If you are looking for a deliciously different type of bread to serve with your winter casseroles, soups or stews . . . look no further!  These are fabulous.

 

These are rich and buttery . . . with a delicious crunchy texture from the cornmeal.
Add to that a delicious tang from the buttermilk, and you have a true winner.

 

They go together quick and easy and  can simply be patted out and cut into squares.   I cut the recipe in half because there is only Todd and I, with no problem at all.  They turned out perfectly.

 

Three days later and we had the last of them warmed up with our supper tonight and they were still lovely.  I have chosen to brush them with buttermilk and sprinkle them with some flaked sea salt and coarse black pepper, but you could also just brush them with the buttermilk and sprinkle them with some coarse demerara sugar.



They would be fabulous for breakfast done this way and served along with some butter and your favourite preserves.



I do hope you will give them a try.  I'm sure they'll become a favourite in your house too!

 


*Cornmeal Scones*
Makes 16
Printable Recipe

Crisp and lovely.   Great with soups, stews and other savoury dishes. 

200g of plain flour (2 cups)
170g of cornmeal (fine polenta, 1 cup)
2 TBS granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp fine seasalt
4 ounces cold butter, cubed (1/2 cup)
250ml of buttermilk (1 cup)

 

More buttermilk to brush on the top, plus some flaked sea salt and coarsely ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 220*C/420*F/ gas mark 7.  Have ready a large baking sheet, lined with baking paper.

Whisk the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, soda and salt together in a large bowl.  Drop in the butter.   Cut the butter into the dry ingredients using your finger tips or a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Make a well in the centre.   Add the buttermilk all at once.  Stir with a spoon to moisten. (you may need a bit more buttermilk if the mixture seems too dry.) Tip out onto a floured surface.  Gently knead 4 or 5 times.  Pat out into an 8 inch square, 3/4 of an inch thick.  Cut into 2 inch squares.  Place the squares 2 inches apart on the baking sheet.  Brush the tops lightly with more buttermilk and sprinkle with sea salt flakes and coarse black pepper.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until well risen and lightly browned.   Serve warm.

 

Hands up if up if you are not overly fond of January and already in need of a bit of a pick up!  Me too!   I've been dragging along with this rotten cold/sinus infection/chest infection . . . . and feeling blah since before Christmas.  Christmas Dinner was a wash out . . . couldn't taste a thing.  Likewise New Years . . . I am more than ready for a pick-me -up!



I saw an article in one of my latest month's food magazines, where they were talking about having a Duvet Day as a January Pick Me Up.  I think by that they meant a day when you just laze around and eat nothing but junk and stuff, in your jim jams, watching cheesy films and stuff.   I totaled up all the calories for what they were suggesting that a person imbibe for the day and it was outrageous!

 

Breakfast Sandwich 563 cals. Bloody Mary 128 cals.  Teatime Treat Cake 352 cals, Creamy Hot Chocolate 293 cals.  Movie Snack of Honeycomb, Pancetta and Maple Popcorn  431 cals.  (All of this is per serving folks!)  All topped off with a takeaway feast of homemade  wings 450cals,  Spiced Wedges 299 cals,  Sticky Ribs 571 cals, and Red Cabbage Slaw at 248 cals . . . They can't be serious can they???  Or can they???  The mind boggles.



Kind of makes the calorie count of one of these tasty scones with some cream and jam seem rather healthy in comparison . . .  duvet or no duvet . . .



In any case . . . these certainly were a pick-me-up.  Is it feed a fever starve a cold?  Or is it starve a fever, feed a cold.  I don't know.   I only know for sure that I am about fed up to the eyeballs with coughing my guts out . . .

These made a nice change . . . a small indulgence without going over the top.

 

 *Cherry Almond Scones*
Makes 8
Printable Recipe

Beautifully  rich and flaky scones, stogged full of candied cherries and lovely flavours of vanilla and almond.  The flaked almonds which are baked on top give them a lovely crunch.

2 cups plain flour (200g)
1/3 cup caster sugar (65g)
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup chilled butter (75g)
2/3 cup whipping cream (156ml)
1 large free range egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp pure almond extract
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup candied cherries, washed, dried and cut into quarters (200g tub)
flaked almonds and cream to finish

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Set aside.

