Dried Cranberry Scones

Scones, in the US at least, tend to fall into one of two categories. The first can be identified as the overly sweet, cakey desserts sold in overpriced coffee shops. The second type are the wedge shaped triangles that are so hard that they can be used to drive nails into a wall. Either variety may be so chock full of nuts, berries, or other things that they resemble trail mix wrapped in bread. Somewhere along the way the real scone was lost.

Scones should be slightly flaky, have a moist interior, and be made with plenty of butter or even cream. The fattiness and moisture is what helps keep a proper scone tender. The dough itself is folded a few times, but not overworked to get flaky layers of biscuit-like texture.

Though these scones were largely a success, I’ll have to make them again. I presented these to my family and though they were very much enjoyed, my father took issue with the chosen shape. The scones he was familiar with back in England were traditionally round, not triangular. He also claimed that he did not remember his mother using cream in the dough. The only way to settle this is to find a recipe my father has tucked away in the house somewhere and make those. We may have to wait a while for the results as I may not be back home in a while, but you can be sure the result will be documented here.

Dried Cranberry Scones.

Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes, refrigerated
4 1/4 cups unbleached AP flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups heavy cream, chilled
1 cup dried cranberries or other dried fruit (optional)

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 400F.
2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the butter. Press the butter into the flour with your fingertips to make large flakes. Add the cream and stir with a wooden spoon until the dough starts to come together. Then add the dried fruit and stir to combine. Continue stirring/kneading in the bowl until the dough clumps together as one. You can do this on a counter-top if you find it easier.
3. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured counter to make a long rectangle (approx. 8×12x1 inches). Fold the dough into thirds and repeat two or three more times. Work quickly, the dough will stick as it warms up. I usually put it on a baking sheet in the fridge to buy some time between each time I roll it out. This keeps the dough cold and workable.
4. To make rectangles, roll the dough out to approximately 8×12x1 in. Trim edges if needed to strighten the dough and cut lengthwise down the center to make two 4×12x1 lengths of dough. Cut each portion into triangles about 3×4x5 inches, each length should make about 8 pieces.
5. Bake the scones for 15-20 minutes, or until the edges and top turn golden brown. Rotate the scones after about 10 minutes. Err on the side of under baking if necessary. They can always be reheated in the oven.

The scones keep very well frozen if well wrapped. Simply reheat for 6-10 minutes in a 350F oven.

Dried Cranberry Scones.

Nutty brown rice dinner. The picture was taken before I added the dressing.

These kinds of smaller, lighter dishes are actually more representative of how I eat day-to-day. I love making more complex and interesting dishes when time permits, but it doesn’t take much effort to use things you have on hand in an interesting and flavorful manner. You don’t have to follow these ingredients to the letter, just add anything you have in your fridge. Frozen vegetables work fine too.

Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cans chickpeas, rinsed, drained
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 or 2 bell peppers, chopped (red or yellow are best)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 small bundle asparagus, chopped
3 cups cooked brown rice
1 cup chopped almonds

-For the Dressing- From 101 Cookbooks
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons hot water
1/2 teaspoon salt

Nutty brown rice dish.

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients for the dressing together in a bowl and mix to combine. (I keep a spare mason jar around to make dressings. Handy to shake it up and store it in the fridge.)
2. Put a large pot over medium-high heat then add the 3 tablespoons olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add the chickpeas. Sauté for 3-5 minutes, or until some start to brown, stirring occasionally so nothing burns.
3. Add the garlic, peppers, salt, and pepper and stir to combine. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
4. Add the asparagus, cover, and cook for 2 minutes.
5. Add the rice and nearly all the chopped almonds. Cook until heated through, about 1-2 minutes more.
6. Serve with tahini dressing and garnish with the reserved chopped almonds.

Southern style cast iron cornbread.

Cooking cornbread in a cast iron skillet with a few tablespoons of hot oil encourages the formation of a crisp crust and prevents burning. Because cast iron retains heat well, you can take the cornbread from the oven to the table and serve. Any remaining portions are kept warm until people inevitably reach for seconds.

I can’t speak highly enough of the versatility of a cast iron skillet, but if you don’t have one, you can make this in a cake pan.

Southern style cast iron cornbread.

Cast Iron Cornbread
Makes about 12-15 servings.
I use a 12” cast iron skillet, but this recipe can be halved and cooked in a 9 or 10 inch skillet or cake pan.

Ingredients
3 1/2 cups corn meal (I used yellow, but white or blue are OK)
1 cup coarse ground cornmeal (this texture is like coarse ground coffee)
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups buttermilk
4 eggs
1 can (14 ounces) creamed corn
4 tablespoons canola oil
1 or 2 jalapeños, minced (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450F and put a 12” cast iron skillet on the middle rack of the oven.
2. Whisk the corn meals (both fine and coarse grinds), salt, sugar, baking powder, baking soda together in a mixing bowl.
3. In a large mixing bowl whisk together the buttermilk and eggs. Then add the creamed corn and minced jalapenos.
4. Add all the dry mixture to the wet and stir to combine. If the dough is too thick, add some more buttermilk or water. If it is too thin, add more cornmeal. The texture should not be smooth like bread dough or cake batter, but more like a loose mortar.
5. Working quickly so that the pan does not lose much heat, remove the cast iron skillet from the oven. Pour in the 4 tablespoons of canola oil and swirl the pan to coat it. Then pour all the cornmeal batter (it will sizzle) into the pan and return it to the oven for 25 minutes.
6. After 25 minutes check the dough, it should be golden, a little broken from the leavening that occurred, and a toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean. If you don’t have any toothpicks (I don’t), gently and quickly press down on the top of the bread, if it rebounds, the bread it done.

Reheating tips: One of the best things about this cornbread is the crispy crust; therefore, warming it in the microwave doesn’t do it justice. Here is a reheating trick to make it taste like it just came out of the oven. Heat a serving or two in the microwave for 15-30 seconds to just warm the bread through. Meanwhile, place a skillet over medium heat on the stove top. Once the skillet is hot, add a drop of oil, swirl, and place the cornbread in the pan. Cook for 30 seconds to a minute.

A hot toddy in the making.

A couple of these and you will be set for a night of sleep. Check after the jump for the recipe and more pics.

Ingredients:
Shot of Whiskey (about 1.5 oz)
Honey (a good drizzle)
Lemon (2-4 lemon wedges)
Hot water

Directions
Add everything in a mug. Sip.

Variations:
Use tea or herbal tea instead of the water. Adding cloves and Cinnamon is also common in some recipes. I like to keep things simple so I don’t add anything but the essentials.

American Honey Hot Toddy

I also made one with Wild Turkey’s American Honey, a bourbon-based liqueur made with honey. This version was a bit more syrupy and probably a good compromise for those who don’t like whiskeys.

British tea and French biscuits

The tea is Typhoo tea, my favorite brand of English Breakfast Tea. Purists may scoff, but I actually use the tea bags instead of loose tea leaves.

The biscuits are from Brittany in the north of France. They are crispy and buttery. What is not to like? These are called galettes de Pont Aven. The Trau Mad is a different style of biscuit that is thicker and more crumbly, both are great.