Jam Pennies, Tiny Jam Sandwiches
Charming discs of buttered white bread filled with raspberry jam, cut with a cookie cutter: the most delightful sweet bite of English tea.
Charming discs of buttered white bread filled with raspberry jam, cut with a cookie cutter: the most delightful sweet bite of English tea.
When I was a very little girl, they already served me these tiny round sandwiches, no bigger than a penny, filled with good raspberry jam — and I have never stopped loving them. At tea time, they appear on a silver tray, ready to disappear in one bite. The secret is very fresh bread, buttered to the edges, and jam that doesn't spill over. A childhood delicacy one does not abandon, even as queen.
- •Fresh white bread — a few slices (base)
- •Farm butter — softened (binder)
- •Raspberry jam — as needed (filling)
Jam Pennies, Tiny Jam Sandwiches
Charming discs of buttered white bread filled with raspberry jam, cut with a cookie cutter: the most delightful sweet bite of English tea.
Why this dish? Jam pennies — tiny round raspberry jam sandwiches cut to the size of a coin — accompanied the Queen's afternoon tea since her childhood in the 1930s. She retained the taste all her life.
When I was a very little girl, they already served me these tiny round sandwiches, no bigger than a penny, filled with good raspberry jam — and I have never stopped loving them. At tea time, they appear on a silver tray, ready to disappear in one bite. The secret is very fresh bread, buttered to the edges, and jam that doesn't spill over. A childhood delicacy one does not abandon, even as queen.
Ingredients (period version)
- Fresh white bread — a few slices (base)
- Farm butter — softened (binder)
- Raspberry jam — as needed (filling)
Ingredients
- White bread, thin slices — 8 slices (base)
- Unsalted butter, softened — 50 g (binder)
- Raspberry jam (low sugar, seedless ideally) — 4 tbsp (filling)
Method
- Lightly butter each slice of bread to the edges.
- Spread a thin layer of jam on half the slices, top with the other slices.
- Using a 4-5 cm round cookie cutter, cut out discs (the famous “penny” size).
- Arrange on a plate, cover with a damp cloth until serving to keep the bread soft.
- Serve immediately, at the exact hour of tea.
How it was made : At British tea, sandwiches are always served crustless and in very small sizes, to be eaten in one bite without cutlery. Savory versions (cucumber, egg) accompanied sweet ones like the jam penny, inherited from aristocratic nurseries.
The contemporary twist : A homemade rose-raspberry jam, or lightly toasted brioche bread: the royal madeleine revisited.
Sources : Darren McGrady, Eating Royally (2007) · Accounts of Buckingham Palace afternoon tea
Elizabeth II · Charactorium