Host a Bridgerton-themed tea party at home with these 8 recipes
Dearest gentle reader,
As the Ton anxiously awaits the second half of Bridgerton‘s fourth season to debut this weekend, plenty of questions need to find their resolutions. Will the rakish Benedict Bridgerton find his perfect match? Will Michaela’s return drive a wedge between Francesca and John? And perhaps most pressing for fans of the books, how far will the show stray from its source material?
One question we can answer here, gentle reader, is what you might serve at a tea party of your own. If the Bridgertons can sit around enjoying cups of tea and plates of treats, shouldn’t we, too, have some fun? Let’s prepare for the season finale than with a gathering fit for Atlanta society, featuring a Southern twist on the menu, of course. Don your tailcoats and gowns and build your own Bridgerton-worthy tea party with these eight recipes, ranging from bite-sized sandwiches to tea-inspired cookies.
Guava Upside-Down Tea from By George
While most tea parties on Bridgerton often feature ceramic pots of fragrant tea, consider adding some pizazz with this tea-based drink from the menu of By George. It features fruity flavors like guava nectar and pineapple paired with the cozy additions of cinnamon and orange. While it’s traditionally nonalcoholic, party-goers can make it boozy with tequila or gin.
Iced Sweet Tea from Mary Mac’s Tea Room
It’s not a true Southern tea party without a pitcher of iced tea. Mary Mac’s, the iconic Atlanta tea room, shares the secret behind their famous iced tea — plenty of sugar! Employee Michael Fuhrman said, “Ours is the sweetest sweet tea that I’ve tasted.”
Get the recipe for Mary Mac’s Iced Sweet Tea.
Chocolate Strawberry Buttermilk Scones
There’s nothing more British than a scone, and in this recipe, baker Sarah Dodge of Colette Bread and Bakeshop walks our gentle readers through the process of making this flavorful, crumbly pastry. The key is using a combination of high-quality fats, including good butter, buttermilk and heavy cream. Dodge also warns against overworking the dough, because nobody likes a tough scone.
Buttermilk Biscuits from the Bomb Biscuit Co.
If the English have scones, Southerners must have biscuits, and there’s no Atlantan more qualified to proffer biscuit recipes than chef Erika Council of Bomb Biscuit Co. Replace the scones for one of these biscuits, or go crazy with the carbs and add both to your spread.
Get the recipe for Erika Council’s biscuits.
Lemon Curd and Almond-Flavored Whipped Cream from Tea Leaves and Thyme
Scones are traditionally served with clotted cream and jam, but former Woodstock restaurant Tea Leaves and Thyme used to serve theirs with a lemon curd and almond-flavored whipped cream. These recipes are surprisingly simple and can be made quickly to pair alongside scones or even biscuits.
Get the recipes for Lemon Curd and Almond-Flavored Whipped Cream.
Tea cookies
A big part of the fun of a tea party comes from the dainty finger foods, like a selection of bite-sized cookies. These three recipes from Deklah Polansky, with tea recommendations from Poorvi Chordia, are specially designed to pair well with tea — the two women run cookies and tea pop-ups around town, drawing on Polansky’s love of gluten-free baking and Chordia’s experience operating the tea company Herbs & Kettles. Find recipes for Brown Butter-Black Sesame Cookies, Tahini, Honey and Orange Cookies and Masala Chai Cookies.
Get three recipes for mini cookies.
Tea Sandwiches
A proper tea party also needs savory options, often found in tiny sandwiches ready to pop into mouths in one bite. Make as many or as few as you’d like, but know that sandwiches this small will disappear quickly. We have recipes for a Pineapple, Cream Cheese and Pecan Sandwich; a Cucumber-Mint Sandwich; Smoked Salmon and Homemade “Boursin” Sandwiches, as well as tea sandwich-ready spreads like Deviled Egg Salad and Deviled Ham.
Get the recipes for five tea sandwiches.
Coronation Chicken Salad from The Ginger Room
The Coronation Chicken Salad is a signature sandwich at the Ginger Room in Alpharetta. The foundation of this recipe is credited to Le Cordon Bleu cookery school in London, where the savory and slightly sweet chicken salad was created as part of the banquet for Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953. This recipe was adapted by the Ginger Room’s co-owner Angela Avery, and it includes a few teaspoons of lemon pepper. It can be eaten on its own or used as a filling for a sandwich.
About the Author
Olivia Wakim is a digital content producer on the food and dining team. She joined the AJC as an intern in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia with a journalism degree. While in school, she reported for The Red & Black, Grady Newsource and the Marietta Daily Journal.
