Scones Three Ways

It just so happens that I have been baking up some scones, and all the while the UK has been in the news for various reasons. There’s going to be a second royal baby, and Scotland voted on the issue of succession. I have long loved scones, but when I studied abroad during college, I realized their full potential when paired with clotted cream. Mmmmm. Let me just take a moment . . . 

 

Westminster Abbey

 . . . Ok, I'm back. Clotted cream tastes like a love child of butter and whipped cream. Sadly, I have never been able to find clotted cream in the US (due to its short shelf-life), so if time ever allows, I will be experimenting with making my own.

Most of the time when I make scones, I make more Americanized versions that are slightly sweeter and have dried cranberries, chocolate chips, etc. mixed in.  True British buttermilk scones are pretty much American biscuits, which is why the clotted cream, honey, jam, etc. is so important. So today, I give you, scones three ways.

All of the recipes are essentially the same base ingredients. This first recipe is a typical unsweetened buttermilk scone from Nigella Lawson. If you are not a fan of sweets (WHO ARE YOU?!), this one is for you.

This second recipe is from a neighbor, and my mom and I have used it for years. No other recipes I’ve found online have ever been as good. For the next two variations of scones, I used this recipe with dried cranberries, and then in half of the dough, I kneaded in rosemary for third type of scones. Rosemary sounds like a weird thing to add to a pastry, but trust me, it’s a good twist.

Jodi’s Scones

Sift together (or just whisk around in your mixing bowl):

3 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

¾ cup sugar

Cut in (or just turn on your mixer):

½ cup Crisco

Mix in:

¾ cup buttermilk

1 tsp vanilla

Lastly, mix in/knead in:

1 cup dried cranberries (Craisins)

A few sprigs worth of fresh rosemary, chopped (optional)

I'm obsessed with the smell of rosemary.

My two types of dough.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface and cut into whatever you deem “scone shapes.” For me, this is usually a round-ish shape that I cut into pie-like slices, but sometimes I improvise. You can use a biscuit cutter if you have one.

Cranberry rosemary dough.

Plain buttermilk dough.

Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes.

Scones don’t get really golden brown, so don’t over bake these.

All three scone recipes.

I also like to individually wrap my scones in plastic wrap and put them in a gallon zip lock bag to freeze them. Then whenever I need a quick breakfast, I can get out a single scone and microwave it for a few seconds.

Cheers!

-Madison

Goodbye Summer

Being a teacher, my summer seems to end when school starts, but actually, the end of summer is a slow fade.

Every 4^th of July is a tad bittersweet—it’s the beginning of the end, and I’m not ready for it to be. Summer continues to slip by with late July and early August work-days and meetings at school. Then come the kids. But summer doesn’t fully end until Labor Day weekend—the last long break before the semester really picks up (108 days until Christmas break, in case you were wondering).

So on a whim and in honor of the last bit of summer, I give you, homemade ice-cream. There is really nothing better.

Dane and I made classic vanilla to take to my parent’s house for a night of grilling. I truly love vanilla flavored everything—it’s the opposite of boring to me; it’s perfect. However, I couldn’t resist not experimenting with something more decadent, so I made a chocolate Reese’s ice-cream too.

I used Kitchen Aid’s recipe for vanilla. Chocolate came about because we buy Shatto’s whole chocolate milk on a regular basis (don’t judge me), and this bottle was quickly approaching its expiration date. Shatto’s whole chocolate milk is like drinking a melted milkshake, so I thought it’d work well. I substituted the whole chocolate milk for the half and half in the vanilla recipe and cut the 4 tsps of vanilla to 3. The result was not super chocolately, but was delicious. 

 

Cast of characters.

Kitchen Aid and this lady also have some good tips for using your Kitchen Aid ice-cream maker attachment—the most important suggestions being to freeze your mixer bowl for at least 12 hours, chill your batter for at least 6 hours, and pour the chilled batter into the machine as it runs.

Unfortunately, the night Dane and I bought the attachment we had already gotten ourselves sufficiently pumped up for a night of ice-cream making, only to realize we’d have to wait until the morning.

Booooo. (But yay for the ice-cream that's now in my freezer!)

Vanilla Ice-Cream

Ingredients

2.5 cups half and half (or Shatto whole chocolate milk)

2.5 cups heavy whipping cream

4 tsps vanilla

pinch of kosher salt

8 egg yolks

1 cup sugar

Directions

Heat the half and half over medium heat until steamy, but not boiling. Stir often (and sneak a glass of chocolate milk).

I heart Shatto. 

Meanwhile, whisk sugar and egg yolks about 30 seconds until slightly thickened.

Starting the custard. 

Gradually add the half and half to the egg mixture to temper the eggs. (I use a measuring cup to add about a cup as the mixer runs, and once it’s blended, pour in the rest.)

Transfer this back to the stove over medium heat until steamy but not boiling. Stir often.

Hot and bubbly.

Then pour half and half mixture into a bowl (or, you know, a 9x13 dish if you're behind on doing dishes) and stir in the whipping cream, vanilla, and salt.

Mmmmmm.

Refrigerate for at least 6 hours (unless you have a beast of an ice cream maker, in which case, you could just go for mixing it!).

Follow the directions for your ice-cream maker. Here's an action shot of the chocolate going in the bowl.

This is the fun part.

Kitchen Aid attachments need to mix on low speed for 20-30 minutes or until the ice-cream become a soft-serve consistency. In the last few minutes, add in your mix ins.

Peanut-buttery goodness.

Freeze it for at least 2 hours before serving (the vanilla set up quickly and the chocolate needed about 6 hours--my guess is this is related to the fat content).

Finished consistency.

You'll need a scoop of each flavor.

Enjoy!

-Madison