The tea party scene in Alice in Wonderland is one of the most inspiring literary descriptions of a food-related habit. The cuppa shared around the table is part of a cultural taste habit which where aromatic infusions are a pretext for conversations and sharing.
The literary world has plenty of episodes where the food is elegantly inserted into the stories, more or less delivered with a recipe at the end. Actually, in my experience, this 'habit' of sharing recipes in a literary work is rather a very new occurrence, due probably to the highest interest that food is getting nowadays, representative for a part of the world where elaborated food doesn't represent a luxury any more.
A Literary Tea Party by Alison Walsh is a delight for both of the reader and the foodie. Picking up inspiration from classical literary works as diverse as Romeo and Juliet, White Fang, or the Wizard of Oz, it set up the table for a lengthy discussion about life, works, words and, obviously, taste buds. You can easily organise your themed tea party ideas regardless of the topic of your book club, just to follow the literary inspiration in the picture. There are many recipes to talk about and taste too, many introduced by cute - not too highly elaborated and edited - pictures, but for my hungry eyes, the following caught my eyes: the apple tart inspired by King Arthur's story, the cyclone cookies from the Wonderful Wizard of Oz, or the Lover's Tea that Romeo&Juliet inspired. The recipes are easy to replicate, with smart directions, doable by beginner and middle-level baker/cook too.
Disclaimer: Book offered by the publisher in exchange for an honest review
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