Old Style Afternoon Tea Party

dingdongsaving

I was just sitting & thinking about fillings that have been in the sandwiches at these places my sister & I go to each year that could be concocted at home on a budget...very thinly sliced beef & horseradish, same for ham & mustard, coronation chicken, cucumber & cream cheese...
A few quiches, puff pastry tarts, sausage plaits/rolls would all go beautifully here & will help save your sanity on making individual sandwiches!
Various scones with butter, jam, cream (plain/fruit/lavender/herb/cheese) & a few flavoured loaf cakes (plain, fruited, E.Grey, lemon & poppyseed, rosewater & raspberry etc.) along with copious amounts of tea & coffee.
I know it's probably a logistical nightmare as you're not close to the hall but I bet it's a wonderful party.

MessyBetty

I have been for a number of afternoon teas and would say that none have ever been finished. What I have noticed is there are more sweet items than sandwiches. I would fill a plate per table say 2/3 sandwiches each then jam and cream scones followed by tiny chocolates or Iceland do mini frozen cream cakes £5 ish for about 25/50? not quite sure but seem reasonable. If you are asked for more sandwiches just say there is plenty more to come, and I would just serve basic tea from a pot as it always tastes better.
Good luck with it all and don't stress too much get friends in to help x

Softstuff

I love to do this, to me it's a pretty cheap option.

The bread doesn't have to be an expensive loaf, get cheap loaves of white and brown bread. The last time I did this for many people, the easiest thing was to make a loaf worth of sandwiches the day before (not the mayonnaise ones, but the others), don't cut them up, pop them directly back in the bread bag and in the fridge. They stay very fresh that way, then you can transport them and cut them on the day.

As for fillings some of my favourites are cheese and pickle, ham and tomato, cucumber and chicken and lettuce. They look nice in little triangles or fingers.

Alongside this I'd make some mini quiche as the savoury option.

Then I'd have homemade scones, with little pots of jam and cream. Some sort of little cupcake with icing, a little sweet tartlet and maybe a slice. These can all be homemade comfortably a day or even 2 before.

You're looking at maybe 4 small quarter sandwiches, a quiche, a scone and another 2 or three small sweet items. It's the variety and presentation that make it special.

And doileys! Don't forget the doileys.

Drachenfach

We've just celebrated three lots of big birthdays with afternoon teas - apparently all my relatives had the same idea!

We farmed out the cooking among as many people as possible - two aunts did sarnies (anything looks good with the crusts cut off. The coronation chicken ones were most popular), my mum did traybakes, I made 4 dozen cupcakes, non-baking uncle bought all the napkins etc. Think we ended up using charity shop-bought sheets and fabric oddments to cover the tables, and more of the same cut with pinking shears to make bunting (which was a pig to put up and no one noticed. Don't bother)

Don't try and do it all yourself. Draw up a list and then delegate!

jackyann

Buy smoked salmon trimmings at the supermarket (or good value smoked salmon from the famous German discount supermarkets!) and use light cream cheese instead of butter. Luxury sandwich on a budget.

I would draft in plenty of family help, dividing up the tasks as best you can.

One that I would delegate would be savoury tartlets - using bought pastry & jam tart tins. I usually make these into "mini pizzas" but you can bake blind and fill with nice savoury things.

home made cheese straws very popular - make the day before then "freshen up" in the hall oven.

Lucky nan!

NewShadow

If you were to invest £30 in an electric slicer (which I use at home anyway), then I'd buy:

1kg joint of beef - £7
1kg smoked gammon - £5
1 chicken - £4ish
1kg cheese - £4.85
8 loaves value white bread - 45p each
8 loaves value brown bread - 45p each
soft spread - 1kg - £1.35
1 jar mustard - 25p
1 jar pickle - 24p
1 or 2 tubs natural yogurt - 45p each
1 tub curry powder - 85p
500g value sultanas - 84p
multipack of crisps - walkers 20 pack currently on offer £2.50
6 x 6 pack mini jam and vanilla rolls - 40p each
10 x 10 pack scones - 49p each
squirty cream - £1.50
Jam - 29p
lemon curd - 22p
10 x 12 pack value cupcakes - 60p each
500g fondant icing sugar - £1.09

Each loaf has about 10 slices - disregarding the crusts - 2 per sarnie is 80 - allowing 1 per person.

Beef and gammon joint sliced thin should do about 20 sarnies each - use the mustard or pickle on half

The cheese sliced thin should do another 20 - again use the pickle on half

Roast and shred the chicken - mix with the yogurt, leftover mustard, curry powder and sultanas - coronation chicken should do at least another 20

c.£45-£50 (depending on the ethics of your chicken, plus money for an electric slicer if you don't have one or know anyone that could loan one) and probably loads of leftovers for pack lunches for the next week.

I'd also either make a centrepiece cake or blow £20 on a celebration cake. I'd also consider making a trifle - but thats just 'cause I love cold custard.

HTH

SmlSave

Wow, thanks for pricing that up NewShadow that Looks really feasible.

I'm going to list everything down and tick them off one by one.

Thank you so much for everyone's help

got-it-spend-it

I'm not sure whether many of the guests will be your Nan's age, but in my experience of these things people of that age tend to have very light appetites so you won't necessarily need masses of sandwiches as well as the scones.

Mrs_Boo_Boo

Oh how lovely. Yes I would be in my element with this too. Try not to get too stressed ding dong.
What about wraps which won't get so dry. Roll up cream cheese and smoked salmon trimmings with a little lemon juice in a wrap and then cut into little bite size pin wheels. Buy all value stuff no need to splash out.
Good idea to involve other people. Best wedding I went to was my mate's where everyone brought something. Made a pavlova which evaporated!!!! Most people like to feel useful by helping out.
Pineapple and cheese on sticks. So easy.
You could also bulk out a bit with crisps and nuts.
Managed to get tiny plastics pots with lids from 99p shop and made up mini trifles. Easy to transport and went down well with kids.
Try not to stress too much it will be fine.

nursemaggie

From my experience of this age group is they tend to have a sweet tooth. Most will not eat more than three sandwiches, some will not eat any.

Remember it is a treat not an exercise in nutrition. egg mayonnaise goes down well so very cheap. If you can still get potted meat and potted salmon they will love it is nostalgia.

Most supermarkets do their own cocktail sausage rolls for you to cook. A couple of bags of those will go down well. Lots of home made fairy cakes some with currants, cherries, iced and put a decoration on top. Jelly tots make a good decoration. Butterfly buns go down well too. A couple of fruit loaf cakes. Just make it simple and only decorate the table.

I used to do these sort of teas every month as a warden. If they evoke their youth you have a success. I always made two or three trifles. and bought in a couple of frozen deserts. Don't forget the sherry in the trifle. It is not a trifle without among people this age. It is easy to make a trifle and it is fairly cheap. I always used to use up the cream from the trifles for the butterfly cakes. I also had to make twice as many with the butterfly cakes as the people making the sandwiches wanted to try them.

Keep the tea going they need nothing else.

Decorations small vases or glasses of flower even artificial flowers on the table and maybe on any little tables you have depending on how you are going to do it. It could be a sit down tea or a buffet. When you are not so steady on your feet a sit down tea can be easier.

Venue, village hall, church hall, or anything similar and trestle tables with sheets on for the buffet or to sit down.

You will need plenty of helpers so don't forget to feed them.

I hope you all enjoy it and especially your nan.