Tea in 10 with under 10

Today we are putting Prissy to the challenge.  Can she make afternoon tea in less than ten minutes with ten items?  She calls it her Tea X 10!

Are you ready Prissy?  Let's set the timer for 10 minutes. . . Go!

10:00 - She puts the water on and selects the tea.  No time for contemplation, she grabs the first one she sees, which is Gina Amaretta.  Measure a scoop in a tea bag to save time decanting later.

9:43 - Assemble the other eight items . . . 

Bread - necessary for any sandwich.  Gosh, she really wants some whole wheat and some white for variety . . . she goes with . . . whole grain white!

What is in the refrigerator?  

A cucumber - what is tea without cucumber sandwiches?
And a staple at our house - chive and green onion cream cheese

How about some mayo?
And this little can of deviled ham . . . I remember having this for lunch as a kid!

And now the sweets!  Are there any cookies in the cupboard?  Bingo!

And those strawberries in the fridge look really good . . . 

a few chocolate chips and ta-da . . . chocolate covered strawberries! 

8:55 - She starts with the strawberries.  Microwave the Hershey chocolate chips for 1 minute at 50% power . . .

Moving right along, she grabs a tray, teacup and tiered server. 

8:24 - The water is ready.  A two minute steep . . .

Wash and dry the strawberries and the cucumber.

7:55 - Stir the chocolate and melt another minute.

Get out the cutting board, knives and paper towel.

7:37 - Tear off a small piece of wax paper for the strawberries.  Cut, peel and slice the cucumbers.  Put them on the paper towel to drain.

6:50 - Dip the strawberries and put them in the freezer for a quick set.

6:24 - Tea timer goes off, remove tea bag.  Add the pot to the tea tray.

6:13 - Cut the bread (this little cookie cutter is the perfect size for cucumber rounds!), smear on the cream cheese (it is covered by the cucumber anyway!)  

5:09 - Mayo and deviled ham on bread . . . get rid of the crusts (the chickens will be so happy!) . . . cut into bite size sandwiches . . . add them to the tiered server.

2:49 - Add the strawberries to the tray.

2:22 - A quick straightening of the kitchen . . .

And Priscilla had 13 seconds left.

Ahhhh. . .

Time for Tea!!!

(Here's another tea time saver - When I make a batch of scones, I often freeze a few prior to baking.  I cut the dough, individually wrap in plastic wrap and put them into a ziploc freezer bag.  When you need a quick scone, unwrap and pop them directly in the oven.) 

Today Miss Priss proved . . . we always have time for tea!

When your day seems topsy turvey

And as stormy as can be

There's nothing quite as tranquil

As a nice hot cup of tea

While you savor this ambrosia

Your problems fade away

Its warmth will bring you comfort

And brighten up your day

So take a private moment

There's a calmness as you'll see

All because you briefly stopped

To sip a cup of tea.

Sips and Smiles,
Teresa

Sauder Village

Sauder Village in Archbold, Ohio is the state's largest living history village.  Rural life from the 19th and early 20's centuries are depicted.  Priscilla and I stopped for a visit.

In 1934, Erie Sauder founded the Sauder Woodworking company.  Today it is a world leader in ready-to-assemble furniture. 

 I purchased my tea cabinet at the outlet store.

Most of the buildings were still closed for the winter.

Priscilla made herself at home on the herb shop's tea cart.

She wanted to grab a needle and thread to help the ladies quilt.

She admired the little girl's tea sets in the general store.

And a basket with loose leaf tea and tea booklets was right on the candy counter.  I guess tea is candy for big girls!

Priscilla enjoyed her visit to Sauder Village. 

Sassafras trees are native to our area.  The early settlers probably sipped sassafras tea.  As a little girl, my dad would often harvest some sassafras root early in the spring.  Today you can make sassafras tea from a concentrate produced locally in Columbus Grove, Ohio.  Pappy's Sassafras concentrate is available online or in specialty groceries.

May your day be brewed to perfection!

Sips and Smiles,

Teresa

Miss Priss Visits the Dum Dum Sucker Factory

Little Miss Priss has been wondering what we do in this flat area of the country, besides farm.  So we took a short trip to Bryan, Ohio to visit the Spangler Candy Company.  All of the Dum Dum suckers in the world come from this family-owned private company.  

We arrived at the store/museum where they offer tours.  She was immediately drawn to the Dum Dum Drum Man.  

She put on her hair net, so she could ride the Dum Dums Trolley.

The trolley does not go into any of the areas where the candy is actually made, so we watched the candy making process on a trolley monitor.

She enjoyed her ride through the various warehouses.  A retired electrician was our driver/tour guide and he shared lots of information about the company.  

Ten thousand suckers are produced per minute.  They ship all over the world.

In the gift shop, they had a new sucker flavor to evaluate.  Our flavor was blueberry muffin.  Last month they had strawberry basil and a while back pepperoni!

Priscilla wanted to do a bit of shopping while we were out, so we stopped at my favorite store in Bryan, East Mulberry Gift Cottage.  

Priscilla found a little bit of everything here . . . antiques, vintage, and new items. 

Lots of teacups and dishes were on display.

Miss Priss had to be carried away from the jewelry display kicking and screaming.  She wanted one of Everything!

Sharon Gyurnek, the owner, admires Harrison Fisher's work.  She carries greeting cards, prints, stickers, etc. that feature his American Beauties.  

This little lady sipping her tea is the work of Harrison Fisher, the "Father of a Thousand Girls". 

“No matter how plain a woman may be, if truth and honesty are written across her face, she will be beautiful.” 
― Eleanor Roosevelt

Sips and Smiles,
Teresa