Cherries are one of my favourite things. I know you are thinking . . . what isn't her favourite thing??? Well, the answer is quite simple . . .



I'm allergic to shell fish, so none of that please, and I won't eat anything with antennae or tenticles. Does that make me squeamish? Perhaps . . . but I know I am not alone!



One of my favourite things in a fruit cake has to be the glace cherries . . . next to the candied pineapple and citron of course! I like to use the naturally coloured cherries in my baking, eschewing anything artifically dyed a bright red or green. That means that my cherries always have a somewhat darker colour, but boy oh boy, do they taste good.



I just love cherry scones, but the ones in the shops always have those bright red cherried in them . . . and store bought baked goods always end up tasting a bit disappointing to me. They never quite come up to their promise. Am I alone in thinking that???



I thought so . . . Home baked anything is always infinitely better in my books.

Yesterday I baked Todd a teatime treat of some lovely Cherry and Almond Scones. Not quite as pretty as the ones in the shops, but boy, are they tasty.

They have a delicious short and buttery crumb, with a subtle hint of almond, and are just stogged full of lovely cherries.



Try them today . . . simply buttered, or if you are really feeling hedonistic, add some clotted cream and jam. Delicious!

In for a penny, in for a pound I always say!! The recipe makes a lot, but they do freeze very well.



*Cherry and Almond Scones*
makes about 20 2-inch scones
Printable Recipe

Delicious scones with a tender crumb and chock full of glace cherries and a subtle hint of almond. Serve cold with butter or clotted cream and jam!

450g self raising flour, sifted (3 1/4 cups)
1/2 tsp baking soda
125g softened butter (1/2 cup)
85g caster sugar (scant half cup)
170g glace cherries, roughly chopped (generous cup)
1 large free range egg, beaten
a few drops of almond essence
6 to 7 fluid ounces of milk

Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Butter a large baking tray (s). Set aside.

Sift the flour into a large bowl along with the soda. Rub in the butter until it resembles sand. Stir in the sugar and cherries. Add the beaten egg, almond essence and enough of the milk to make a soft dough, but not sticky dough. Knead lightly until smooth. Pat out on a floured board to a thickeness of about 1/2 inch. Cut into rounds with a sharp 2 inch cutter. Place on the prepared baking sheet (s). Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until well risen, firm and golden brown. Remove to a wire rack to cool before serving. Delicious split and buttered or served with clotted cream and jam for a special indulgence.

One thing we always have lots of in the larder is jars of jams and preserves. I don't think I could live without a variety of them on tap for me to use in various ways . . .



Sometimes in the evenings when we are watching the telly and feel a bit peckish, we will have a treat of hot buttered toast spread with jam or marmelade.

We just adore freshly baked scones with cream and strawberry jam. Can you imagine a Cream Tea without strawberry jam??? It's totally unthinkable!!!

A moist Victorian Sponge is just not the same without a thick layer of raspberry jam in the middle, although I do enjoy lemon curd once in a while, but . . . can you still call it a Victorian Sponge without the jam?




I also love to bake biscuits that have jam in the middle.

Soft and tender molasses jam jams are so lovely and tasty with a hot drink in the middle of the afternoon. My mouth starts to water just thinking about them . . .

Oh, and don't get me started to thinking about lintzer cookies, all buttery and crisp and filled with . . . raspberry jam . . . their tops all sweetly dusted with icing sugar . . .

That white powder on the upper lip's a dead giveaway isn't it? There's no denying you've been raiding the tin . . .



One of my favourite things of all though . . . is . . . raspberry shortbread.

O-H-M-Y-G-O-O-D-N-E-S-S!!!!!

That crisp short textured buttery base . . . topped with sweet raspberry preserves and then . . .
that buttery crumble topping. Can anything on earth possibly taste any better??? I think NOT!

Let's just skip having tea all together today. We'll just settle for dessert



*Raspberry Shortbread*
Makes 12 to 16 wedges
Printable Recipe

Picture sweet buttery melt in your mouth crunch, stogged full of delicious raspberry preserves and you have these delightful shortbread biscuits. These are a real favourite around here.

16 ounces butter, at room temperature
4 large egg yolks
400g sugar
560g flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
350g raspberry jam, at room temperature
70g icing sugar, sifted

Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. You will need a 10 inch tart pan with a removable bottom or you can just use a 9 by 13 inch baking pan.

