Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Sandwich Day Monday--scones?

So it seems like I am baking a lot lately.  True story.  The problem is that the familia apparently really enjoys the sweet sugary things I am making.  I can tell because when came into the kitchen last night Auntie held up a few oranges that she had bought at the store and gave me that mischievous smile of hers.  I asked if that was a hint...apparently it was.  Just like the hint from the day before when the cita came in from the store with a bag of cranberries and another mischievous smile...they are totally sisters.  
Last week I did make an amazing chicken salad sandwich thing with no sugar in it, but it didn't last long enough for me to take a picture.  Kind of like the scones last night--which is why I was suddenly making scones again this morning.  Oh well. :) 
I grew up thinking that scones were a type of bread that was fried and tasted fantastic with honey butter.  Apparently that is called...fry-bread.  So recently I learned how to make "real" scones.  In that wonderful cookbook I found a few days ago, is a recipe for Cranberry Orange Scones.  This recipe is delicious, but it is even better combined with a recipe from one of my favorite recipe websites,   allrecipes.com.  On this website is the most delicious and versatile scone recipe called, Grandma Johnson's Scones.  I love them, they are delicious.  So I combined the 2 recipes and voila!, Cranberry Orange Creamy Deliciousness courtesy of Aliswan...and yes I wore one of those flirty aprons and sang while I was baking...and yes, somehow it made the experience that much funner. :)
I changed a few things from the recipe that is in the above link.  Here is how I made my version of these delicious scones: :)
1. The first thing I did was cut the cup of butter into small squares and put it in the freezer for about 20 minutes.  
2.  During that time I zest 1 1/2 oranges and juice them.  (I use the zest for the scones and freshly squeezed juice for the glaze.)
3. Next I put all of the dry ingredients into the mixer with the now chilled butter.  I added a little less sugar then the recipe calls for.  It asks for 1 cup and I put in about 3/4 of a cup.  (I did this because I put a glaze on top and didn't want it to be to sugary.  It was perfect.)  Then I mix until the butter is the size small pea-size chunks.  It apparently is uber important not to mix it past this point if you want your scones to be crazy good.
4. When the butter is pea-sized I then added the "wet" ingredients to the mixture (the sour cream and egg).  I also add a little bit of vanilla.  (I use Mexican Vanilla which is super strong, so I only use about 3/4 of a tsp.)
5.  When it is all mixed I add the orange zest, mix it some more, add about 1 cup of cranberries, and mix it for the last time until everything is pretty evenly dispersed.
6.  I split the dough in half (I like slightly smaller scones), roll it in a circle to about 1/4 inch thick on a floured surface, and slice it like a pizza.  I do this for both halfs.
7.  Finally I stick them on an ungreased pan in a 350 degree oven for about 15-20 minutes.  I take them out when the BOTTOMS, not necessarily the tops, begin to brown.
8. While it is baking I make the glaze using 2 2/3 cups of powdered sugar, 1/4 cup of the freshly squeezed orange juice, and 1 1/4 tsp. of vanilla (use about half of that if you are using Mexican Vanilla).  
9.  They come out of the oven, I pour the glaze on top of them, and then we eat them as fast as possible.  So there you go.  
Another thing I do sometimes is split the dough before I put in the orange zest and cranberries.  I roll out the plain dough (just like above), cut it, bake it, and then brush the tops with milk and sprinkle them with sugar.  It is amazing!  

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Grandma Johnson's Scone recipe is my fav too! Discovered it our first Thanksgiving as a married couple... 7+ years ago! Love your changes, might have to give it a go... fresh blueberries with a little lemon zest is also a divine combination. As is the plain dough with currants and sugar on top. Oh and then there's the plain with mini chocolate chips, r the time I used the leftovers in a bag of caramel chips... =) ~Christine