Three Ingredient Scones

While I'm not a fantastic cook, I'm an even worse baker.  I don't know if it's lack of patience or not enough attention to detail, but I have never mastered the art. So when I saw this recipe for three-ingredient scones–from a nutritionist who claims she's also never had success with making them–I thought it was worth a try. At first they were a little bland on flavor, so I added a little fresh-squeezed juice, and diced crystallized ginger and it added just a hint of zing. I was quite pleased with how these came out, and hope you enjoy! 

Three-Ingredient Scones

Ingredients

• 3 cups Self-rising Flour
• 300 ml/10 oz Heavy Cream
• 300 ml/10 oz Plain or flavored Sparkling Water/Seltzer

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 430° F/220° C
2. Sift flour into a large bowl
3. In a separate bowl, add heavy cream, then add the seltzer, and give a very gentle stir with a table knife (to reduce air loss from the seltzer)
4. Make a well in the flour, then gently add liquids to the flour
5. Lightly stir with table knife around the bowl and through the middle a few time until combined, but still slightly damp
6. Prepare pan/sheet with parchment paper
7. Flour your work surface, and lightly empty dough onto flour (using knife to help if needed)
8. Flour the top of the dough, and your hands liberally
9. Help the dough come together by pulling the sides gently in, folding over, and repeat a couple times until it has a rustic pillow-like shape
10. Create your scones using a floured cookie cutters or knife. Be sure to flour the tool between cuts.
11. Put scones very close together on pan/sheet to encourage rising
12. Use a pastry brush to lightly brush milk over the top of each scone
13. Bake 15-20 minutes, until golden on top, and hollow sounding when tapped, then enjoy! 

If you would like to make Lemon Ginger Scones as I did:

• Use lemon seltzer/sparkling water, or ginger ale
• Add an extra 2 TBSP flour in step 2
• Add 1/4 cup lemon juice to the cream, before the seltzer, in step 4
• Finely dice a few pieces of candied ginger and add at beginning of step 5

Many thanks to Charity at Easy Healthy Tasty for the inspiration, and you can watch her makes these scones here.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

My Mom was a very good cook. Her Pot Roast, Beef Stew, Stuffed Peppers, Fondue, and Turkey dinners were divine.  But a baker, she was not. We won't talk about her Peanut Butter Fudge that never set and every time you cut a square, would smooth back over as if you'd never taken any. Or the No-Bake Cookies she made on the portable dishwasher--which she then ran--literally baking the cookies to the top of it.

But she had one baked good that was sent from heaven...her German (or as we called it) Sour Cream Coffee Cake.  The recipe was originally my Aunt Patty's, but my mother owned it!  As I hold her vanilla-stained, sugar-encrusted recipe card, I can see her making this, and smell it in the oven. I miss her so much my heart aches.

So I post this today for you Jeffrey...for she loved your visit, and the baklava and marzipan you brought from NY, and the buttermilk fried chicken you made during your stay. Happy Birthday, my basement.

German Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Ingredients

Cake

• 3/4 cups Cooking Oil
• 1.5 cups Sugar
• 3 Eggs
• 3 cups Flour
• 1.5 tsp Baking Soda
• 1.5 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1.5 tsp Vanilla
• 1 pt (16 oz) Sour Cream

Brown Sugar Mixture

• 3/4 cups Brown Sugar
• 1.5 tsp Cinnamon
• 1.5 tsp Nutmeg
• 1/2 cups crushed Walnuts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, mix oil, sugar, eggs. 
3. In a second bowl, sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
4. Mix dry ingredients alternately with sour cream into the oil mixture.
5. Add vanilla and mix all well.
6. Pour half of batter into a bundt pan (prepared pan I assume, although recipe doesn't say).
7. Sprinkle half of Brown Sugar Mixture in a circle around center of cake batter.
8. Add rest of batter to bundt pan.
9. Sprinkle remaining Brown Sugar Mixture on top.
10. Bake for 1 hour.

Waffles!

As a post-Christmas gift to ourselves, we bought a waffle maker from King Arthur Flour, and we couldn't be happier with these warm, heart-shaped treats. 

