Cream scones fit for a Queen, or at the very least, a Prince!

o proper English tea would be complete without scones, would it? I can't imagine why you'd want to even try! The lightness of this dough, combined with jam, cream, butter... whatever your pleasure... they really are delicious little gems. Thankfully, they also got the real-deal-thumbs-up from our resident Brit at work (whew!).

I'm putting them into my "make again & always" file for future scone needs. Why keep looking around when the jackpot has been hit?

Cream scones (with currents, if you choose. I did not.)
from Baking Illustrated
2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
3 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
5 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1/2 cup currants (if that's your inclination...)
1 cup heavy cream (I did mostly heavy cream, but some whole milk. I would imagine I could cut it even further downward in the fat department for future bakings

Sourdough bread: an all-day affair

iddling with my sourdough starter since getting it to a ripe-ish state has been largely experimental, so far. I made a couple of loaves, but no recipe to date has really stood out as a keeper. I think a large part of the blame lies with me, as I have been improperly adapting recipes to whole wheat (or so I learned when reading a few recipes this weekend)... something you have to be a bit careful with or you'll get some pretty dense (er, heavy) loaves of bread.

Enter Pinterest, once again. And having good pinners to follow (in this case, dear friend and neighbor Laura)! I saw her pin a "slow rise sourdough" this past week and promptly tucked it away on my baking board without really looking it over. As I pulled my starter out of the fridge yesterday to warm and rest before feeding it again this week--that happens every Sunday whether I bake or not, I've been pretty good about that--I started to peruse some new sourdough recipes, and landed on the one I'd pinned just this week. I wasn't thrilled to see that the recipe was really-truly slow rise--15 hours (approximately) for the first rise, 4-5 hours for the second, but I happened to see that if your kitchen is warmer (ie, it's summer, which of course it is not), it could move along a little more quickly.

Given that my schedule isn't quite as flexible right now, getting things done on Sunday or having it timed just right for after-work baking, is kind of important. So I stuck the dough for its first rise in my convection oven with the light on, which can warm to a happy 80 degrees... and sure enough, it rose and bubbled beautifully in about 7 hours. Feeling optimistic, I hopped on to the next rise, which was also accomplished in about 1/2 the recipe time--2 hours... 45 minutes or so of a pre-warmed dutch oven and a hot oven, and voila! A lovely bedtime snack of warm bread and some of that heavenly blood orange jam I mentioned last weekend. Yum.

This bread is definitely a keeper. I'm already looking forward to making it again next weekend, though I may start earlier in the weekend, and finish on Sunday--theory is that the slower the rise, the deeper the sourdough flavor, and I'm all for that. If anything, this was more a crusty loaf of peasant-style bread, not truly SOURdough. But if getting it done quickly is on your list, this recipe adapts a-ok.

And one last note: best crust I've achieved on a loaf, ever. Crispy, crunchy, oh-so-good.

Starting the day out right: Breakfast cookies

ears back, in the catering days, I made breakfast cookies a LOT. First for my own consumption, and then for my personal chef delivery clients. The cookies were quite popular, and then for some reason, post-catering, I just stopped making them. 

I fear the original cookie from in the day will never be reproduced... but what I came up with might be even better! Really. I used the original recipe from my previous experimentation for inspiration, but my notes are lacking. (I know, you're shocked. Me too.)

But, not to be deterred, I went with a bit of memory, a bit of what was currently in the cupboard. Three adaptations later (husband and I liked all three versions), we decided this is the one we like best.

Breakfast cookie
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups oats
2 cups whole wheat flour
3 Tbsp. chia seeds (or ground flax meal)
2/3 cup oat bran
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/3 cup almond butter (could use peanut butter, easily)
1/3 cup canola oil
1 cup applesauce
1/3 cup water
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup toasted walnuts (or hazelnuts, or any nut, really), chopped roughly

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment.

In a large bowl, stir together all dry ingredient, including the cranberries and nuts; create a well in the center. In a smaller bowl, mix together the wet ingredients. You may need to warm the applesauce and almond butter together to make the butter smooth enough to mix easily. Pour all wet ingredients into the well. Mix well.

Scoop cookies using an large spoon or ice cream scoop, making the size that you prefer. I have always wanted a large breakfast cookie look and feel, so I go big (or go home, right?). One recipe makes 12 4-inch cookies, and the recipe doubles well, too.