Cream the butter until soft and fluffy with a hand mixer, or in the bowl of a food processor. Beat in the egg yolks. (alternately whiz them for a few seconds in the food processor until combined) Stir together the sugar, flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the butter/egg yolk mixture, mixing just until incorporated and the dough comes together. (Do the same in the food processor, blitzing it several times until a dough forms) Divide the dough in half.

Press one half of the dough evenly into the bottom of the tart tin, or the baking pan, pressing it down to compact it slightly.

With a spoon or spatula, spread the jam evenly over the surface to within 1/2 inch of the edge of the dough all the way around. Take the remaining half of the dough and crumble it evenly over top of the jam, covering it completely.

Bake in the heated oven until it is lightly golden brown. This should take between 30 and 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and dust with the icing sugar. Cool on a wire rack before removing the sides of the pan. Cut into wedges with a serrated knife to serve. (If you have used a baking pan, just cut into squares.) Store in a tightly covered container. This keeps very well.

Quite often by the time we get home from church on Sundays, it's far too late to cook much of a supper so we usually have something quick. I make it a habit now to cook what would normally have been our Sunday lunch on Saturday evenings, and we have leftovers for Sunday.



Some weeks we've been really busy on Saturday too, and so there are no leftovers to warm up. What to do . . . what to do . . .



You might be forgiven if you look at these as a North American and think right away, those are pancakes! Well, yes, they are very similar to pancakes, but in reality they are something known as Drop Scones, or as you get further up North . . . Scotch Pancakes.



In the olden days these would have been cooked on a solid metal griddle over an open fire. Today we are blessed to have lovely non-stick frying pans.



Blessings come in many guises. Like sweetly spiced, soft drop scones. These are particularly wonderful when you get home from church late on a Sunday afternoon and you are literally starving! Quick, easy and very, very tasty. What's a girl to do?



I decided to add a little Christmas warmth and spice to these with the grated rind of several oranges, a little mixed spice and the juice of the oranges.

They were delightful . . . especially with a bit of butter and golden syrup on top.



Sticky fingers never tasted so good . . . neither did Sundays . . . ☺





*Christmas Drop Scones*
Makes about 24
Printable Recipe

Serve these as soon as they are made with oodles of butter and golden syrup. If you can get the festive flavoured golden syrups so much the better, but really plain old golden syrup tastes just wonderful. If you do need to make these in advance, arrange them in a single layer on an ovenproof plate, cover tightly with some foil wrap and when ready re-heat in a 160*C/325*F oven for about 10 minutes.

2 large oranges
a little whole milk
6 ounces self raising flour (about 1 1/4 cups, 170g )
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp mixed spice
1 1/2 ounces golden caster sugar (3 1/2 TBS)
1 largefree range egg
oil for cooking
golden syrup and butter for serving

Grate the rind from the oranges and set aside.  Squeeze the juice and put into a measuring jug.  Add enough whole milk to measure up to 200ml. (200ml is the same as 7 fluid ounces, or 13 1/2 TBS) Set aside

Measure the flour into a bowl. Whisk together with the baking powder, mixed spice and caster sugar, combining well. Make a well in the centre of the flour and then add the egg and half of the orange juice mixture. Whisk together well to make a smooth thick batter, then wisk in enough of the remaining orange mixture to make a batter which has the consistency of thick cream.

Heat a large nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat. Grease with a little bit of oil. Using a dessertspoon, drop spoonfuls onto the hot pan, spacing each about 2 inches apart. When bubbles appear on the surface, flip them over with a spatula and cook on the other side for about 30 seconds to one minute, until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack and keep warm with a clean tea towel over top, while you cook the rest.

Cook the remaining batter in the same way. Serve these lovely scones warm with butter and golden syrup for spreading. Delicious!

I'm not sure how many of you know this or not, but I am a Latter Day Saint, or Mormon as we are commonly known throughout most of the world. One of the things that I love most in my cooking life, is being able to have the missionaries over for tea. After having raised five children, and now with just Todd and I living here on our own, my table is far too empty most of the time. There is nothing that makes me happier than having the opportunity to see some young and smiling faces sitting around it, especially when they are hungry.

Young people . . . far away from home and family . . . just ripe for spoiling in a way only a mom can spoil them. It's one of my absolute favourite things of all to do!!



We have two young sister missionaries here right now, and tonight was my first chance to cook a meal for them. One is from Brommieland (near Birmingham) and the other from Idaho. They are such sweet young ladies.

Boys, you can feed until they are full to exploding, and they will come back for more. Young women . . . they can be a somewhat different kettle of fish. I wasn't sure how much they would eat, or if they would prefer a light meal over something heavy . . .



