An Autumn Afternoon Tea Party is a perfect time to treat yourself, friends, and family to a beautiful respite during the fall busy season.
Autumn and tea go hand in hand with the stormy weather, gorgeous fall colors, seasonal occasions to gather, creating a warm and memorable gathering that will be remembered throughout the cold days of winter.
To learn the differences between Afternoon Tea and High Tea: Visit our British Tea Primer.
We’ve gathered some easy yet beautiful ideas to host your own Autumn Tea.
1. Create An Autumn Afternoon Tea Menu
From the first warming cup of tea to the last, your guests will be delighted with our flavorful autumn tea menu.
The menu is redolent with fall’s favorite spices—rich vanilla beans, silky cinnamon, fragrant cloves, and crunchy peppercorns— the perfect complements to ripe pears, creamy pumpkin, and salted caramel.
2. Polish the Silver
Get a jumpstart on the season by polishing your silver and celebrating with an Autumn Tea Party. This set is a stunning sterling silver Gorham Strasbourg teapot.
3. Use Autumn Themed China
If you’re fortunate to have autumn china, serve with seasonal elements, and tiny goodies.
4. Afternoon Tea Courses
Make a selection of autumn flavored recipes guests will love. Here are some delicious and easy ideas.
An afternoon tea generally consists of three courses, though some teas serve many more.
Chloe Hemery, head pastry chef at London’s Milestone Hotel, has served tea to Queen Elizabeth. She says, “There’s the savoury course with tea sandwiches, the scones course served with clotted cream and jam, and, finally, the third course of sweet pastries.”
An Autumn Afternoon Tea Recipes
Ginger Cake with Wine-Poached Pears
Robust on its own, deftly spiced Ginger Cake with Wine-Poached Pears reaches new heights with chocolate-covered walnuts and drizzles of butterscotch sauce.
Abraham Lincoln Pumpkin Puddings
"Abraham Lincoln Pumpkin Puddings pay homage to our forefather’s role in preserving Thanksgiving as a cherished American custom."
Pumpkin Tarts with Salted Caramel Nuts
These Pumpkin Tarts with Salted Caramel Nuts are a decadent fall treat for guests at an afternoon tea.
Gingerbread-Pear Loaf
“Gingerbread-Pear Loaf holds a surprise: tart Bosc pears that reveal their shapely forms when the bread is sliced.”
Rosemary Shortbread with Pear Preserves
"Guests discover an intriguing herbal note in Rosemary Shortbread with Pear Preserves. The golden mellow fruit offers a pleasant contrast to the hint of fragrant woodsy character in these delightful cookie sandwiches."
Toasted Pecan Shortbread Cookies with Buttercream Filling
“Buttercream frosting sandwiched between traditional pecan shortbread halves is a welcome update to the classic cookie.”
Pumpkin Cakes
“Filled with Cream Cheese Frosting, these Pumpkin Cakes are a rich fall dessert.” And perfect for an Autumn Afternoon Tea.
Pumpkin Mousse Tartlets
Filled with rich spices and topped with Sweetened Whipped Cream, these Pumpkin Mousse Tartlets will be the star of your afternoon tea.
Pork and Mushroom Puff Pastry Swirls
“Ground pork, mushrooms, and a honey-mustard sauce combine to make Pork and Mushroom Puff Pastry Swirls a delicious teatime savory.”
Sweet Potato Crostini With Brie, Pear, & Honey
A beautiful savory finger food filled with fall flavors.
Cranberry Brie Bites
A quick and easy finger food for afternoon tea. It comes together in seconds and always a favorite.
Mini Cranberry Pecan Goat Cheese Balls Appetizer
Mini Cranberry Pecan Goat Cheese Balls, a festive, delicious appetizer or snack for the holidays, that's so simple and easy it will become your go-to recipe. Packed with cranberries, pecans, fresh parsley and seasoned with cinnamon and honey. It's incredibly delicious.
Butternut SquashPear Soup
“Butternut Squash-Pear Soup — Delight in the complexity of our Butternut Squash–Pear Soup. The popular harvest gourd—roasted with garlic until tender—joins the succulent Bartlett variety in a velvety purée that includes onion, shallot, and chicken broth. Rosemary and ginger lend woodsy, Asian flair, and shaved Parmesan crowns the flavorful bisque.”
Curried Squash Soup
“A bowl of velvety Curried Squash Soup is a perfect addition to any fall tea.”
Salmon-Cucumber Canapes with Wasabi Aioli
“These scrumptious salmon canapés are perfect any time of day.”
Apple-Chicken Sausage Crostini with Apple-Kale Slaw
“Crisp apples, chicken, sausage, kale, and tangy vinaigrette slaw combine to make savory teatime crostini bites.”
Bacon Dip and Sweet Potato Canapes
"Make your own sweet potato chips in the microwave for these Bacon Dip and Sweet Potato Canapés… or a bag of store-bought chips works too!"
