That's most Brits, that's my family completely. Everyone has a cup. You don't take that cup. I have my cup at my mum's house that I've had since I was 13. It's not like you've got a set of 10 cups and you just use whichever one. No, you use your cup. He never mentioned this Elevenses thing to me. These comments were mailed to us after an earlier version of this piece was sent out as a newsletter. We like to publish a selection and reserve the right to edit them for clarity. Feel free to drop us a line with your thoughts. Britain is associated with tea time traditions around the world. It is a popular drink that people from every level of society drink regularly. This was not always the case, though. At first, tea was associated with royalty. Queen Catherine of Braganza, the Portuguese wife of Charles II, introduced tea to the royal court. The food and drink consumed during fika are not as important as the social aspect of the ritual. People will often make something at home to share with others. Interestingly, fika is often enjoyed by candlelight, even in office buildings. Candlelight improves the atmosphere, and people are discouraged from using smartphones. All these considerations make fika a relaxing event. Dutch Tienuurtje is for Children The word "elevenses" always makes me laugh because it sounds so quaint! I must admit though, it's quite nice to have a little mid-morning break to refresh yourself.

The concept of elevenses has even made its way into literature. In the Middle Earth novels by J.R.R. Tolkien, elevenses are one of the seven daily meals of the hobbits, served between second breakfast and luncheon.

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Lower tea prices and the rise of temperance in the early 19th century led to the widespread adoption of tea drinking. People across the country were consuming tea, and rituals like elevenses and afternoon tea were born. Elevenses in Literature: Hobbits & Pooh

Since Weight Watchers introduced the new Personal Points plan it is harder to calculate points. This means I can no longer offer exact WW Points for food lists. (I am working on the recipe part). HOW MANY CALORIES SHOULD I BE CONSUMING PER DAY? I can't imagine why somebody would mention Elevenses in England because we just know Elevenses. If you ask a Brit, "Do you know elevenses?" it's like asking an American what the Super Bowl is. There was once an advert or, sorry, a commercial for this bar — it was a candy bar — but it was this "health" bar that they called Elevenses. They were just using the term that everyone knows. I am a big fan of cakes, scones, and biscuits. If I could eat those every day around eleven, I probably wouldn’t need dinner until 3:00 p.m. The sugar would provide a temporary energy boost to help me make it through the sleepy part of the afternoon.So like the tea break, it’s certainly been around since the Industrial Revolution, but surely the custom is ancient? I can imagine shepherds in Roman times resting under a tree after a hard morning’s herding, and getting out a little cake to scoff. Perhaps the classical scholars out there will be able to quote me an occasion when elevenses or something like it is mentioned in Ovid. Second breakfasts originated in pre-industrial times when farm workers would start the day very early with a light breakfast and take a break mid-morning to refuel. This tradition continues across Central and Eastern Europe, as well as in Spain, where it is called almuerzo. As coffee becomes more popular around the world, some people have started drinking it instead of tea. The options for food and drink during elevenses are endless. The purpose of this break, after all, is to stem any hunger before lunch and to get enough energy to make it to lunch. Similar Traditions Around the World Tan France: Oh no! OK, then I'm going to be honest. I have the flu. We're gonna get through this together! I moved three days ago, and I think it's the exhaustion of how insanely stressful it's been. There's a study that says the top three stressful things in life are divorce, moving…