Let's Talk: Scones

Maybe it's just me but I think that to the British a scone is like their version of the classic American muffin. Think about it: they can both be eaten any time of day but usually (for me at least) around either breakfast or snack time, they can be both sweet and savory, they're portable and best of all you can put just about anything in a scone or a muffin.
While they are super similar scones and muffins have one major difference, texture. The American muffin is soft,fluffy, and moist, whereas, the scone ( the traditional ones at the very least) are dry and super crumbly. Also unlike muffins, where the dry and wet ingredients are mixed separately and then the 2 sets (wet and dry) are combined in the end, scones take a little more... doing. 

Fear not though here are my general notes on scone baking

• Keep everything COLD! Now I know when it comes to baking most things come out better when all the perishables (i.e. butter, eggs) are room temperature but trust me
• Use SOLID fat! In baking most of the time it's possible to substitute fats, like butter for oil and vice versa but here solid fat is a must
• Grab a FORK! I must be crazy right? Nope most scone recipes call for the butter to be cut into the dry ingredients. Some of the fancy recipes ask for the use of a pastry cutter, don't waste your money the tines on a metal fork work perfectly for this
• Make the CUT! When a recipe says to cut the butter into the dry ingredients all you do is slice the butter into cubes and use a fork to mash the butter in to the dry ingredients until the mixture looks like dry sand. A little butter showing through is fine
• It will be DRY! Resist the temptation to add extra water or milk to batter. By the time it's ready to go into the oven it should be the texture of sandcastle sand, just coming together and still crumbly
• Do Not OVERWORK the dough! Work the dough as little as possible with your fingers. Remember fingers warm dough cold... you want to transfer as little as possible body heat to the dough before it hits the oven.
• Use a PIZZA CUTTER to cut individual scones. It's so much easier than a knife
• Make them PRETTY! Make an egg wash (Crack an egg into a bowl and add a little water or milk) and brush onto the scones before they hit the oven, this makes for golden brown scones. Want a little sparkle add a little sugar on top of the egg wash for sweet scones.

All right guys I'll post a scone recipe tomorrow if all goes well. Let me know if you have any questions. Also how were your pancakes?

Ta for now!  

Next Up...

I figured I'd keep with the breakfast theme for the month of August. So since we tackled pancakes, I think the next things on our list should be 2 of my favorite breakfast pastries muffins and scones! These 2 pastries are staples for busy mornings because they can be baked and frozen for quick breakfast or snacks later on. Another reason both the muffin and scone are great to know is because with these 2 it's all about the method. Once you get that down, the world is your oyster when it comes to additives. So let me know what kind you want me to demo and I will!

*I will probably do 2 scone demos.... one on traditional scone construction (dry and crumbly) and a second on the Panera Bread method (springy and moist)

Thanks for reading!

Pancakes

For this first post I figured I'd start with breakfast, everyone says it's the most important meal of the day. Pancakes are by far one of my favorite foods yet although I love them I very seldom make them because frankly I suck at them but I think I've finally conquered them. This recipe can be found on pg. 26 of the Healthy College Cookbook. They call them traditional pancakes:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
 pinch of salt
1 egg
1 cup skim milk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
cooking spray

1. combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a medium bowl.
2. in a large bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, oil, and vanilla. add the dry ingredients and stir until the mixture is smooth.
3. heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat until a drop of water dances on the surface. coat the skillet lightly with cooking spray. pour small puddles of batter, one for each pancake, into the skillet. Do Not crowd pancakes. (if you do not have a nonstick skillet, you'll need to melt a little butter in the pan first to keep the pancakes from sticking.) Cook until bubbles begin to appear and pop on the uncooked side. flip and cook the other side.when both sides are golden brown remove from the pan and keep warm while you cook the rest of the batter.

Substitutions:

• I put in a cup of soy milk instead of skim because I'm lactose intolerant
• I added brown sugar instead of white: had brown on hand

Notes

• the brown sugar makes the pancakes a bit more moist than normal so look out for that
• always let your batter rest before you start cooking it
• you might need an extra splash of milk if the batters too thick
• I put them in the microwave on warm to keep them warm: you can also use the oven set at 200F
• Use a big skillet, especially if you have trouble with the flip
• if you have trouble with the flip climb the pancake up the side of the pan with the spatula and use free hand to turn pancake

• some people use a ladle to measure out pancakes I just use the 1 cup measure. fill it about 1/2 full

Ta for now... enjoy your pancakes

Welcome!

If you didn't guess from the title, this is a blog about cooking from the point of view of a physically challenged person. Recently I decided that if I wanted something done then I'd have to do it myself, cooking included. So instead of waiting for someone to show me I've decided to try the hands on approach and do it myself. I already know how to cook so now the adventure is all about making my skills better and trying to save the home cook (disabled or not!). Each recipe here has been tried and tested, and in addition to the original recipe I include notes and substitutions. If you have a question just leave me a comment and I'll try my best to help out.