DIY Family Tea Party Ideas

Family Friendly Tea

It all starts with the tea! Pick a lightly flavored tea like mint if you’re serving tea to young ones, or bolder flavors like English Breakfast or Earl Grey if you have real tea enthusiasts at the table. Little children may enjoy pretend tea like apple juice or apple cider - just be sure to serve it from a teapot!

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Yield: 4 small servings

Ingredients:

• Water
• HT Traders Mint Tea

Directions:

1. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil
2. Tea likes hot water, but a chilly teapot cools things down – so swirl a little boiling water around the empty pot first, then add the boiling water.
3. Add two tea bags to a regular teapot or one tea bag to a small teapot.
4. Tea needs time to unlock its flavor, so give it 4-5 minutes to steep.
5. Remove the bags and serve, being sure to allow the tea to cool down before letting children taste it.

Flower Tea Sandwiches

Whipped cream cheese and fruit jellies make these flour sandwiches a real delight. Get the little ones engaged by stamping out the bread flowers with a cookie cutter!

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 0 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Yield: 12 sandwiches

Ingredients:

• 24 slices Harris Teeter Old Fashioned Sandwich Bread
• ⅔ cup Harris Teeter Whipped Cream Cheese
• ⅔ cup Harris Teeter Strawberry Preserves

Special Equipment:

• Flower and circle cookie cutters

Directions:

1. Using a flower-shaped cookie cutter cut out 24 flowers from the bread.
2. Using a small circle cookie cutter, cut out the centers of half of the flowers.
3. Spread cream cheese on the 12 pieces of bread without the center cut out. Spread jelly on top of the cream cheese.
4. Top with the remaining cut-out bread pieces.
5. Serve immediately.

‘Drink Me’ Tea Bag Cookies

Need a dessert for your afternoon tea party? These “Drink Me” Tea Bag cookies dipped in chocolate and topped with sprinkles are fit for a queen (or little prince or princess)!

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 12 cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 package Harris Teeter Ready to Bake Sugar Cookie Dough
• 3 Tbsp. Harris Teeter All Purpose Flour
• Harris Teeter Vanilla and Chocolate CandiQuik
• Sprinkles

Special Equipment:

• Tea Bag (or gift tag) cookie Cutter
• 12 Tea Bag Labels (either real or create your own)
• Twine or string

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. Knead the flour into the dough until smooth. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll out to ¼ inch thick. Cut out tea bag shapes with a cookie cutter (or draw them out and use a straw to poke out a place for the string).
3. Bake for 10 minutes or until lightly golden on edges. Allow to cool before removing from the cookie sheet. Keep the parchment paper on the cooled baking sheet.
4. Melt CandiQuik according to package directions. Swirl dollops of chocolate and vanilla melted candy together and dip the tea bags into the chocolate. Return to parchment paper and quickly sprinkle with candies.
5. Allow the chocolate to set. Attach tea bag labels to the string and insert through the hole of each cookie before serving.

Sponge Cake Craft

Need some good clean fun? Look no further than this adorable Sponge Cake Craft. For the first time, dessert may be quite literally too pretty to eat!

Supplies:

• Colorful sponges
• Pompoms
• Glitter and confetti
• School Glue

Instructions:

1. Cut up sponges into rectangles, squares and triangles. Place them on a tray along with pompoms and confetti. Set out glue.
2. Invite children to create their own sponge cake art by layering sponges, icing their cakes with glue, and decorating them with pompoms and glitter!