Roasted Butternut Squash Tart with Cinnamon-Molasses Crust
"Culminate the celebration with Roasted Butternut Squash Tart, where a thick cinnamon-molasses crust is crowned with a whipped cream-cheese filling, slices of the vibrant gourd, and walnuts."
Pumpkin-Leek Tarts
Prosciutto, leeks, and fresh thyme add a savory flavor to pumpkin in these Pumpkin-Leek Tarts.
HEIRLOOM-TOMATO CROSTINI
"This Heirloom-Tomato Crostini is a flavorful bite of Campari tomato, fresh basil, and Boursin cheese."
Turkey and Apple Goat Cheese Tea Sandwiches
These tea sandwiches combine “sweet honey and peppered turkey, tangy dill, creamy goat cheese, and crisp, tart green apples sandwiched between a decadent homemade cranberry orange bread.”
Goat Cheese-Pecan Finger Sandwiches
“Instead of pimiento cheese for your party sandwiches, try this filling of creamy goat cheese and crunchy pecans.”
Kale-Pecan Pesto and Turkey Tea Sandwiches
“Turkey and a kale-pecan pesto are layered in these Kale-Pecan Pesto and Turkey Tea Sandwiches.”
Turkey Cranberry Pinwheels
Mix it up with these Turkey Cranberry Pinwheels… “It doesn’t get any easier than this 5 ingredient pinwheel! Chive and Onion cream cheese, deli turkey meat, spinach, a few dried cranberries and a large tortilla!”
Pumpkin Pecan Scones with Brown Butter Glaze
"Almost like a soft pumpkin cookie, this scone is a perfect addition to any fall Afternoon Tea. The brown butter adds a nice nutty taste to the glaze."
Vanilla Bean Scones
“These vanilla bean scones have just a hint of vanilla and taste even better served with a spiced pear compote.”
Perfectly Spiced Pumpkin Scones
Inspired by Starbucks’ Pumpkin Spice Scones, these are packed with pumpkin and delicious fall spices.
Fresh Apple Cinnamon Scones
"What are you making? It smells like a fall day..." That was the reaction the first time we baked these moist, flavorful scones. Fresh diced apple and cinnamon chips complement each other beautifully, flavor-wise; and a topping of crunchy, cinnamon-enhanced coarse sugar is the perfect foil to the scones' tender texture.
Scottish Oat Maple Scones
These Scottish Oat Maple Scones are crumbly and robust with that favorite maple flavor we all love. Perfect with a cup of tea and a dab of Irish butter.
Honey Drizzled Scottish Oat Scones
These tender, flaky scones have delicate buttery layers, moistened with buttermilk, and sweetened with raisins. Truly, it’s a hearty scone you won’t soon forget.
15-Minute Easy Pumpkin Scones
With 3 simple ingredients… and 15 minutes, these pumpkin scones are incredibly easy. Almost not a recipe at all.
Afternoon Tea at 31Daily
For ideas and recipes on scones, savory courses, sweets and more, visit our Afternoon Tea link here.
To read more on hosting or serving your own Afternoon Tea, be sure to check out these helpful posts:
Autumn Afternoon Tea Table Ideas
Now THIS is a blog post! My goodness, I don’t even know where to start. Beautiful pictures and delicious recipes. Lovely experience just reading this and I hope to actually make several of these recipes for a fall baby shower. Thank you!
Thank you so much, Donna! It was such a pleasure to write! Have fun with your baby shower. Those are special times!
This post will be a resource for years to come! However, the link for the “15 Minute Pumpkin Scones” recipe is incorrect. It is actually a duplicate of the link for the “Apple Cinnamon Scone” recipe above it. Please let me know if you update to provide the correct link, as that pumpkin scone recipe is what I wanted most (although I am saving several others, too). Thank you.
This post will be a resource for years to come. However, the link for the “15 Minute Pumpkin Scone” recipe is actually a duplicate of the “Apple Cinnamon Scone” recipe above it. I’d really like the Pumpkin Scone recipe, so if you update that, please let me know. Thanks.
Thank you so much, Karen! I hadn’t caught that — so appreciate you’re bringing it to my attention. Have updated the link!
Fabulous website, joyous & easy to read…I’m telling a bunch of my teatime lady friends. Thx!
Thank you, Jayne! There’s nothing more enjoyable than teatime and friends!
The autumn teapot and cups were beautiful! What is the name of the China?
Isn’t is gorgeous? It is Richard Ginori’s Siena-Rust. Here is a link to Replacements.com – https://www.replacements.com/webquote/ginsie.htm
And the second teapot is Indian Tree by Spode — https://www.replacements.com/p/spode-indian-tree-orange-rustscallopred-trim-teapot-lid/sp-intor/59998011