Weekend trivia

Tea! Aaaah - now that's a conversation worth having. Loose leaf tea today does not taste the same as those wonderful CWA afternoon teas or the tea sipped in the shed during shearing time. I lived in New York a few years ago and found a Russian goods shop in my suburb. The tea was as I remembered from childhood - and the leaves were like large parsley - real tea leaves!!!! And it goes without saying, now that I'm a city girl, that I can only drink tea using fine bone china - my G/mother's Royal Albert. I now buy tea leaves from Indian grocers.

I love my Mixmaster. I have no idea how old it is (bought secondhand when I was newly married), probably over 40 years, but it just keeps churning away.

@"Patti J"
Your story of your Mixmaster from the tip reminds me  of the microwave oven my husband "found" outside a hospital house.

The house was being cleaned out of furniture and effects and was in the process of renovation and  furniture replacement. The contents were going to the tip. Nothing wrong with them. The microwave just needed a good clean. It was about a year old and appeared to be hardly used.

It is handy having 2 microwaves! However I question the waste of government housing furniture and household items.

Last year my eldest sister gave me a Mixmaster which she bought for $5 from the local tip. She took it home and cleaned it up. It now looks new. It works perfectly. I make cakes to take to school but I never eat them.

@Romla
I can make scones, just not to CWA competition standards. I have been awarded seconds and thirds but never a first.

 I have made the lemonade scones recipe, however my most successful recipe is one a friend gave me. It uses natural yoghurt.  The yoghurt gives the scones a "light" texture.

My friend is a cook on a cattle station on the Gibb River Road and has to cater for 20 workers plus guests for smoko. Easy recipe, just throw all the ingredients in a Mixmaster bowl and hey presto, success. It is no secret recipe, just one found on the taste.com internet site.

I can bake a mean sponge. 

I too object to a teabag tea in a cafe. I am not fussy, am very happy with instant coffee or a teabag at a friend's, but in a cafe, well I am paying for it. I expect a lot better.

My favourite was Prince of Wales also sadly discontinued in Australia.

@kmakm, @Sister. T2 sourced every box of my favourite tea when it was discontinued. Apparently, like many things, I was the only one who liked it.

Oh @"Annie C" we were too until we discovered lemonade scones - works every time even in an electric oven.Btw CWA even enabled me to make successful sponges after many years trying.

Now, I would travel from afar for "proper" tea in a fine bone cup accompanied by scones with jam and cream. I am a "failed" CWA member - I cannot make scones. Even the crows won't eat them!

Might be some fun for a small group of friends even dare I say breast friends 

Nice idea. Zero energy for accomplishing it however!