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THE FIRST TEA SHOP…

The Country’s first tea shop was opened in 1864 by the Manageress of the Aerated Bread Company. The company directors allowed the manageress to serve refreshments to favoured customers. Then, demand for her service grew, […]

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TEA AND KING CHARLES II …

Did you know that in 1662 King Charles II of England married Portuguese Infanta Catherine de Braganza, who introduced and made very popular the custom of drinking ‘tea’ in England.

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A PASTRY TIP…

A common mistake when rolling out pastry is to change the direction of the pin rather than the pastry which then encourages the pastry to stick. To prevent this, give the pastry a quarter turn […]

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COFFEE ADDICTION…

Could that six cup a day habit be blamed on your genes? Well, apparently researchers in America scanned the genes of over 40,000 people, and found two particular stretches of DNA in people who consumed […]

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AFTERNOON TEA CATWALK…

AFTERNOON TEA CATWALK… With biscuits and fancies copied straight from the catwalk, and tea served in fine Paul Smith bone china, ‘Pret a Portea’ at The Berkeley Hotel in London is the place for post […]

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EASY COCONUT CAKE RECIPE…

EASY COCONUT CAKE RECIPE… Ingredients 175g (6oz) caster sugar 175g (6oz) desiccated coconut 175g (6oz) butter, softened 225g (8oz) self-raising flour 3 medium eggs Zest and juice of 1 lemon 2 tbsp milk Method Preheat […]

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TEA IN 1560…

In 1560 the first European to encounter tea and write about it was Jasper de Cruz, a missionary on Portugal’s first commercial trade journey to China. Portugal, the most advanced navy at the time, was […]