Easter tea time was a success, especially as my cake turned out well.
It has been many years since I'd made a real layer cake.
The lemon curd and vanilla buttercream filling went well with
a real tea pot of freshly brewed Darjeeling.
What's so special about this tea?
Darjeeling Tea is the only tea in the world to get protection
under the Geographical Indication (GI) trademark.
It is said that these teas are the highest elevation produced teas
world over and it is the altitude that creates an ideal environment
for the tea plant.
Yellow tulips and mini-carnations brightened tea time and will
last for the week ahead.
Oh yes, have been meaning to tell you the latest 'bird news' from the
garden. Went to check that we had cleaned out this box of
last year's nest. . . . . . .opened the side and out flew a chickadee
who was on a beautiful soft mossy-lined nest. I almost fell over but did
a quick check and there were no eggs. Now a week later hopefully
there are some eggs - they lay 5-7 - but I won't disturb her again.
Maybe we'll have a new family in the garden soon.
A Carolina chickadee bringing a juicy grub to babies in another
nesting box on our porch a few years ago.
Love these busy little birds.
Doubly lucky here after that non-stop rain of Friday and Saturday - gosh
it was so wet and cold. Yesterday, and now today, full sun with clear blue
skies, and it's warming up again.
The grass grew inches over the weekend - busy garden work ahead!
.png)
It sounds and looks like a beautiful Easter celebration at your home, and the cake looks fabulous! I hope there will be a family in that bird box soon.
ReplyDeleteI like Darjeeling tea, but my favourite tea is Earl Grey. I just really love the bergamot note.
What a cake! The thought of a pot of tea and a slice of cake sounds heavenly. Your Carolina Chickadee will be fun to watch.
ReplyDeleteDearest Mary,
ReplyDeleteWow, that cake is magazine worthy! Great styling with the fresh flowers.
And your chickadee with the 'yummy' grub looks also attractive!
It was rather cold this morning when I left with Pieter for Atlanta, after 8 weeks... Did wear my boots, jeans and wool sweater and the down puffer jacket for entering the stores.
I'm not yet completely at my best and often feeling cold... But not as bad as it used to be.
Came home with a lovely Stephanotis in bloom, in a circle just as I used to grow them back in The Netherlands and once from a starter here in the 80s at our previous home.
Flowers make me happy and especially such highly fragrant ones.
Hugs,
Mariette
Darjeeling was sipped at my tea table too. It is the perfect tea for springtime. It would be wonderful with that beautiful cake too. How exciting to have a chickadee nesting in your birdhouse.
ReplyDeleteI'll go with the cake and let the birds have the grubs! A mixture of bright spring days and cold rainy ones here too.
ReplyDeleteHello Mary,
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing cake and the care you take to decorate The table is a work of art. Lovely to read about the birds nesting in the box and in your garden. The weather is so unpredictable, sunny days and then back to stormy rainy days here. Spring flowers and blossoms are battling to survive.
Looks like you had an enjoyable Easter. Let’s hope we all get some sunny days and warm weather and your garden soon becomes full of a family of thriving young birds.
Best wishes Eileenx
Oh I love the photos of the chikadee Mary! And your cake looks fabulous!!!
ReplyDeleteI'll take a slice of cake over the grubs any day! It looks delicious, and oh so pretty, too.
ReplyDelete