How to Make a Recipe for Tea Cakes 

When you are learning how to make a  recipe for tea cakes you will find that they might vary greatly as you travel around the world or even in different parts of the United States. Although most countries have some form of a cookie or biscuit which goes by the name of tea cakes, they could be totally different. Some like I make are made with baking powder as the leavening agent but many recipes are made with yeast as a leavening.

In some areas of the United States when you learn how to make a recipe for tea cakes they are large flat cookies. In some countries they are made with a cookie press. In England they are light sweet yeast buns and the ones in Mexico and Russia are the same as I make. They are sweet little ball cookies made with a shortbread dough. They all have two things in common; they are small and are made to serve with tea.

If you are learning how to make a recipe for tea cakes this first simple one is probably one of the most popular shortbread cookie recipe know all over the world but by different names. You might hear them called the Mexican wedding cakes, the Russian tea cakes or the Italian butter nut. Here in the US you might say you are making a snowball cookie recipe, southern pecan butterball, melting moments or just simply sugar cookies or pecan balls.

Whatever you like to call this recipe for tea cakes, I consider it a necessity to have on my list of Christmas cookie recipes. This cookie is light and very tasty. You can roll them in powdered sugar or decorate them with colored sugar to liven up a cookie tray of your best holiday recipes. This is one recipe that I have made for Christmas every year.

HOW TO MAKE A RECIPE FOR TEA CAKES RECIPE

How to Make Recipe for Tea CakesHow to Make Recipe for Tea Cakes
  • 1 Cup soft butter
  • ½ Cup sifted powdered sugar
  • 1 Teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 ¼ Cups flour
  • 1/8 Teaspoon salt
  • ¾ Cup finely chopped pecans

Cream together the butter and sugar; Add vanilla. Sift the flour and salt together and then add to the creamed mixture. Blend well and then blend in the chopped nuts. Refrigerate dough for a couple of hours.

Preheat oven to 400F degrees.

Roll dough in 1 inch balls and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake about 10 minutes or until cookies are set. While warm roll in powdered sugar.

NOTE FOR OPTIONS:

You could omit the nuts in this recipe and replace with mini chocolate chips or miniature peppermint chips.

Instead of vanilla you might like to flavor with a little lemon extract or grated orange zest.

Instead of coating with sugar after baking, while warm drizzle a little glaze over each cookie (maybe flavored with lemon)

TEA CAKES WITH RAISINS AND NUTS

  • 1 Cup melted butter
  • 2 Cups brown sugar
  • 2 Beaten eggs
  • 1 Teaspoon vanilla
  • 3 Cups flour
  • 1 Teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ Teaspoons salt
  • 1 Cup raisins
  • ½ Cup flour
  • ½ Cup chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 400F degrees.

Cream butter and sugar; beat in eggs and vanilla.

Combine and sift 3 cups flour, baking soda and salt; blend into creamed mixture.

Add ½ cup flour to raisins and nuts; blend well into other mixture.

Shape dough into balls and place on cookie sheets; flatten with bottom of glass.

Bake for 10 minutes and remove from sheets to cool.

RECIPE FOR TEA CAKES

This is actually one of the tea cookie recipes. It is a very old recipe for sour cream cookies and instructs you to roll the dough out and cut into small desired shapes before baking. They are nice for tea parties.

  • 2 Cups sugar
  • 2/3 Cup softened butter
  • 1 Cup sour cream
  • 1 Egg
  • 1 Teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 Teaspoon nutmeg
  • Add enough flour to form a soft dough.

Preheat oven to 400F degrees.

Cream butter and sugar until fluffy.

Stir baking soda into sour cream; add sour cream mixture and egg into butter and sugar mixture.

Add nutmeg and enough flour to form a soft dough; do not chill.

Roll dough about ¼ inch thickness and cut with small cutters; bake on greased cookie sheets until edges begin to brown.

