Warm your spirit with tea, dash of refinement

When I heard the Ruskin Woman's Club was having a pre-Christmas, tea-tasting meeting last week, I didn't hesitate. I invited myself.

And as I always do — 'cause my mom did raise me with a few manners — I asked, "Is there anything I can bring?"

"No need to, there will be plenty," said Sonja Council, a club member chairing the tea.

I took a dozen peppermint scones anyway.

Since 1999, the club's annual Christmas tea has raised money for its various charities. This is the first year the committee has gotten together beforehand to plate, taste and calculate the cost of the items to be served to about 160 guests. Lucky me.

This year's tea, which has the theme "Angels Among Us," will take place Dec. 3 at the historic Ruskin Woman's Club, 503 U.S. 41 S. It will feature three courses: scones complemented by dollops of clotted cream; savory selections, including miniature quiches and finger sandwiches; and several bite-size desserts. Oh, and tea of course.

In preparation for it, about a dozen members and I gathered at Council's beautiful home in Wimauma. Her kitchen counters were covered with three-layer sandwiches, cream cheese and olive-piped crackers, baked asparagus roll-ups, Manhattan meatballs, red velvet cupcakes, jam pinwheels … I could go on.

Whittling down choices wasn't easy. But after several hours of discussion and a belly full of dainty portions, we did.

Among the favorites were Council's heart-shaped tomato aspic with cucumber sandwiches. If you look in your cookbooks from the 1950s and early 1960s, you'll probably find recipes. They're classic, timeless and refreshing.

I had such a great time. Not only did I discover these women know how to cook — and how well they do it — but I saw such generosity of spirit. Most of the costs of the ingredients for the annual event are donated from out of their own pockets.

Angels among us? I think so.

For information, call Council at (813) 244-1015.

Tomato aspic with cucumber tea sandwich

5 cups V-8 juice

3 3-ounce boxes lemon gelatin

1/2 cup lime juice

30 small rounds whole wheat bread

Dash of Worcestershire sauce

Dash of hot pepper sauce

Combine vegetable juice with gelatin and bring to a boil. Stir until dissolved. Remove from heat and add lime juice, Worcestershire and hot sauce. Pour onto a rimmed cookie sheet prepared with either mayonnaise or cooking spray. Refrigerate until firm.

Using a very small heart or star-shaped cookie cutter, cut out small hearts from the congealed aspic. Place a cucumber slice on top of each whole wheat round. Add an aspic heart or star. Pipe a star of mayonnaise on top and garnish with a tiny piece of dill.

Makes 30 small sandwiches.