My solution . . . a nice big pot of corn chowder, the perfect meal on a cold and rain swept day . . . served with some cheese and oat drop scones, and then for dessert this tasty crumble traybake.

They loved it, warm from the oven and served up with lashings of pouring cream.



They took the leftovers home with them.

They're my kind of girls!



*Blueberry Apricot Crumble Traybake*
Serves 12 (HA!)
Printable Recipe

This scrumptious cake is deliciously moist with a hidden surprise of creamy yoghurt hiding beneath the tasty fruit and crumble topping. I bet you can't eat just one piece!

1 420g tin of apricots, drained well
8 ounces softened butter
8 ounces golden caster sugar
8 ounces self raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
3 large eggs, beaten
2 TBS milk
150g pot of lemon yogurt
8 ounces blueberries
For the Crumble:
1 ounce softened butter
3 heaped dessertspoons self raising flour
3 heaped dessert spoons demerara sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon



Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/375*F. Butter a 9 by 12 inch tray bake pan. Line with baking paper and butter again. Set aside.

Make the crumble by rubbing all the crumble ingredients together until crumbly. Set aside.

Weigh the butter, sugar, flour, baking powder, eggs and milk into a bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until creamy. Spoon into the prepared tin, leveling the top. Bake for 25 minutes, or until almost set. Remove from the oven and immediately spoon the yogurt over top. Scatter the fruit over top of the yogurt and then top with the crumble. Return to the oven and bake for a further 15 to 20 minutes until done and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven. Serve warm and cut into squares, with some pouring cream, or cold as a tea time or picnic treat.

Is it scon that rhymes with on, or is it scone that rhymes with stone??

Who knows. It sounds mightly delicious no matter which way you say it. If asked what the difference between a scone and a North American baking powder biscuit is, I would have to say first and foremost, it is in the preparation. In a baking powder biscuit the fat is cut into the flour using a pastry blender, or two round bladed knives. In a scone the fat is gently rubbed into the mixture with your fingertips, lifting the mixture high up and dropping it back into the bowl as you rub, in order to help incorporate some air to the mix.



Baking powder biscuits generally use all vegetable fat, and sometimes cream . . . scones usually use all butter, and sometimes butter and cream.

In both instances, it is wise not to overhandle the dough, lest you end up with tough scones or biscuits.



Baking powder biscuits are a bit heavier in texture and more savoury than scones . . . most scones are light and sweet . . . and go just perfectly with a nice hot cuppa and lashings of preserves and clotted cream, whereas baking powder biscuits are at their most perfect when served with hot soups and stews.



When cutting press the cutter straight down onto the scone dough and then lift it straight up without twisting. This gives you nice straight edges and they bake up straight as well. Twisting when you cut means you end up with lopsides scones.



Delicious, no matter how you cut them . . . no pun intended.




A plate of these, split and buttered alongside of a bowl of clotted cream and a jar of strawberry preserves and I am in heaven. This . . . is . . . bliss.

Damn . . . I forgot to buy the clotted cream . . .

No matter . . .



*Sultana Scones*
Makes about 14
Printable Recipe

Making good scones is easy as long as you don't overhandle the dough. Tender and moist, wrap them in a clean tea towel after baking to help to keep them that way. Served warm with lots of butter and preserves, these are wonderfully delicious . . .

8 ounces self raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 ounces softened butter
1 ounce caster sugar
2 ounces sultanas
1 large egg
milk

Pre-heat the oven to 220*C/425*F. Line two baking trays with baking parchment and set aside.

Measure the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Add the butter and rub it into the flour mixture with the tips of your fingers, until the mixture closely resembles fine breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar and the sultanas.

Beat the egg together with enough milk to make a total of 150 ml of liquid. Stir this mixture into the flour mixture to make a soft, but not sticky dough. You don't want it to be too dry, or too sticky.

Turn out onto a lightly floured board. Knead lightly a few times, then pat out to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut into rounds with a 2 inch cutter, then place them onto the prepared baking trays. Brush the tops with a little milk.

Bake for about 10 minutes, until golden brown and nicely risen. Lift onto a wire rack to cool and then wrap in a clean tea towel to serve. Delicious!

I picked up some beautiful little blueberries yesterday at my local shop that were quite tiny in size and for once they didn't come from Poland! Not that I am against Poland per se, but I do like to use British Ingredients whenever I can. These ones came from Surrey.



They were almost as small as the wild blueberries from back home and I knew just the perfect thing to make with them.



My delicious Blueberry scones.

They went down fabulous with this lovely green tea.



