Strawberry Oatmeal Scones

My daughter Abby insisted I post these.  She said they are delicious.  She's a wonderful girl, but unfortunately suffering from dormfooditis.  Nevertheless, these scones are good, and they do look pretty.  They'd be good with a mother's day cup of tea, don't you think?

Scones are not supposed to be sweet, and not supposed to resemble a muffin, and these don't.  They have the right texture for a true Englsih scone. Next time though, I will put a bit more sugar in them, and a bit less nutmeg.  (I love nutmeg, so I was a bit overgenerous, and the scones ended up with a bit of an unappetizing yellow tinge.)

Here's where I found this recipe...Adapted from Joy the Baker, originally from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan http://homeiswheretheholmansare.blogspot.com/2010/04/strawberry-oatmeal-scones.html

Strawberry Oatmeal Scones

1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/3 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup sugar (next time I might use 1/2 cup)
1 T baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Pinch of ground nutmeg
1 cup fresh strawberries, chopped
1/2 cup plus 2 T unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper.

Whisk together the egg and buttermilk and set aside. Combine the flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg in a mixing bowl. Add the cold butter pieces and cut in with a pastry blender or your hands, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add in the chopped strawberries. Pour in the buttermilk mixture and stir with a fork until the mixture comes together in one hairy ball (be careful not to squish too many strawberries). Place the dough on an ungreased baking sheet and pat into a disk about the size of a dinner plate and  1 1/2 inches thick. Cut the dough, like a pie or a pizza, into about 8 or 12 wedges.  Pull wedges apart, so there is about 1 inch between each slice.

At this point scones can be refrigerated to bake later, or frozen to be baked much later.  Place in preheated 400 degree oven  and bake for approximately 20 minutes until golden brown (25 minutes if frozen--do not defrost before baking). Transfer to a wire rack to cool about 10 minutes before serving.

Thanks for visiting!

Triple Citrus Pepper Pound Cake

This will probably be the last of my citrus posts for awhile. So let's use up the rest of those oranges, lemons and limes so we can move on. Before we close this chapter though, here's a recipe for a citrusy pound cake...with a pepper kick. Not a big kick, more of a love tap, really! The citrus isn't overwhelming either, just another love tap! The pepper kick develops over time. I tasted this cake on day 1, no pepper. Day 2, ohhhh, there's the pepper!

Triple Citrus Pepper Pound Cake

1 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. salt
1 T. lemon zest
1 T. lime zest
1 T. orange zest
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
4 eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten

Preheat the oven to 325 F. and prepare a 9X5 loaf pan. In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, black pepper and salt. With an electric mixer, cream the butter with the citrus zests until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the sugar and beat an additional 2 minutes. With the mixer on medium low speed, pour the egg mixture into the bowl, and mix until blended. On low speed mix the flour mixture in, adding it in 4 additions. After the last addition, mix on medium speed for 30 seconds. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 60-75 minutes, until a toothpick inserts into the center comes out with only a few crumbs attached and the sides of the cake are pulling away from the sides of the pan. Let the cake cool in the pan for 5 minutes, and then invert the cake onto a cooling rack. Cool completely before slicing and serving. The pepper flavor develops over time. Wait 24 hours!

I found this recipe here: http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/2010/02/triple-citrus-black-pepper-pound-cake.html (Closely adapted from Cake Keeper Cakes, Lauren Chattman)

Thanks for visiting!

Microwave Lemon Curd (aka Lemon Loveliness)

Lemon Curd: (n) a wonderful treat cursed with an unfortunate name.  Don't be put off.  Lemon Curd is not curdled and there are no curds (nor whey).  So why the unfortunate name?  I just don't know.  Never mind, though, Lemon Curd is lovely; it's sort of a lemon jam. There's nothing better at the end of the day (or the beginning of the day, or the middle of the day for that matter) than a slice of hot toast with lemon curd, a cup of hot tea on the side, with feet up and something nice on the telly. Oh, yes there is, two slices of hot toast with lemon curd!  I picked 6 large lemons off of my neighbors tree this afternoon and whipped this up in the microwave. Enjoy Lemon Curd on your toast all week. Next weekend put some Lemon Curd in the middle of a layer cake, cupcakes, or cookies AND, I will post a recipe for a Pavlova with lemon curd and blueberries to finish off your batch. Leftover lemon curd will keep in the refrigerator for approximately three weeks.

I was reminded of this microwave recipe when I visited a few food blogs recently; 2 Stews and La Table de Nana.

Microwave Lemon Curd

1 cup sugar
3 whole eggs
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 6 or 7 large lemons)
zest of 3 lemons (I used a microplane)
1/2 cup butter, melted

In a microwave safe bowl whisk together sugar and eggs until smooth. Sir in lemon juice, lemon zest, and melted butter.  Microwave for one minute, stir, microwave for another minute, stir.  Do this until the lemon curd is think enough to coat the back of a spoon.  This will take 5 - 7 minutes.  At this point can pour into small sterile jars to give as gifts, or cool, then cover and refrigerate for your family to use.  Store for up to three weeks in the refrigerator.

Thanks for visiting! Enjoy your Lemon Loveliness with your feet up, a cup of tea, and a good book.

Rustic Rosemary Bread

My webmaster's sister, Jocelyn gave me this recipe last summer. The first time I made it, I was not impressed. Hmpffff, Jocelyn's posted pictures depicted her bread as lovely and tasty. Hmpfff. So I tried the recipe again. It was wonderful! A no-knead bread, that makes TWO loaves, with VERY little mess. WOWZACOWZA! I added a little sprinkle of salt, cornmeal, and extra rosemary to the crust before baking...which I think sends it over the top. Remember that no-knead breads don't rise as much as regular bread...but rise a bit more than a foccacia. You're going to love this...

Rustic Rosemary Bread

Start 2 1/2 hours ahead to allow for two rises

2 1/2 tsp. dry yeast (or 1 pkt)
2 c. warm water (about 115 degrees)
1 T. sugar
2 tsp salt
4 c. flour
1-2 tsp. fresh rosemary plus more for topping (or 1 tsp. dried rosemary, crushed)
olive oil, corn meal, melted butter and Kosher salt

Dissolve yeast in the warm (about 115 degrees) water and sugar. Add flour, salt, and 1-2 tsp rosemary and stir until blended, do not knead! Cover and let rise for 1 hour or until double in size. Remove dough from bowl, it will be sticky, and shape into two rounds and place on a cookie sheet lightly coated in oil and sprinkled with corn meal (don't skip the corn meal, it gives the loaves a lot of character). Make your rounds tall-ish rather than round-ish (think "cupcake shape"!). Cover rounds with a towel or greased plastic wrap and let rise another hour. Brush each round with melted butter and lightly sprinkle with more rosemary, a bit of cornmeal, and Kosher salt (Yes, sprinkle the top and sides of the dough with salt-YUM). Bake @ 425 for 10 minutes, then reduce temp to 375 for 15 minutes more.

Thank you for being a fan,
Polly (with a special bow to Jocelyn McSpadden)