Monday, March 8, 2010

Curiouser and Curiouser... Tea in Cookies?


Some of you may already be aware, but for the rest you must know that I am a huge Alice in Wonderland fan. I fell in love with the Disney movie as a child, I always was a little eccentric, which motivated me to read the book once I was old enough to do so. Now the book is the driving force of my love; Lewis Carroll has a delightful way of making perfect sense out of complete nonsense, sort of like the cookies I made.

In honor of the movie's release I threw a little unbirthday party complete with crustless quiche, tea (of course) and Early Grey Shortbread Cookies. Tea in a cookie you might ask? Yes, it's called a portmanteaus (more on that later) and it is delicious. They are bursting with the floral robust taste of Earl Grey and are perfect dipping companions to your morning tea or even coffee. Not to mention, if you make them just right you are sure to grow a couple inches when you bite in.



I used Harney & Son's, they have a great Earl Grey.

The recipe for the shortbread is the same as the recipe from my previous post. All you do is pulse 2 tbsp of Earl Grey tea with a little flour from the recipe in the food processor until the tea is broken up into tiny pieces, then add the processed tea and flour back to the main flour/dry mixture and combine. 

Following are some pictures of the delicious shortbread and my unbirthday tea party table...






The tea party was so much fun and the movie was fantastic. In the typical Tim Burton fashion the story was fooky (fun and cooky), the costumes were whimsorful (whimsical and colorful), the characters bizoisterous (bizarre and boisterous) and the experience was simply magivating (magical and captivating). Why am I talking in portmanteaus? What is a portmanteau? It is the blending of two words into one in order that their two meanings may take on a whole new meaning when considered together. The practice was created by Lewis Carroll and first put to use in the telling of the Jabberwocky tale by Humpty Dumpty in Through the Looking Glass, which is the motivation for the movie's story.


In fact, I think the only reason some of the critics thought that the story line of the movie was unfocused was because they had never read the poem of the Jabberwocky and did not appreciate how focused and genius the nonsense actually is. I have included it here so you can read it before you see the movie and make the Earl Grey Shortbread. It will enhance your appreciation of both nonsensical blends and leave you galumphing all the way to the 
theaters.

Jabberwocky

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe.
"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"


He took his vorpal sword in hand:
Long time the manxome foe he sought—
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.

And as in uffish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! and through and through
The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.

"And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!"
He chortled in his joy.

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe

No comments:

Post a Comment