Tea parties, that is.  Not the kind that end of with cartons of tea in the bay, or in politicians promising smaller government.  Instead, we focused on the Alice in Wonderland style tea party.

Hats, sandwiches, scones, and cake.  Sunday afternoon, we held a tea party in honor of my soon-to-be sister-in-law, Kathy.  The “we” in this case is me, Solange, my sister-in-law, Heather, and Kathy’s sister, Kym, with the immense support of my extremely talented mother, Susan.  Inspired by borrowed Mackensie-Childs tableware, and Princess Beatrice’s controversial hat, our guests wore hats and fascinators,

setting the scene for the festivities, which included a a gorgeous spread of sandwiches, scones, homemade jams, candied apples and the most delightfully whimsical cake that has come out of our kitchen.

This shower was truly a collaboration, from beginning to end.  Heather knew she would be spending a lot of time working on the cake, so I chose to create the savory menu.   Cucumber mint sandwiches were automatically included, because I absolutely love them.  When it came time to choose a second sandwich, we quickly settled on salmon.  It’s tasty, it’s beautiful, and makes for great presentation.

While not everything I make is gluten free, I do convert many recipes so that I can share them with our other sister-in-law, Jennie.  I liked her version better than the sandwiches on pumpernickel bread, so I’m including that recipe here.

Gluten-Free Salmon Bites

Adapted from recipe at Food Network

This recipe will make a lot of bites — you’ll have some caper spread left over, use it on omelets, or in sandwiches.

1 8oz package of cream cheese

1/2 cup capers, drained

1 large shallot, peeled and cut into large chunks

Zest of 2 lemons

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Large round rice crackers

8 oz smoked salmon, in thin slices approximately 2 inch long

1 bunch of chives, cut to about 1.5 inch

Combine cream cheese, capers, shallot, lemon zest and pepper in a food processor or blender.  Process until completely smooth.

Put a dollop of the cream cheese spread onto the rice cracker, then roll a piece of salmon, and set it into the spread. Place a chive piece upright onto the salmon, anchoring it into the spread.

Tagged: bridal shower, cake, parties, sandwiches, tea

§ 2 Responses to Brunch, Lunch and Supper does tea!

• Diana says:

  June 15, 2011 at 11:43 pm

  Solange, such a cute blog. congrats!! Looking forward to more ideas!

  Reply
  • solangerou says:

    June 21, 2011 at 4:35 pm

    Thanks Diana! I’m glad you like it. I’ll let you know when there are more posts!

    Reply