Bake for 10 minutes for smaller cookies, 15-17 for larger cookies. Make sure to pull when they are still somewhat underbaked, so that they are soft and cakey. Cool on wire racks.

These cookies freeze well, and for those mornings when getting out of the house in a hurry is important, they are fabulous for on-the-go eating.

Enjoy and happy breakfasting! I'm looking forward to having one with my coffee tomorrow.

Whole wheat bread: Back to the earth 2012!

ne of the (many) kitcheny gifts husband brought to our marriage was a bread machine. He used it quite a bit in the bachelor days, I believe, but I haven't developed a knack for it, lo these six years of wedded bliss. I think I made a loaf or two and wasn't impressed with the results (this is all very foggy, being a number of years ago now). I blamed it on not finding the right recipe for the machine, or the right flour (I think it could have been that...) and I have always been loathe to go the bread mix route. That just seems like cheating. (No judgement if that's your thing, it's just not mine.)

This past fall, a local Facebook friend posted that she makes bread and even delivers, if needed. I tried a couple of her loaves and Seth fell in love. Raved about this bread. You'd think the bread has crack in it, the way he gobbled it up for his lunch sandwiches. But then (of course) I started thinking, how hard can this be (no offense, Sherrice)? I have a machine that purports to do all the work for me, right? So let's get this thing figured out.

And, as happenstance would have it, a blogger I follow every now and again posted just last week that her project for 2012 is "Back to the Land" (read her explanation for why she wants to get back to the land, it's a great project), and the first month would be bread baking. How very serendipitous! I commented to her that I would give bread making a whirl as well, did a little more investigation into recipes that might work, and arrived at the recipe below.

While the recipe as originally posted was tweaked so that it could be completely vegan, I did not choose to go that route. I was happy that this version used milk (not the dry powder as seems so common) and where she called for Earth Balance I used canola oil--though we often have Earth Balance around, just don't at the moment.

Whole Wheat Machine Bread
Yield: 1 2lb loaf
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 4 hours and 10 minutes

1 cup almond milk (or buttermilk, skim milk, any kind of milk)
2/3 cup water
2 tbsp Earth Balance (or butter, vegetable shortening, lard, etc.)
2 tbsp agave (or honey)
2 tsp salt
3 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
3/4 cup cereal or seeds (I used oats)
2 1/4 tsp (or 1 pkg) active dry yeast

Place all ingredients in the order they are listed into the baking pan of your bread machine.

Follow the directions on your machine for whole wheat bread.

Remove from machine when done and allow to cool on a baking rack for at least one hour.

Slice and enjoy!

Pretty lovely, if I do say so myself. Kinda kicking myself that I didn't get that going years ago! I envision some sandwich days ahead...

Warning: do not make this bread in the evening, when you'll be pulling a freshly baked loaf of bread out of the machine/oven just as you're going to bread. It will take all your willpower not to cut a few slices off and slather butter or whathaveyou all over it and go to sleep with sweet bread dreams...

 Frittata sandwich. Messy, but oh-so-good.

Wordless Wednesday (recipes posted soon, pinky swear)!

Thursday 13: Holiday baking/party list

his week I've been working quite a bit on refining my baking list for the holidays. I know, nothing like waiting until the holiday is UPON us, right? There's a work event next week-- half sweet and half savory bites--and two cookie exchanges as well, so it is definitely time to get hopping!

I've always relied a lot on various food blogs and now Pinterest to bring new ideas my way, and they have not disappointed. Here are 13 items that are on my must-make list this holiday. My hope is to actually blog about them as I make them, but we all know how that goes around here lately... But, hope is a good thing.

 Marshmallows! Homemade! The top spot is currently held by this adorable candy cane variety...

Chai latte cookies


 I'm torn between making red velvet cake balls, or these red velvet cookies... still undecided.

Oreo cheesecake cookies? Yes, please.

My sister-in-law Kim is a torrone fan. I'd tell you exactly how big a fan she is, but I promised I'd stop teasing her about eating the whole bar of it she brought to Thanksgiving. So I won't mention it again. Ever. But I have promised to figure out how to make a home version. I think it looks doable... somewhere between a nougat and a fudge...

Whimsical spiral cookies... how fabulous do these look?

Eggnog is a seasonal favorite--I've made pound cake and cheesecake and custard pie--and so this year I'm going to try a fudge of eggnog. Sounds pretty yummy to me!

