A Bellingham Foodie Blog Restaurant Reviews Bellingham Washington 98225

September 3, 2008

English Gentleman’s Sit-Down Seedcake

Filed under: local,Pacific Northwest,restaurants — Tags: , — Bellinghamster @ 12:57 am

This post is not about a restaurant, but there is a reference to one. It is about a tea book. The cake is merely an accompaniment.

I have just finished reading ‘The Agony of the Leaves‘ The Ecstasy of My Life With Tea by Helen Gustafson. She was the tea buyer at the renowned restaurant Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California. The book is filled with anecdotes about tea experiences. It includes many tea food recipes (cookies cakes sandwiches).

For me, the most interesting part of the book was her description of her meeting with THE Mr. Twining (tea people since 1706). Her description of him and his British nuances were very funny. They went out to lunch and for dessert Mrs. Gustafson and Mr. Twining shared a pot of Twining’s Traditional Blend and ate seedcake. FYI: he prefers his teapot to be of a quality stainless steel that holds the heat.

Little did I know I grew up with seed cake as a staple. My Mom makes hers with poppyseed. Some recipes use caraway (or “carried away seeds” as my daughter says).

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