High tea or dinner, was a heavier meal with eaten at the dinner table. It included meat or fish and vegetables and was a working class family meal. In New Zealand, casual as we are, abbreviated this high tea to tea.

What we call high tea in NZ refers to a dainty, posh arrangement and is actually just afternoon tea. High tea or afternoon tea is the enjoying of tea served with tiny sandwiches and baked goods. To make matters more confusing, what I know as afternoon tea in isn’t a really a meal at all, but just a break from work. Although if you choose to eat scones and have tea during your break, that is ok too. More info on the history of afternoon and high tea can be found here.

I’m planning a wee high tea at home this weekend. A little bit posh, but mostly just fun. Boys are welcome. I was deciding whether or not to invite boys but I’m glad I did because they were the first to RSVP. I suppose it’s not every day that boys get invited to a high tea.

I’ve asked my guests to bring a small plate of finger food treats, a teacup and a saucer. To be honest, baking really isn’t my thing. Lucy Liu’s rock hard “Chinese fighting muffins” from Charlie’s Angels come to mind. I’m still figuring out what to make. It could be either something with puff pastry or cute little sandwiches.

Luckily, Baker’s Delight have offered their their Date Scones and their new Apple Strudel scones for us to sample.

To celebrate, I have 5 x $5 Baker’s Delight vouchers to give away. Redeemable at any outlet nationwide. Just be one of the first 5 readers to comment on this post with your favourite high tea or afternoon tea treat and a voucher is yours. You can use it to try their new Apple Strudel scones or  buy something else from them.

I’ve designed these accessories to jazz up our high tea.

Click on the image below to download a 3 page 332kb PDF file if you would like make your own.