Below are two recipes that came with the maker. We've only made the "Quick Waffles" but they were great!

Quick Waffles

Ingredients

• 3 Eggs
• 1 cup Milk
• 1/2 cup melted Butter *
• 1 TBSP Vanilla
• 2 cups Flour *
• 1 TBSP Baking Powder
• 2 tsp Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Salt

Directions

1. Beat whole eggs in a bowl until thick
2. Beat milk, melted butter, and vanilla into eggs
3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt
4. Sift into egg mixture, and mix well
5. Spoon a ladleful onto pre-heated waffle maker
6. Cook 2-3 minutes until lightly browned/steam stops escaping
7. Recommend serving with real Vermont maple syrup*

Note: These can me transformed into Cinnamon-Apple Waffles by adding 1 peeled/shredded apple and 1/2 tsp cinnamon to the batter.

*Vermont/New England ingredients recommended: Kate's Homemade Butter, King Arthur Flour, Slopeside Syrup

Chocolate Waffles

Ingredients

• 2 Eggs, lightly beaten
• 6 TBSP Sugar
• 3/4 cup Milk
• 1/2 tsp Vanilla
• 1/2 cup Chocolate syrup
• 4 TBSP Butter, melted
• 1-1/2 cups cake Flour (sifted)
• 3 TBSP Baking Powder
• 1/2 tsp Salt

Directions

1. Combine beaten eggs, sugar, milk, and vanilla
2. In a separate bowl, blend chocolate syrup and butter, then let cool
3. Stir egg mixture into chocolate/butter blend
4. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt
5. Add egg/chocolate mixture to the dry ingredients and stir until smooth
6. Spoon a ladleful onto pre-heated waffle maker
7. Cook 2-3 minutes until lightly browned/steam stops escaping

MiniMaple's New Year Smoothie

Here is the smoothie our son created for our family's New Year's Eve celebration!

• 2 clementines
• 6 strawberries
• 1 banana
• 1 cup Pineapple-Orange-Banana juice
• 1/8 cup granulated sugar
• 2 cups ice cubes

Blend together, then enjoy!

Banana-Cherry-Chocolate Muffins

I was inspired to find/create this recipe when I noticed our bananas were brown next to the cherries in our fruit basket.

Dried cherries or cranberries can be substituted for the fresh cherries out of season.

Banana-Cherry-Chocolate Muffins

Wet ingredients

• 2 Tbsp melted butter
• 1/3 cup (or more) Vermont maple syrup
• 2-3 large, rip bananas
• 1 egg, lightly beaten

Dry Ingredients

• 2/3 cup cherries, pitted and chopped
• 1/3 cup chocolate chips
• 2 Tsbp chopped walnuts (optional)
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (King Arthur Flour recommended)
• 1 tsp. backing soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg (fresh if possible)

Directions

1. Preheat over to 425 degrees F.
2. Grease muffin tin.
3. Combine wet ingredients; letting butter cool before mixing it with beaten egg. Set aside.
4. Chop cherries and nuts. 
5. Combine all dry ingredients (except cherries, chocolate & nuts.) Then add excepted ingredients and toss to coat.
6. Add wet to dry ingredients. Combine just enough to moisten. Do not overwork.
7. Spoon into greased muffin tin.
8. Put in oven, and lower heat to 350 degrees F. Cook for 20 minutes.
9. Cool muffins on a wire rack.

cc2.0 image courtesy of jessicafm, and see her associated vegan muffin recipe.

Dog Team Sticky Buns

As I don't know how long the Dog Team restaurant's website will stay up--and this is the top search that brings folks to my other site--I thought I would post this cherished recipe here. You can buy "DT Sticky Buns" (made by a former employee) at various markets in Vermont.

