Tea Time

These are my three girls having tea in Molly's room. I was looking for pictures on the Internet to put on this post, when I found these and decided that they are cuter:-)
What is it about tea parties that make girls and ladies feel so special? Why is it that no matter how old we get, we still get as excited about dressing up and eating delicate food and drinking sparkling drinks out of dainty cups, as we did when we were four?
I still find myself collecting pink cups and saucers for that special tea party, even though there is nothing in my dining room or kitchen that lends itself to matching pink.
Still I hold onto these things in the hopes that one of my girls will grow up and have a pink kitchen.
This week we had some dear friends come over for a sort of tea party. The sort of, being because between the two of us Mom's there were six little ones asking for more goldfish and juice boxes and bringing the toy tractors to the table to "show Mom!".
Still we had a wonderful time pretending during the brief moments of quiet, that we were dignified ladies sitting in the parlor, having a quiet luncheon together.
I served strawberry soup, chicken salad, strawberry spinach salad, and sparkling lemonade and if you will allow me to brag, it was most delicious!
I would like to share these recipes with you.

Strawberry Soup
2 cups of milk
1 cup of heavy whipping cream
3 cups of frozen strawberries
1/2 cup of sour cream
3/4 cup of sugar
Pour all ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth and a lovely shade of pink.
I got this recipe some time ago, but have changed the amounts of strawberries and sugar to my taste. I encourage you to do the same! Once you put your spoon in the blender to try a taste, you will have a hard time staying out of it:-)

Chicken Salad
I have absolutely no measurements for anything in this recipe. I learned how to make it from it my Mom. I boil a three pound bag of chicken a little more than you think you should so that it will shred easily when you stir it into the salad. Then I put in tons of purple seedless grapes and about four stalks of celery chopped very small. (I personally do not care for celery, but find it essential in this salad to give it that wonderful crunch. This explains the "very small".)
Then I sprinkle in pepper and salt and some Lawry's seasoning salt. Then I add enough mayo to make it very creamy but in no way runny. Add a little at a time until you get it the way you like. Then I throw in a small bag of sliced almonds and stir some more. Be sure that you don't stir so hard that you smush your grapes. This salad is excellent on any kind of bread, in a pita, or all by itself.

Strawberry Spinach Salad
This is a very common recipe and more than likely, you've got your own version of it. But just in case this is the way I learned to make it.
Use a bag of fresh spinach, being sure to snap the little stems off. Add as many sliced strawberries as you like. Sprinkle in some sliced almonds and a little feta cheese.
For the dressing, in a separate bowl, combine 1/2 cup of sugar, 2 tsp dry minced onion,
1/4 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp worceshire sauce, 1/2 cup vegetable oil, and 1/4 cup cider vinegar. Briskly stir together with a fork. Wait to pour on the salad until you are ready to serve it. Toss.

Sparkling Lemonade
Super simple! All you do is use two frozen cans of strawberry lemonade concentrate (or any other frozen drink that you like), pour in a two liter of club soda and add about 3/4 cup of sugar. You won't believe how deliciously refreshing this is!

Hope you enjoy these recipes and that you find your own excuse to have a tea party at your table very soon!