes look delicious Chris. I recognise that house and I know exactly where you bought that book. It looks like a good one, I love a perfect afternoon tea.

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    1. Well, but you don't know, when I bought it.
      Thank you, Choclette! Perfect, however, the afternoon tea is only together with the right people.

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  5. These obviously require some careful planning, but they do look really good. I've very happy memories of my visits to Cotehele - it's one of the relatively few places that always feel enchanted and outside of time for me.

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    1. And they taste good. Thank you!
      I liked Cotehele very much as well.

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  6. Mmm, these look scrumptious! And I love your plate display!

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  7. These look perfect...I'm impressed that you attempted tea cakes! I might also have to get that book, it looks fab...afternoon tea is my favourite. I am making my Random Tea Time Treat tomorrow :-)

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    1. Thank you, Laura! I hope you are as lucky with your random recipe.

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  8. FABULOUS post and I am super impressed with your tea cakes too....GREAT RR meets TTT entry thanks Chris! Karen

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    1. Thank you, Karen! It was great fun, but sadly the tea cakes went so quickly!

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  9. What a beautiful historic home (I had to go look it up just now!) and gorgeous tea cakes. Well done!

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    1. Well, I would even go and visit it again. There is so much to explore. Hm, and I could have some tea cakes again, as well.

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  10. These look absolutely perfect teacakes!

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