Teas these days are becoming more and more adventurous. Sure people will always like their “cup of splosh”, but sometimes something different is worth experimenting with. Afternoon teas are the thing to do, who doesn’t like the idea of sitting down to being served finger sandwiches with various fillings, mini cakes, scones with delicious jam and thick cream? Of course this has to be accompanied by a pot of tea and as the food is special so should the tea be.
Earl Grey has been a popular blend since around the 1820’s. It’s believed to have been named after Charles Grey, who was a British prime minister in the 1830’s, after he received a gift of the tea flavoured with Bergamot oil.
It was originally produced by a company called Jackson’s of Piccadilly, who claimed that they were given the recipe by Lord Grey in 1830.
A survey in the UK in 2010 found that a fair amount of people associated the drinking of Earl Grey tea with being posh.
So if you’re feeling particularity posh, or even wish to appear so, it’s worth trying these delicately flavoured biscuits. For those people who like me, don’t actually drink tea, they are offset with the addition of dark and white chocolate.
The original recipe called for Lady Grey tea which has a more delicate flavour, however I found that it wasn’t delivering enough of a “punch”, so experimented with other brands before finally choosing one that worked. Currently I use one produced by Fortnum and Masons of London and although it’s stronger, most people who try the biscuits are surprised by the light taste as they are expecting them to have an overpowering flavour.
So what if I’ve got a bit of dough left over at the end of baking a batch, I need to taste them to make sure they’re OK. after all isn’t that the chef’s prerogative?