Darlin' Mark and our son, Corey, are driving back home from Boise Idaho as I write this. They've been out there involved in some clandestine potato operation of sorts. They are on a mission to get here in time for the above stated football game. And my dad, Jim Jones (that's his real name), is coming to visit while Big Sis Marybeth runs off to the shores of Alabama for a month. And if our son, Sam, can catch a break from his duties as student manager with the National Championship University of Louisville Men's basketball team, he might even put in an appearance. If his mama doesn't strangle him between now and then, grandson Cohen should find his way here as well. Plus it's a safe wager that some various strays from the neighborhood will find their way through the door.
This influx of men will bring the usual noise, mess and smells that accompany many of them, but it will also bring the need for food, and lots of it. Especially if Sam shows up. So, I've decided to get this parade of food underway. And where better to start than with breakfast. Which leads us to the scone portion of this story. Granted scones may not sound like "man food" and you're partially right. They will undoubtedly need to be accompanied by various fried meats, eggs, potatoes and all that good stuff. But they'll nibble on these little babies too if that's all that stands between them and starvation.
In my previous post, I referred to the fabulous recipe find for scones provided by Big Sis Marybeth. Today's post is adapted from the Blueberry Scones recipe in her "Cook's Illustrated Baking Book." It's delicious in the original version, but I'm never satisfied to just stick with the original. And besides, I didn't have any blueberries when I decided to make it and had to improvise... again. That is also a common theme with me.
Forget everything you thought you knew about scones. I know I had eaten more than my fair share of dry, crumbly, rather bland and tasteless scones. These are moist, flaky but still sturdy enough to hold any jams or jellies, if you wish. And my personal favorite is that you can freeze these and bake them one at a time for a special "breakfast for one" treat. Which means when I have surly, hungry men wandering through the house I can pop these babies in the oven and buy some time while I'm cranking out the biscuits and gravy.
Now without further procrastination, on to the scones. Once again, I find myself without blueberries, so I've settled on cherry/orange.
Ingredients
8 Tbsp unsalted butter, frozen and grated
1/2 C Milk (2% or whole)
1/2 C Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
1 tsp orange extract
1 Tbsp Finely grated orange zest
2 C All purpose flour
2 tsp Baking powder
1/4 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cardamom
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1/2 C plus 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 to 3/4 C fresh or frozen pie cherries
1/4 C Triple Sec (or orange juice)
Warning: Do not be alarmed, you are not losing your vision. During the "flour" portion of the show, there was obviously an issue with my lens. I am well known for covering everything in flour and apparently my camera is no exception.
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| In small saucepan combine cherries and triple sec or orange juice and warm over low heat for 10-15 minutes. Drain excess liquid and place in refrigerator until ready to use. |
Mix milk, sour cream or yogurt, orange extract and orange zest in a small bowl and place in refrigerator until ready to us.
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| Using the large size of a box grater, a food processor or a mandolin, grate 8 Tbsp of frozen butter. If using box grater, use 2 sticks of butter, remove wrapper from half of each stick and grate 4 Tbsp from each to avoid adding little bits of finger to your scones. Place butter on plate or small baking pan and place in freezer while preparing dry ingredients. |
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| Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, soda, salt and cardamom and whisk to combine |
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| Add frozen grated butter to dry ingredients. |
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| Toss butter lightly by hand until just all little bits are coated with flour. |
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| Note: We are now entering the floured lens portion of the program. My apologies. You can see that the dough is very crumbly, dry and doesn't come together at all at this time. |
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| Knead quickly and lightly 5-6 turns until able to form dough into about a 4 x 4 inch square. Should still see all the individual bits of butter. |
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| Roll dough into 12 x 12 inch square |
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| Fold side nearest you up and over like a business letter. |
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| Fold both short ends toward the center until you have a 4 x 4 inch square again. Place dough package onto well floured plate or small baking pan and place back in freezer for 5 minutes. If you are like me and have a tendency to wander off and get distracted by bright, shiny objects, set the timer. |
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| Take dough back out of freezer and roll into a 12 x 12 inch square again. Roughly chop your drunken cherries and scatter over dough, lightly press into dough. |
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| Starting at side away from you, roll the dough towards you into a log. |
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| All rolled up and ready to squish. |
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| With your hand gently press rolled up dough into a 12 x 4 rectangle. |
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| All squished up and ready to cut. |
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| With sharp, floured knife or bench scraper, cut into half and then fourths. |
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| Cut each 4 inch square into triangles. |
If freezing scones for later, place on parchment paper on baking sheet, place in freezer until solid. Place in plastic freezer bag and seal. Label with type of scone and date made. Can freeze up to 6 months. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees, brush scones with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar, bake on parchment lined baking sheet for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.
Well, Darlin' Mark has alerted me via text message that they will soon be pulling down the gravel road and into the drive, dragging his toys behind him. Biscuits in oven and stew on the stove. Off to rest until time to crank up the Super Bowl festivities.
Bake on!
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