Sift the flour into a bowl along with the sugar, baking powder and salt.  Drop in the butter, cut into bits.  Rub the butter in with your finger tips until the mixture resembles fine bread crumbs.   Stir in the cherries.   Whisk together the cream, egg and extracts.   Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients with a fork.  The mixture will be very sticky.  Tip out onto a floured board.  Knead several times with floured hands to bring together.  Pat out to 1 inch thickness.  Cut into rounds with a sharp round cutter, 3 inches in diameter., using a sharp up and down tap.  Do not twist.

Place rounds onto the prepared baking sheet.  Brush the tops with more cream and sprinkle with flaked almonds.  Bake for 18 to 22 minutes until well risen and golden brown.  Scoop off onto a wire rack to cool.   Dust with icing sugar to serve if desired.   Delicious split and served with clotted cream and preserves.

 

Hooray for autumn and all those lovely apples that are now being offered at road stands and in the produce departments of the local shops.  Not French Apples either, but beautiful, sweet delicious fresh British Apples.  Perfect for eating out of hand, cooking into sauces and chutnies . . .  and for baking into lovely pies, tarts, muffins and cakes.  Cakes like this beautiful one I am showcasing here today.

This is a deliciously different cake, baked from an old traditional  recipe which is Irish in origin.  What makes it different you ask???  Well . . . this is a cake that is  a cross between a cake and a scone . . .



The method used to make the cake batter is very similar to the same method you would use when making traditional scones . . . rubbing the butter into the flour with your fingertips until crumbly. Stirring in the wet ingredients with a round bladed knife to make a soft dough . . . but that is where the similarity ends.  It bakes up into a deliciously moist cake . . . not a sturdy scone.



I guess you could say that is is also similar to a pie, because you have both a top and a bottom crust, with a delicious apple filling sandwiched in the middle . . . the top and bottom crusts melting together at the edges, and then baking in and around the apples, to form one of  the tastiest cakes ever!!



At one time this cake would have been placed into an iron pot oven, with burning coals topping the pot . . . the pot situated close to the open fire on a rustic Irish cottage hearth . . .



Oh what a romantic image that inspires . . .  I can almost  see it now . . . the flames from the open fire licking up and down the walls . . . the light flickering on the dark cottage walls . . . the smell of smoke mingled with that beautiful smell of baking cakes . . . apples . . .  and spice . . .



Alas, we have no open hearth . . . simply an electric oven and a deep flan tin but nevermind . . . it still tastes pretty darn good!!!

Served warm with lashings of warm custard . . . this was the perfect rainy day teatime treat.



*Irish Apple Cake*
Serves 6 to 8
 Printable Recipe

A delicous version of an apple cake, baked with tasty apple slices sandwiched in the centre. Serve warm with or without custard.

225g self raising flour (generous 2 cups)
(You may need extra
so don't put the flour away just yet)
115g  butter (1/2 cup)
1 large free range egg, lightly beaten
115g caster sugar (9 1/2 TBS)
3 fluid ounces milk

Filling:
2 cooking apples, peeled and sliced
1/2 tsp cinnamon
57g soft light brown sugar (4 1/2 TBS)

Topping:
a little beaten egg
1 level TBS of caster sugar

Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Butter a deep flan tin, with a loose bottom, roughly 9 inches in diameter. set aside.

Place the flour and butter into a large bowl. Rub the butter in with your fingertips to form a breadcrumb texture. Stir in the sugar. Add the beaten egg and milk and mix together with a round bladed knife. If the dough seems a bit too sticky add a bit more flour. You want a soft dough, but not a sticky one. Turn out onto a floured board and cut the dough in half. Place half of the dough into the flan tin, pressing it in with floured fingers to evenly cover the bottom of the dish. Spread the apple slices evenly over the base, leaving a bit of an edge all the way around. Sprinkle with the soft light brown sugar and the cinnamon. Carefully roll out the remaining half of the dough into a circle roughly the same size as the dish. Place on top of the apples, pressing the edges together with the bottom crust. Cut several slits in the top of the cake for ventilation.

Brush with a little beaten egg and sprinkle the TBS of caster sugar evenly over top. Bake for 35 minutes, until well risen and golden brown.

