Royal Tea From Buckingham Palace to Toronto with Chef John Higgins

From Beshill toBuckingham Palace:Chef John Higgins

by Carol Mark www.theloveofteamag.com

When I met Chef John Higgins, his welcoming smile and warm handshake immediately put me at ease. Chef Higgins has made time in his busy schedule to share his unique knowledge of Royal Tea. I will explain why I say, “unique,” later on.

Chef John Higgins is the Chief Director, Culinary Coordinator at Culinary School of George Brown College, a breeding ground of some of the best chefs in Canada, including Mark McEwan. Chef Higgins was trained in Scotland and landed in Canada in 1986. A distinct Scottish accent gives away his proud heritage.

A man who came from a working class background, Chef Higgins was born in Beshill, Scotland, presently enjoying a population of 20,000. It is a town built by the muscle of men who worked in the coal mines, not someone destined for the Royal kitchen.

Chef Higgins worked his way up at Gleneagles Hotel to Chef de Partie and then to Chef at Buckingham Palace, also serving the Royal Family at Balmoral, on the Royal Yacht, Holyrood (the Royal residence in Scotland) and Windsor Castle. You can see now why I said, “unique knowledge of Royal Tea.”

The call of new experiences took him to the Four Seasons in Toronto, then to Washington D.C., back to Toronto at the Sutton Place and the King Edward Hotel. In 1992 he was voted Chef of the Year by The Escoffier Chefs Society of Toronto.

Every person who crossed the hearth into the family home was welcomed with tea and biscuit, tea and scone or tea and a sandwich noting “a cup of tea brings the family together”. Even his aunt Jenny taught Chef Higgins the finer elements of tea. She used a tea strainer and as a young lad he thought this made her “rich”.

Chef Higgins learned the “proper way to prepare tea using a teapot and china” when working at the hotels. Memories are evoked by the senses and in this case, Chef Higgins earliest memories was Ceylon tea scooped out of wooden boxes that had metal corners. Ceylon tea remains his favourite today. His mother baked on a Sunday with her Florentine cake made with dough, raisins and sponge on top and of course, shortbread. His grandmother baked the best scones and if she really liked you, you were served tea in a china cup, otherwise it was a mug. Tea was a time to “improvise, just special, nothing complicated”. Chef Higgins reflected that “tea is like wine at the end of a day, a time for celebration”.

Tea at Buckingham Palace is regimented everyday 4-4:30 pm with setup of silverware and china. The sandwiches are cut precisely bite size with smoked salmon, cucumber, watercress, roast beef and tomato, “very simple”. For desserts it is scones, pound cake, cookies, shortbread, chocolate cake and fresh jams. Tea time was a moment in the day to take a reprieve. He described the Royal Family taking time for tea and said, they “did slow food before it was invented.” Food sources came from the estates and included fresh cream from the Windsor dairy, cheeses, game and fish.

Chef Higgins, gracious with his time, truly believes “tea is the moment for bringing people together,” as we had our conversation over a cup of Ceylon tea served in a china cup. Tea is a special moment of the day when he partakes for himself and guests, a gesture of welcome from Beshill to Toronto. Share a special moment byhaving a friend for tea in china cups, served with these BuckinghamPalace special recipes from Chef Higgin’s personal notebook.

Buckingham Palace

Wiki Commons

Chef Higgins generously shared his teatime recipes and I tried my hand with the Royal Shortbread. Taking the advice of his grandmother of being creative I used 3 tbsp of organic dried rose petals, which is food grade and I added it at the end of the batter until mixed.

Rose Scented Shortbread

The rose petals gave a slight floral note and is a delicious addition. Check on ed 1 for the recipes. www.theloceofteamag.com