ASIAN TEA CAKES

  • 3 Cups sifted flour
  • ½ Teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ Teaspoon salt
  • 1 Cup softened butter
  • 1 ¾ Cups brown sugar
  • ¼ Cup strong tea (Cool to warm)
  • 1 Teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 Cup blanched almonds (Chopped fine)
  • ¼ Cup crystallized ginger (Chopped fine)

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
Sift together flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
Cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy until well blended.
Stir in half of the flour mixture mixing thoroughly.
Mix in the tea; blend in the remaining dry ingredients.
Blend in remaining ingredients; shape into balls (1 teaspoon each).
Place 2 inches apart on UNgreased baking sheets; bake 12 to 15 minutes.

NORWEGIAN TEA CAKES

  • 1 1/3 Cups flour
  • ½ Teaspoon baking powder
  • ¾ cup softened butter
  • ¾ Cup sugar
  • 2 Teaspoons grated orange peel
  • 1 Tablespoon orange juice
  • 4 Eggs
  • ¼ cup light raisins
  • ¼ Cup sugar cubes (Crushed)
  • ¼ Cup blanched almonds (Chopped)

Preheat oven to 375F degrees; grease and flour 9X13 inch cake pan.
Sift together flour and baking powder; set aside.
Cream together the butter and sugar beating until light and fluffy.
Blend in the orange peel and orange juice.
Beat in the eggs one at a time beating well after each.
Blend in the dry ingredients mixing thoroughly.
Spread mixture into bottom of prepared pan.
COMBINE the raisins, crushed sugar cubes and almonds.
Sprinkle raisin mixture over the dough; bake 25 to 30 minutes.
Cool completely; cut in diamond shapes.
NOTE: Cut diagonally across pan 2 inches apart; repeat cutting in opposite direction.

TEA COOKIES

Learn how to make a recipe for tea cakes fro Wales.

  • 2 Cups flour
  • 1/8 Teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 2 Teaspoons baking powder
  • ¾ Teaspoon nutmeg
  • ½ Teaspoon salt
  • ¾ Cup solid shortening
  • ¾ Cup sugar
  • 1 Cup currants
  • 1 Beaten egg
  • Milk

Sift together the dry ingredients mixing well; cut in shortening.
Add sugar, currants, egg and enough milk to make a stiff dough.
Wrap and refrigerate dough until cold; roll out and cut in little rounds.
Bake on lightly oiled griddle on stove top; Makes about 24 (Depending on size).

COCONUT TEA CAKES

Try this recipe for tea cakes with coconut.

  • ½ Cup softened butter
  • ½ Cup solid shortening
  • 1 Cup sugar
  • 1 Egg
  • 3 cups grated coconut
  • 1 ½ Cups sifted flour
  • ½ Teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 Egg yolk
  • 1 Tablespoon milk
  • Cherries or almonds

Cream butter, shortening and sugar together until light and fluffy.
Add egg, coconut, flour and soda; knead until dough sticks together.
Divide dough into 6 parts; shape into rolls about 1 inch wide.
Roll each into the coconut; wrap in plastic wrap.
Roll gently on surface to make rolls round; refrigerate until firm.
PREHEAT OVEN TO 325F DEGREES.
Mix yolk and milk together; set aside.
Cut rolls in ½ inch slices and place on baking sheets.
Brush tops with yolk milk mixture; bake 25 to 30 minutes until golden.
Makes about 6 dozens.

ICEBOX TEA CAKES

  • 1 Cup softened butter
  • 2 Cups brown sugar
  • 2 Eggs
  • 3 ½ Cups sifted flour
  • 1 cup finely chopped nuts
  • ½ Teaspoon salt
  • 1 Teaspoon baking soda

Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy; add eggs and mix well.
Add the flour, nuts, salt and soda; mix well.
Shape into a long rectangular loaf; refrigerate overnight.
PREHEAT OVEN TO 350F degrees.
Slice loaf about ¼ inch thick; bake about 8 minutes until dark golden.