Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to express love and admiration to those who are important in our lives. A tea is the perfect time to celebrate special ladies in your life. A best friend, a daughter or daughter-in-law, or a precious granddaughter will love being the honored guest at your table. Tea is a time when the world slows down and we linger over a hot cup of tea and scrumptious delicacies.
TeaTime magazine celebrates Valentine’s Day with delicious foods you can prepare and serve at your tea table. The book Afternoon Tea, created by the TeaTime staff, offers a plethora of ideas for your special teas. Start planning your Valentine’s Day tea by selecting your favorite teapot, linens, and foods. Create beautiful memories over a cup of tea.
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup salted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- Red paste food coloring, such as Wilton
- Garnish: confectioners’ sugar
- 1. In a medium bowl, combine flour and salt, whisking well. Set aside.
- 2. In a large bowl, combine butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Beat at high speed with an electric mixer until light and creamy. Add food coloring until desired shade of pink is achieved. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, beating until combined. Wrap dough well in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- 3. Preheat oven to 350°.
- 4. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- 5. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to a ¼-inch thickness. Using a 2-inch heart-shaped cutter, cut 48 hearts from dough, rerolling scraps as necessary. Place cookies on prepared baking sheets, and refrigerate for 15 minutes. (This will help cookies retain their shape while baking.)
- 6. Bake cookies until a few edges are just beginning to turn very light brown, approximately 13 minutes. Remove from baking sheet, and let cool completely on a wire rack.
- 7. Dust cooled cookies with confectioners’ sugar, if desired.
- 8. Store in an airtight container, and use within 3 days.
- Make Ahead Tip: Cookies can be baked in advance
How will you create your Valentine’s Day Tea memories?
Comments 16
Thank you Phyllis for the shortbread cookie recipe!! I’am going to make them and surprise my granddaughter for Valentine’s Day! I will serve them to her with a tasty cup of tea with my special China of course! Happy Valentine’s to all.
Michelle Earnshaw, thanks I will try the tea.
Debbie
You are welcomed, Debbie 🙂 It is an old time one which has been around for a long time an it is nice in cold weather, due to its spiciness!
My sisters and I usually have a Mother/Daughter tea on Valentine’s Day, something simple yet elegant, and follow it by watching a romantic movie. One year, we watched Lady & The Tramp. 🙂 And last year, we watched the BBC’s Pride & Prejudice mini-series, starring Colin Firth. Although, I do enjoy both, I much prefer the latter. 😉
As they say, presentation is everything! We will celebrate more than once.
At least once, I will use Mother’s Schumann Empress Dresden Rose/flowers {featured on the cover of Afternoon Tea above}. One of my all time favorite patterns for any occassion, it is especially nice when honoring loved ones and is a connection to tea times spent with Mother!
Also, enjoy our Spode Cranberry – one of those impulse six plate buys!
Pray we all are able to celebrate with loved ones!!
Oh, this is beatiful! Would go lovely with our True Love Trio Tea. Will share!
I just bought “Tea Pleasures” and along with today’s ribbon, I am so inspired to hold a tea party…and one at Valentine’s Day would be wonderful!
I would love to do this with my granddaughter and daughter. could you recommend a caffeine free tea pleasing to a fourteen year old. should it be sweet?
Debbie, I’m sure your granddaughter and daughter would be thrilled for you to do this for them. There are many wonderful caffeine-free teas (also known as “tisanes” since they don’t contain real tea), but here at TeaTime, we are especially fond of these to accompany a Valentine’s Day Tea:
Simpson & Vail’s Beatrix Potter’s Herbal Tisane Blend http://www.svtea.com/Beatrix-Potters-Herbal-Tisane-Blend/productinfo/T0957/
Simpson & Vail’s Red Velvet Cupcake Rooibos Tisane http://www.svtea.com/Red-Velvet-Cupcake-Tisane-0153/productinfo/T0897/
Capital Teas’s Love Affair Rooibos http://www.capitalteas.com/Love_Affair_p/282.htm
Capital Teas’s Dolley Madison Whole Fruit Tisane http://www.capitalteas.com/Dolley_Madison_Whole_Fruit_p/19455.htm
We find these really don’t need sugar, but you might want to put some pretty sugar cubes on the tea table just in case your family thinks they do. Since these infusions do not contain real tea, you would not serve milk with them.
If you have any other questions, please let us know!
Lorna Reeves, editor
TeaTime Magazine
Debbie,
A nice one which can be sweetened with honey or sugar, is a Bigelow one I enjoy, which is available in decaf or regular, and that is Constant Comment. It has spice and everything nice!
Enjoy!
Dear Debbie,
You might also try steeping rose bud tea, or a pink tea with rose hips (tastes citrusy), to complement your Valentine table! Or add rose water, and/or rose bud tea for garnish to your favorite tea…but wouldn’t work with Constant Comment, just a plain black or green (or white) decaffeinated tea. I love to add a spoonful of rose water to my pot of Earl Grey. Lavender flowers are also pretty and tasty!
One of my fondest and richest memories, was a Valentine Tea I put on for some of my closest friends. It was many yrs. ago, but I can still see the table set with different teacups, saucers and dessert plates at each person’s place; the red teapot with white hearts; a huge bouquet of red, pink and white mixed flowers; the many desserts; laughter and fun. One of my friends that was present is a speaker at Ladies Retreats and Gatherings. I had asked her to do a short talk about love. Not only did she do that she made up a little book for each attendee with quotes about love. I had a small take home gift of a heart candle. I wonder if my friends have that memory. I never expected it to still bring me joy and wonderful sentiments all these years later.
Hello Eileen- I just love the idea of a little booklet about love! Would you happen to have a photo of it so I can try to make one too? THank you ever so much! xoxo Bren
What are the china patterns used in your blog today?
The china is from Mottahedeh (mottahedeh.com)–Elizabeth dessert plate; Chandigahr Fuchia dinner plate, cup, and saucer.
Lorna Reeves, editor
TeaTime Magazine
Phyllis,
Simply elegant!!!
Fondly,
Pat