Place the tin on top of a jar and push the sides of the pan down and remove. Place the cake on a wire rack to cool to warm before cutting into wedges to serve.



If there's anything else that goes very well on a rainy day with a cake such as this, it is a nice hot cup of herbal tea.  Today we were supping on beautiful cups of Fruit Medley Tea which was sent to us from Adagio Teas.  A delicious herbal blend of rose hips, hibiscus, apple pieces, natural strawberry flavour and strawberries, orange peel and natural wild cherry . . . soooo good, almost addictive and soooo good for you!  A wonderfully aromatic and flavourful blend which contains nothing artificial, no sweeteners, and totally caffeine free.

Adagio Teas recently sent me a lovely assortment of their herbal tea range . . . all lovely. We've really been enjoying these lovely blends . . .

Lemon Grass . . . with a delicate Meyer lemon taste, as well as a slight hint of sweet ginger, and very aromatic floral fragrance. Smooth and fragrant. It felt very soft in the mouth, not astringent at all with a lovely clean finish. Very Thai . . . an uplifting, yet naturally caffeine free tea.

Blood Orange . . . another favourite with a deep vibrant colour and sweet tangy flavour . . . and yet without sugar.  It's a combination of orange peels, hibiscus flowers, rose hips and natural orange flavour.  Very, very rich and tangy . . . just lovely.  (I used to love Constant Comment tea when I drank black teas . . . and this really reminded me of that.)

Rooibos Vanilla . . . this lovely rooibos tea combines that beautiful and rich  sugary scent of vanilla, combined with the fruity juiciness from the rooibos, altogether almost dessert-like . . . but without the calories.  A cookie you can drink, and not gain an ounce on your hips.

White Blueberry . . . you know how much I love Blueberries . . . a premium white tea, combined with the taste of juicy blueberries.  The Canuck in me loved this both warm as a hot drink . . . but also cold as an iced tea.  It had a clean refreshing taste . . . most delectable.



You would think that all those lovely herbal blends would be enough . . . but no, they also sent me a beautiful little gift  set of "Love Petals." This is a sweetly presented set of three delicious sounding teas in gorgeously romantic looking  rose printed tins . . . Ripe for Romance (a mix of black tea, cocoa nibs, raspberry leaves, raspberry pieces, and natural chocolate and raspberry flavours.  Sounds nummy.)  Sweet Nothings (a mix of white tea, sunflower petals, lavender buds, apricot bits, and natural peach flavour) Hugs and Kisses (A mix or rooibos, rose petals, cornflowers, and natural vanilla, almond, cream and caramel flavours.)  I have not tried these yet, but they do sound delicious and those tins are just beautiful.  I think these would be a lovely gift for someone special.

Wow, nice . . . I can hear you thinking that.  But that is not all . . .



They also sent me this really neat little tea steeper!  The ingenuiTEA is a really nice looking piece of kit which promises to be the  most convenient tea pot you will ever find anywhere.

From their page:  The most convenient teapot you will find anywhere - we guarantee it. When tea is ready, simply place it atop your cup. This will cause a valve at the bottom to release: crystal-clear tea flows down, while the mesh filter retains all the leaves with one of the best infusers on the market. Super easy to clean and dishwasher safe - perfect for the office or the road. You will wonder how you got along without one. 

Can it live up to it's promise??



Very simple, easy to read and great instructions on it's use clearly printed on the side
of the box.



Boiled water added to the tea.



Steep for the required time.



Placed over the cup, it empties itself into the cup.  Just make sure your cup is large enough to take the amount of liquid in the teapot . . . or else it will over flow!  (That happened to me the first time I used it!  DUH!)



A beautiful, well steeped, delicious flavoured cup, of hot, warming, comforting tea.

What more could you want??

Many thanks to Stepas and Adagio Teas for affording me this lovely chance.
What can I say . . . I'm hooked.  These herbal blends are quite, quite fabulous!

I was recently contacted by The York Coffee Emporium and asked if I would like to try out some teas and coffees. I said yes of course . . . I know, I am a Latter Day Saint . . . and we do not drink tea and coffee for health reasons, but that does not preclude me from using it to cook with . . . nor does it preclude me from drinking caffiene free options. I agreed try out some of their teas, but refused coffees.