*Blueberry Scones with Lemon Drizzle Icing*
Makes 8
Printable Recipe

These lovely scones are tender and moist and oh so very delicious. Chock full of blueberries and covered with a lucious lemon drizzle icing these are pleasing on all levels. Use only fresh blueberries in these as frozen ones will bleed and spoil the look of this lovely scone.

225g plain flour (1 3/4 cups)
1 TBS baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 TBS caster sugar
5 TBS cold, unsalted butter
250ml of double cream (1 cup plus 2 TBS)
8 ounces fresh blueberries, toss with 1 TBS flour (1/2 pound berries)
Lemon Drizzle:
4 ounces freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1/2 cup)
280g of icing sugar, sifted (2 cups)
1 TBS unsalted butter



Pre-heat the oven to 200*C/400*F. Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and caster sugar into a bowl. Whisk together to combine. Add the cold butter and using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour mixture until it forms coarse crumbs. Make a well in the centre of the mixture and dump in the cream all at once. Stir with a fork just to combine, without overworking the dough. You may need a bit more cream. The dough should be soft, but not sticky, nor crumbly. Fold in the blueberries, leaving any excess flour out. Gently mix them in without crushing them.

Pat the dough out onto a lightly floured surface into a 12 by 3 1/2 inch rectangle, about 1 inch thick. Cut into 4 equal squares, and then cut each square diagonally into even triangles. You should have 8. Place onto a lightly greased baking tray and bake for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven to a wire rack to cool somewhat before glazing.

To make the glaze, sift the icing sugar into a microwave proof bowl. Whisk in the lemon juice and stir to melt the sugar. Add the butter and place in the microwave. heat for 30 to 45 seconds on high. Whisk again to smooth out any lumps and then drizzle decoratively over the warm scones. Let set before serving. Delicious!!

One of the things I love most over here are Cream Teas, and of course when you think of a cream tea you must think of a scone. That delicious light bun thing that closely resembles the baking powder biscuits (not to be confused with a cookie) from back home in appearance, but is nothing like them at all in taste or texture.

I had my first cream tea when my husband and I were on holiday down in Devon. They brought the tea to our table in a lovely porcelain pot on a tray along with some dainty china cups and a plate full of lovely light scones, and bowls of red berry preserves and lucious clotted cream. I was hooked from first bite. I had never tasted anything so lovely in my life.



Scones come in many flavours. There's lovely cheese ones, currant ones, plain ones and I've even seen cherry ones. I prefer the plain ones myself, but then, I am a plain kind of gal!

*The Plain Scone*
Makes 6 to 10, depending on how large you cut them
Printable Recipe

These are anything but plain. They have a lovely light texture and a delicious buttery flavour. I'd call these the perfect scone!

8 ounces self raising flour (I like to use organic flour)
1/4 tsp salt
2 ounces lightly salted butter, quite cold and cut into small bits
1 ounce of soft golden brown sugar
4 ounces buttermilk
4 TBS whole milk
extra flour for dusting, or more milk for brushing on the tops
strawberry jam and clotted cream to serve.


Heat the oven to 220*C/425*F. Measure out the flour and then tip it into a bowl along with the salt.




Drop in the bits of butter. Rub it into the flour using the tips of your fingertips. You want a fairly reasonably fine crumb. Lift it up into the air as you rub so that you get lots of air into the mixture.




Add the sugar and stir it in.




Measure the buttermilk in a small beaker and then add the milk. Mix well to slacken it. Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and tip in most of the buttermilk mixture, holding some back just in case it's not needed.



Gently work it all together with a fork or a knife, until it forms a soft dough. Add as much of the remaining milk as you think you will need, working in any loose dry bits of the mixture. Try hard not to overwork the dough as this will toughen your scone.

Tip it all out onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead 3 or 4 times until smooth. Pat the dough gently out to a 1 inch thickness.



Dip a round fluted cutter into some flour and cut the scones out by giving the cutter a sharp tap directly down onto the dough with the palm of your hand. Don't twist the cutter as you lift it or you will end up with lopsided scones.



Place onto a baking sheet and repeat with the remaining dough, cutting out more scones. Gather the trimmings, pat down lightly and cut more until you have used it all up.

Sift over a light dusting of more flour, or brush lightly with milk, just on the tops. Don't let it run down the sides.

Bake in the heated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until risen and golden brown.




Remove to a wire rack to cool, uncovered if you want crisp tops, covered loosely if you prefer soft.

Serve with strawberry preserves and a generous dollop of clotted cream.