I love the buttery-ness of shortbread, and this recipe with the additions of cranberries, nuts and white chocolate would tip it over into holiday heaven.

A couple of years ago I dipped little apple balls into caramel and nuts, and put them on sticks like mini caramel apples... this year I saw a recipe that will have similar flavor--but with a cheesecake twist: Caramel Cheesecake Apple Dip. Yum.

Cranberry and nut nougat slice: doesn't this picture look almost vintage? The rosy color of this sweet bar totally won me over, and the cranberries sure don't hurt. So pretty.

Macarons have been on my to-do list for a long time. I am always compelled by their look, their color, and of course, the imagined flavor as well... I finally overcame my silly intimidation and gave them a whirl just yesterday--last night--and while I was distracted and moving too quickly (a beloved family dog passed away yesterday), they were passable and I learned quite a bit about the process. Certainly not perfect, and not as puffy as the pictures, but I am going to get right back on the macaron horse later this week and give it another gallop. I had been thinking about doing a hazelnut variety when I happened upon the picture and recipe above... voila!

I have been wanting to play with this idea for awhile, the stuffed baguette... Not sure what exactly I'll put in the middle, but their jumping off point of cream cheese and olives and such is a good one. Perhaps I'll figure a way to turn my old sundried tomato-pesto torte into this clever appetizer?

Also utilizing our friend the baguette, this little clever vehicle for the fresh veggies is cute and unique. I think I will take the extra time--it's more work than throwing together a crudite platter, for sure--and do this for the work event next week...

I'm looking forward to getting started on my lists--lots of groceries to buy, for sure. I will also haul out the old standards of fruit and nut fudge, cake truffles/balls (coconut ones were very popular last year), and maybe something that has lemon curd in it--there are a lot of egg yolks that will be looking for a home when I get done with whipping whites for macarons! And I noticed in my recipe list that I've never posted my flourless chocolate bites... what's with that? Those are a must EVERY year... this year I've been thinking I might mix it up a bit, but they'll definitely get made!

Happy holiday baking! What are you making? I'm still open to suggestions... tell me what I'm missing.

For more Thursday 13s, go here.

Overnight cinnamon rolls

veryone seems to have their own idea of what the perfect cinnamon roll is: For some it's about the raisins, for others the ratio of dough to icing, for still others maybe it's about the nuts--lots of pecans or none at all...

After searching extensively online and in various cookbooks for the cinnamon roll to suit my needs, I eventually ended up combining a little of this, a little of that, and managed to mix together what is, for me, a perfect cinnamon roll: No raisins, a powdered sugar glaze rather than cream cheese frosting, and a dough that is a buttery beauty but not too puffy or gooey.

I've seen many recipes that look mighty similar all over the internet, but nothing exactly like this one to link to (famous last words, of course. Let me know if you believe I've ripped off YOUR recipe.).

The other bonus of these rolls: They freeze beautifully for future breakfasts. I was prompted to post today because of the lovely breakfast husband and I enjoyed with a couple of cinnamon rolls pulled from the freezer. I defrosted them briefly in the microwave and then further warmed them in the oven. Delightful.

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls
makes 12

Dough
1 cup milk
1/3 cup butter
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1/2 cup white sugar
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I used whole wheat and it didn't weigh it down at all)
1 teaspoon salt
3 eggs

Filling
1 1/3 cups (packed) golden brown sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons unbleached all purpose flour
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

Glaze
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons (or more) whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon coarse kosher salt

Heat the milk in a small saucepan until it bubbles, then remove from heat. Stir in butter until melted. Let cool until lukewarm.

In a large mixing bowl, combine 2 1/4 cup flour, yeast, sugar and salt; mix well. Add eggs and the milk mixture; beat well. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has just pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, adding more flour as needed, about 5 minutes.

Cover the dough and let rest for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together filling ingredients.

Roll out dough into a 9×12 inch rectangle. Spread dough evenly with filling mixture. Roll up dough from the long end and pinch seam to seal. Cut into 12 equal size rolls and place cut side up in a 9×12″ baking pan. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning, remove cinnamon rolls from refrigerator and let sit on the counter for about 30 minutes to take the chill off. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Bake for 20 minutes, or until browned. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together glaze ingredients, adding more milk to thin glaze, if necessary. Remove rolls from oven, and pour glaze over hot cinnamon rolls. Serve warm.