Pink Afternoon Tea for Wynter

Over the weekend, my cousin M came to visit so we could meet her new baby girl, Wynter. Aunty J and cousins K and J also came along, and so I set about preparing a pink-themed afternoon tea to celebrate the new bub.

There was 9 of us in total, so I decided to make 2 sweet dishes and 2 savoury. For sweets, I knew I had to make pink iced cupcakes as I LOVE them. I also decided to make pink yoghurt panacotta and top it with rhubarb, as I was inspired by the rhubarb compote I’d had at B&JFF. As I was shopping for my ingredients, I noticed a large bag of strawberries on special and decided they’d go great with the rhubarb in the compote.

As afternoon tea to me is quite traditional and old fashioned, I decided to make salmon roulade like my grandmother J used to make it when I was little. She used to put spinach in her egg roll, however, I omitted it in this instance because of my pink theme. For a healthy alternative, I also decided to make a zucchini fritatta topped with pink aioli. The pink aioli threw a few people I think, who were expecting something sweet.

To drink, I wanted to keep it non-alcoholic for new mother M, and so I bought some pink grapefruit lemonade which I put in jugs full of ice with a handful of frozen raspberries. How pretty!

It was a great afternoon. Aunty J brought some of her delicious scones which we had with jam and cream (they even fit my pink theme!). There was only a few panna cotta left over and a couple of cupcakes which I took to work the next day so there was just the right amount of food. I even got to hold little Wynter. She’s adorable! Congrats cousin M xx

PINK AFTERNOON TEA MENU Pink Vanilla Cupcakes w/ Cream Cheese Icing Pink Yoghurt Panna Cotta w/ Rhubarb & Strawberry Compote Smoked Salmon Roulade Zucchini Fritatta w/ Pink Aioli Pink Grapefruit Lemonade w/ Raspberries

PINK VANILLA CUPCAKES W/ CREAM CHEESE ICING

2 eggs
3/4 cup caster sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup oil (vegetable, canola or extra light olive oil)
1/2 cup buttermilk or 1/2 cup milk plus 1/2 tsp white vinegar set aside for 5 minutes
a few drops of pink food dye
1 1/4 cups plain flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
pinch salt

1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2. Line a muffin tray with 12 paper liners.
3. Using an electric mixer, mix eggs and sugar and beat until pale, 5 minutes. Add vanilla, oil, buttermilk and food dye and mix to combine.
4. Sift in flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and gently stir together with a spatula until just combined.
5. Spoon batter into paper liners about 2/3 full. Bake in moderate oven for 15-20 minutes or until cooked through when tested with a skewer. Allow to cool completely before frosting with cream cheese icing (recipe below).

Makes 12

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
1/2 cup butter (nothing “spreadable”)
225g full fat cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla extract
a few drops pink food dye
4 cups icing sugar or mixture

1. With an electric mixer, cream together butter and cream cheese in a bowl until smooth. Add vanilla and dye and mix to combine.
2. Sift in icing sugar a little at a time until you reach the desired consistency.
3. Transfer icing to a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle and pipe in a circular motion onto cooled cupcakes.

Makes enough for 20 cupcakes

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PINK PANNA COTTA W/ RHUBARB & STRAWBERRY COMPOTE

1/3 cup caster sugar + 1/2 cup extra
4 tsp gelatine powder
1L plain yoghurt
600ml thickened cream
a few drops pink food dye
300g rhubarb, cut into 3cm lengths
200g strawberries, topped and quartered
squeeze lemon juice

1. In a bowl, stir together 1/3 cup caster sugar and gelatine powder.
2. In a large saucepan over low heat, whisk together yoghurt, cream, food dye and sugar mixture and stir until sugar dissolves.
3. Remove from heat and strain through a fine sieve into a jug. Pour evenly into 12 200ml glasses and allow to cool.
4. Meanwhile, in another pan, add rhubarb, strawberries, 1/2 cup caster sugar and lemon juice and bring to the boil. Allow to cook until it reaches the consistancy of jam, about 10 minutes. Allow to cool before spooning evenly over panna cottas.
5. Refrigerate for 3-4 hours or until set. Serve cold.

Makes 12

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SMOKED SALMON ROULADE

60g butter
1/3 cup plain flour
1 cup milk
4 eggs, seperated
200g smoked salmon
200g cream cheese
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp dill, chopped
salt and pepper to taste 

1. Grease a 25cm x 30cm tin and line with greaseproof paper. Preheat oven to 200C.
2. In a saucepan over low heat, melt butter. Add flour and cook for 1 minute. Add milk gradually and stir until mixture boils and thickens. Remove from heat and whisk in egg yolks 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Beat egg whites in a separate bowl until soft peaks form. Fold 1/3 of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture to lighten it, before pouring it back into the remaining eggwhites and folding gently until combined. Transfer to the prepared pan and bake in a moderate oven for 12-15 minutes or until puffed and golden.
4. Remove from oven and turn onto a wire rack covered with a tea towel. When cool enough to handle, removing the paper and roll up into a swiss roll. Allow to cool.
5. Meanwhile, in a food processor, process salmon, cream cheese, lemon zest, dill and salt and pepper until it is a smooth paste.
6. While egg roll is still slightly warm, unroll and spread with the salmon mixture. Gently roll up the roulade and wrap tightly in cling wrap. Refrigerate for a few hours before removing cling wrap and cutting into slices. Serve cold.

Serves 8 as an hors d’oeuvre.

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ZUCCHINI FRITATTA W/ PINK AIOLI

1 tbsp olive oil
1 brown onion, finely diced
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
3 large zucchini, peeled and sliced thinly
8 eggs
1 cup milk or cream
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2. In a frying pan, heat olive oil over medium heat and fry onion until tender and translucent but not brown, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and fry until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
3. Transfer onion mix to a bowl and mix together with eggs and milk. Season well.
4. Line a 30cm x 30cm pan with baking paper. Pour in 1/2 cup of the egg mix and spread over the base. Layer zucchini slices into the baking pan and pour over egg mix. Bake in a moderate oven for 1 hour or until set.
5. Remove from oven and place a piece of card that fits just inside the tin over the fritatta. Weigh down with cans or weights and allow to cool. Refrigerate for a few hours until cold.
6. Once cold, cut into 36 squares (6×6) and pipe a little pink aioli on each.

Serves 8 as an hors d’oeuvre

PINK AIOLI
1 egg
1 tbsp dijon mustard
squeeze lemon juice
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
175ml canola or vegetable oil
a few drops pink food dye
salt and pepper 

1. In a food processor, process egg, mustard, lemon juice and garlic until well combined.
2. With the motor running, slowly in a steady stream add the oil in a drizzle until aioli is thick. Season well with salt and papper to taste and add pink food dye. Wizz to combine.
3. Transfer aioli to a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle and pipe a little onto each fritatta square.

Makes enough for 1 zucchini fritatta