Dog Team Sticky Buns

Ingredients

• 3⁄4 lb potatoes, peeled and cube
• 1⁄4 lb (1 stick) margarine, at room temp
• 2 3⁄4 cups sugar
• 1 1⁄2 tsp salt
• 1 package active dry yeast
• 2 eggs, well beaten
• 7 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1⁄2 cups packed light brown sugar
• 1 1⁄2 cups chopped walnuts
• 1⁄2 lb (2 sticks) lightly salted butter, melted
• 1⁄4 cup ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Boil potatoes in salted water to cover until tender, about 10 minutes.
2. Drain the potatoes, reserving 1 ½ cups of the cooking liquid, and mash.
3. Measure 1 Cup of the mashed potatoes and reserve the rest for another use.
4. Stir together the mashed potatoes, margarine, ½ cup of the sugar and salt.
5. Cool to lukewarm and add yeast, eggs and the reserved 1 ½ cups cooking liquid and mix well.
6. Add flour and stir. Knead on a lightly floured surface until the dough is smooth and elastic.
7. Set in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk.
8. Punch down and refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.
9. Butter three 9-inch round or square baking dishes.
10. Distribute brown sugar evenly among the pans.
11. Sprinkle with enough water to make the sugar very wet.
12. Distribute walnuts evenly over the brown sugar.
13. Roll out the dough into a ½-inch-thick rectangle on a well-floured surface.
14. Brush with melted butter.
15. Stir together the remaining 2 ¼ cups sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle over the buttered dough.
16. Roll up the dough as you would a jelly roll. Cut into ½-inch-thick slices.
17. Arrange the slices cut-side up in the prepared pans so that they are almost touching.
18. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
19. One hour later, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
20. Bake the sticky buns until golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes.
21. Immediately invert the buns onto a plate.

Makes 6-8 sticky buns per pan. (18-24 total)

cc2.0 image courtesy of TheWanderingEater

Pumpkin Gingerbread

Tis the season! Be sure to taste while warm if possible!

Pumpkin Gingerbread

Ingredients

• 1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1-1/2 teaspoons grated fresh gingerroot or 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon finely shredded orange peel
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• 1/4 cup mild-flavored molasses
• 1/4 cup milk
• Whipped cream
• Orange peel curls (optional)

Directions
1. Stir together flour, gingerroot or ground ginger, finely shredded orange peel, cinnamon, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium mixing bowl. Set aside.

2. Beat together butter and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium to high speed until combined. Add egg and beat well. Beat in pumpkin and molasses on medium speed until smooth.

3. Alternately add flour mixture and milk to the pumpkin mixture, beating until smooth. Pour into a greased and lightly floured 8x8x2-inch baking pan.

4. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 minutes. Serve warm with whipped cream. If desired, garnish with orange peel curls. Makes 9 servings.
Recipe courtesy of BETTER HOMES & GARDENS.
Photo courtesy of daxiang stef

Granite Steps Country Blueberry Coffee Cake

OK - I'm not going to lie to you, people. There is NOTHING low-fat about this recipe. I happened to see it on the Food Network, late one night, and it is based on one of my favorite indulgences...Pillsbury Buttermilk Biscuits. I made this recipe when following the "never return a casserole dish empty" rule after our son was born. It was fairly easy, and SOOOOO good fresh out of the oven. A great way to use up all of the blueberries you picked this summer. Enjoy!

Granite Steps Country Blueberry Coffee Cake

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Recipe Summary

• Difficulty: Easy
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Inactive Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Yield: 6 to 8 servings
• User Rating: 5 Stars

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 (12-ounce) can buttermilk biscuits
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
• 1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
• 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
• 1/2 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Generously grease a 9-inch square baking dish. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon and mix well with a fork. Separate biscuit dough into 10 biscuits. Cut each biscuit into quarters, and dip each piece in melted butter and coat with brown sugar mixture. Arrange in a single layer in baking dish. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the oats.

Combine blueberries and sugar in a bowl and toss to coat. Spoon over oats and biscuits and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup oats. Drizzle remaining melted butter on top. Bake for 20 minutes or until cake is golden brown and center is done. Cool for 20 minutes. Serve warm.


See this recipe on air Wednesday Sep. 20, 2006 at 1:00 PM ET/PT. Episode#: PA1D05
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