THUMBPRINT SCONES

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Scones don’t have to be treats from the bakery or coffee shop.  They are actually very easy to make at home.  Scones are made with a very simple dough. Things only go from easy to intermediate when you roll out the dough and cut it into uniform shapes.  Now, unless the queen is coming to breakfast, I am usually just not up for pulling out the rolling pin and flouring surfaces all for the sake of uniformly shaped scones.  I prefer the shaggy looking drop scone. They are easier and taste the same as the pretty ones.

When your house is full of your children and their sleep-over friends who could care less about the shape of their breakfast, the drop scone is what you want. It’s for lazy people – people who would rather sip on a latte with the paper than roll out dough.  The idea of smashing a thumbprint in the top and filling it with jelly is a take off from the thumbprint cookie. Children love to help make thumbprint cookies and scones. It is a tactile experience. First, you drop a blob of sticky dough onto a baking sheet then you get to mash your thumb into the top of it. If that is not the bee’s knees, then you get fill the divot with jelly and watch it bake. What comes out may not be beautiful, but I’ll tell you, it is good. A warm scone biscuit with sweet jelly is the bee’s knees.

3/4 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup heavy cream

3 1/2 cups flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 pound unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

jelly or preserves of your choice (we used fig preserves and strawberry jelly)

1.  WHISK THE WET INGREDIENTS: First, preheat the oven to 400 and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.  In a large measuring cup or medium mixing bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, maple syrup, and the cream and set aside.

2.  WHISK THE DRY AND COMBINE:  Place the flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl and whisk until combined.  If you have stand mixer, use the paddle attachment and mix on LOW speed.  Add the butter.  Mix it into the dry ingredients until the texture looks like sand with small lumps.  Add the wet ingredients and mix on LOW just until combined.  Do not over mix as this makes for a tough scone.

3. DROP, DIVOT, AND FILL :  Using your hands or a large spoon, drop blobs of dough (about 3-4 tablespoons worth) onto the parchment lined baking sheets.  Space them about 1-inch apart.  Using thumbs, smash a divot into the top of each scone and fill the divot with jelly.

4.  BAKE:  Place baking sheets into the oven, one in the upper third of the oven and the other in the lower third.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Switch the baking sheets placing the lower sheet into the upper third and vice-versa.  Bake until the scones are puffed and golden, about 10-15 more minutes.

Note: the reason for baking in the lower third of the oven is for the bottoms to brown.  Be careful they do not burn.

Variation: Cranberry and Pecan Drop Scones – my daughter loves the combination of cranberries with pecans.  To make this version, toast 3/4 cup pecans.  Add pecans along with 1/4-1/2 cup cranberries into the mix in step 2 after the butter but just before you add the wet ingredients.

Peace and love from my kitchen to yours,

Waverly

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BREAKFAST QUINOA: WARM CEREAL FOR COLD MORNINGS

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Serves 4-6

A bowl of warm porridge hits the spot on chilly mornings.  At my house, we eat lots of oatmeal, but there are many grains that make good porridge. Why not branch out?  Grits, polenta, bulgur, and store bought mixed grain hot cereals are all great options.  Here, I have used quinoa, a high protein, high fiber grain, as the base for a warm breakfast cereal.  It is mixed with generous amounts of toasted almonds and blueberries; sweetened with maple syrup; flavored with lemon zest and cinnamon; and topped with plain Greek yogurt. Every spoonful is good and good for you.

Note:  Not everyone likes to change their hot cereal grain.  While my children are quinoa fans at dinnertime when it is served as a side, some of them were not enthused about having it for breakfast.  The look on the Little Guy’s face when he tried it was priceless. Fortunately, this recipe can be made with any grain. Simply cook the grain(s) of your choice according the package instructions and then add the other ingredients.

1 cup quinoa

1 cup milk

1 cup water

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup chopped almonds, toasted

2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

1 1/2 tsp lemon zest

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 Tbsp maple syrup

1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt

1.  RINSE AND THEN COOK QUINOA:  First, rinse the quinoa with water. Quinoa is tiny.  If you have one, use a fine mesh strainer to rinse it.  If you don’t, throw in a little extra quinoa to make up for what you will lose down the drain. Put it into a deep pot with the milk, water, and salt. Over HIGH heat, bring it to a boil.  Reduce the heat to LOW so that the mixture simmers.  Cover and cook until most, but not all, of the liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.  Remove the cover and fluff with a fork. There should still be some liquid.  Recover the pot and let it sit for 5 minutes.  The liquid will be absorbed by then.

