Enjoy high tea like a Bridgerton Season 3 character with these special sweets recipes

After a long wait, Bridgerton Season 3 is finally here for you to enjoy the opulence of Regency-era London. There’s tons of gossip, drama, and a quest for love, happiness, and romance told through the lives of all the characters in this Netflix show. If you haven’t watched this show yet, it’s definitely not to be missed.

To celebrate the premiere of Bridgerton Season 3 on our small screens, why not host a themed watch party with your friends? You can transform your living room into a scene straight out of the Regency era and enjoy the charm of high tea just like these characters do. Here’s how you can create a royal experience right at home.

To transport your guests to 19th century London, you can bring some Regency-era elements into your living room. Think lace tablecloths, fine China, and lots of fresh flowers. Ask your friends to don their finest clothes–we suggest a long flowy dress or a dapper suit–for this watch party. The food for your high tea watch party also has to reflect the food of that time. Here are some classic high tea and special sweets recipes that you can make so your watch party feels like a lavish, high-society affair from 1800s London.

Don’t forget to brew a pot of tea to complement all these treats. Present your guests with a selection of teas–we recommend Earl Grey, Darjeeling, and chamomile. Serve them in teapots, with the option of adding sugar and milk.

Cucumber Sandwiches

Ingredients:

• 1 thinly sliced cucumber
• 8 slices of white bread, crusts removed
• 4 tablespoons butter, softened
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Evenly spread butter on each slice of bread.
• Place the thinly sliced cucumber on half of the bread slices.
• Sprinkle them with salt and pepper.
• Top with the remaining, buttered bread slices and cut the sandwiches into quarters.

Shortbread Biscuits

Ingredients:

• 120 g flour
• 60 g confectioners’ sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 115 butter, softened
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions:

• Whisk the flour along with sugar and the salt.
• Then add the vanilla and butter to the dry ingredients, and knead into a dough.
• Initially, it may look like you have a shaggy dough, but a few kneads will bring it together.
• Divide the large dough ball into two, then shape them into logs that are around 7 to 8 inches long.
• Place the dough logs in between two sheets of parchment paper, then pop in the refrigerator for about an hour or two.
• Before taking the dough out, preheat the oven to 190 C, and cut and shape the shortbread cookies into rounds.
• Once done, let them cool on a wire rack. Dust with icing sugar, or even frost some with melted chocolate and serve.

Victoria Sponge Cake

Ingredients:

For the cake:

• 200 g caster sugar
• 200 g butter, softened
• 200 g flour
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 tbsp milk

For the filling:

• 100 g butter, softened
• 140 g icing sugar, sifted
• 170 g strawberry jam
• Icing sugar for dusting

Instructions:

• Preheat the oven to 190 C and butter two 20 cm cake tins. Set them aside.
• In a large bowl, cream caster sugar, softened butter, milk, and the four eggs.
• Then add the baking powder, and flour. Make sure that all ingredients are mixed well and there are no flour pockets. You should get a thick dosa batter-like consistency.
• Divide the cake batter evenly between the two prepared cake tins. Smoothen the top with a spatula.
• Place both the cake tins in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes. The cakes should have golden tops before you take them out.
• Let them cool completely. In the meantime, start preparing the sponge cake filling.
• For this, whip the softened butter cream either using a stand mixer or by hand, and slowly incorporate the caster sugar into this. This is your buttercream frosting. You can also add a drop of vanilla extract to this if you want.
• Spread the buttercream frosting on one cooled cake top. Refrigerate for 10 minutes, then liberally spread strawberry jam over this.
• Add the second cake over this and sandwich it.
• Dust with icing sugar. You can also decorate the cake with some edible flowers if you want.