2.  MIX IN THE BERRIES, NUTS, AND SPICE:  Add the almonds, blueberries, lemon zest, and cinnamon.  Stir until they are combined.  If the mixture seems to dry, add a couple of tablespoons of milk at a time until the mixture is the consistency you like.  I like mine moist but not swimming with the milk.

3.  SERVE:  Divide the quinoa into bowls.  Serve with a drizzle of maple syrup and a dollop of Greek yogurt.

Bonus:  breakfast quinoa can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.  Just heat in the microwave and go.

Peace and love from my kitchen to yours,

Waverly

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NEW ENGLAND FISH CHOWDER

Thursday, February 2, 2012

adapted from The Way to Cook by Julia Child

serves 6-8, multiplies easily

Is it cold where you are?  It is raining and 70 degrees here, but I am thinking about Winter comfort food anyway.  In South East Texas, Winter rains usually bring cold weather. It could get down to 50 degrees tomorrow.  Some people think that’s cold enough to wear fur to the grocery store. I’m not joking.  So, I am thinking…Winter…comfort food….something warm and filling…..something that feeds a crowd. I am also thinking about the Super Bowl between The New York Giants and the New England Patriots. And then it becomes clear:  chowder.  This weekend, we’ll have New England Fish Chowder.  For dessert, we’ll do New York Cheesecake.

Chowder is a great dish to serve at a Winter gathering. It can feed many people very well and it benefits from being made a day ahead of time.   Served with a mixed green salad, a bowl of warm fish chowder makes a fine supper. This recipe is the classic New England version made with onions, salt pork, potatoes and fish stock.  To begin, you saute diced salt pork in a little butter. The salt pork will render fat which will add flavor to the onions when sauteed. After that, you just add the rest of the ingredients (crushed crackers, onions, a bay leaf, potatoes, and fish stock) and boil.  Milk and the fish go in at the end….and all of this can be done the day before.

Note:  Using fish stock is very important to classic New England fish chowder. While I know that it is quite easy to make your own fish stock, I am crunched for time/lazy and buy mine frozen.


2/3 cup diced salt pork

1 Tbsp butter

3 cups thinly sliced onions

1 bay leaf

3/4 cup crumbled crackers or white bread crumbs

4 cups fish stock

1 lb diced waxy potatoes like Yukon gold

salt

white pepper

2 cups whole milk or light cream

2-2 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless lean fish fillets such as cod, haddock, halibu, sea bass, or talapia, cut into 2-inch chunks

1.  MAKE THE CHOWDER BASE: FIRST, SAUTE THE ONIONS:  In a stock pot or Dutch oven, saute the salt pork with butter over MEDIUM LOW heat until the pork begins to turn golden and renders its fat. Add the onions and bay leaf, stir briefly, and then reduce the heat to LOW. Cover and cook until the onions are soft and translucent, about 8-10 minutes.

2.  ADD LIQUID AND POTATOES:  Drain the fat from the onions.  Stir in the crackers or breadcrumbs and then add the 4 cups of fish stock and the diced potatoes.  Bring this mixture to a boil over HIGH heat.  Once it boils, reduce the heat until the liquid just simmers.  Cover loosely and cook for 20 minutes. Add the milk or cream and stir to combine. You can cool and refrigerate the mixture now if you are making it ahead of time.  When you are ready to finish it, just bring the chowder base back to a simmer.

3.  ADD THE FISH:  While the chowder simmers, add the fish and cook just until the fish turns opaque, just 2-3 minutes.  Remove the pot from the heat.  Add salt and white pepper to taste.

4.  SERVE:  Ladle chowder into soup bowls.  Add a dollop of sour cream and a little chopped parsley.  Serve with a mixed green salad, and chowder crackers.

Peace and love from my kitchen to yours,

Waverly


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