About the company: (from their site)

The York Coffee Emporium are committed to providing you with the perfect cup. Their coffee is roasted daily in small batches at their artisan roastery in York and their speciality loose leaf teas are selected from the best estates from around the world to suit all manner of tastes.

Each of their distinctive coffees comes with a recommended brew guide and strength indicator, to help you choose the right coffee for your enjoyment. Their coffees are ethically sourced from green coffee buyers who are committed to excellent coffee, excellent standards and paying their farmers an excellent price. They source, roast, blend and pack the coffee ourselves, to ensure that the coffee makes as few journeys as possible once it has left the farm.



York Coffee Emporium is also a UK distributor for Metropolitan Tea, a large Canadian Tea merchant with direct trade links to tea producing areas. (Go Canada!)



I was sent three different varieties of tea to try out along with a nifty packet of 100 t-sac tea filters. (Note, I did not try out the tea filters as I don't have a full sized teapot. I only have a nifty two cup one, which has it's own built in infuser.)



Their luxury teas are sourced from the Metropolitan Tea Company, whose passion is to provide the finest loose tea, premium tea and accessories the world has to offer. The company stocks a large and varied selection of superb loose leaf tea, including Black and Oolong, Green and White, Fruit and herbal Infusions, Flavoured Tea or Wellness Teas. Most of their teas contain either Fair Trade or Ethical Tea partnership accredited tea.

Ethical Tea Partnership(ETP) - monitor and regulate the living and working conditions on tea estates around the world. Teas showing this sign contain either 50% or 98% ETP content.

Fair Trade (FT) - Promotes increased standards of living for labourers in developing countries. Teas showing this sign contain at least 50% FT content.

Note: I invited a tea-drinking non-mormon neighbour around to help me test these teas out. She didn't want her picture taken, but I will give you her honest opinion, plus my own of that which I tried.



The first tea was the

Yorkshire Harrogate Breakfast Tea (ETP 98% FT 50%)

(I want to apologize ahead of time today for the quality of the pictures . . . my camera seems to be packing in. I've had it for about 5 years now and it's been used every day, so I think it may be time to buy a new one. Sigh . . . )



Said to be a traditional Yorkshire blend of China, Kenya and Indian Tea, and proposed to be a bright and full breakfast tea.

Although it was not first thing in the day Brenda thought that this was a full bodied tea, with a rich flavour that she thought would be the perfect morning cuppa.

Tea Grade: Yumman - Flowery Tippy Orange Pekoe; Kiambu - Broken Pekoe1; Assam - Broken Orange Pekoe

It's all Greek to me, but if Brenda liked it, then that's good enough for me!



The Second Tea was

Rhubarb and Cream (98%ETP)

Said to have an exquisite flavour reminiscent of fresh rhubarb pie. This tea contains luxury black tea, Safflower + Sunflower petals, Jasmine Petals, Blackberry + Lime Leaves and Natural Flavours.

I confess I did taste this one myself, thinking it was an herbal infusion, without knowing that there was black tea in the mix. I thought it was delicious though, with a definite rhubarb flavour that was quite pleasant, and truly not much unlike that of a Rhubarb Pie!! (Except a lot easier on the waistline!) It was almost sweet and most definitely creamy! Refreshing even! I liked! Brenda liked!

Tea Grade: Orange Pekoe



The final tea was

Raspberry Leaf

This was a caffeine free tea, said to known to be a great drink during pregnancy, in particular esing discomfort during childbirth! (Who knew!) Archaeologosts discovered evidence that this health benefit was first taken advantage of by native American Indians. Infusions of raspberry leaf tea have also been used for health benefits ranging from the soothing of throat infections to easing leg cramps. Raspberry leaf contains high quantities of Vitamins A, B Comples, C, and E, as well as many essential minerals.



We both found this to be a very robust and full bodied tea, much similar in flavour to traditional black tea. It looked like dried herbs and sticks actually . . . kind of like reeboos tea. Brenda said that she would have a difficult time telling the difference between this tea and her regular cuppa. This would make a great caffeine alternative to regular tea in our opinion, especially if you are looking for a caffeine free choice.

Our Todd has not been feeling well . . . with a sore throat actually. I think I'm going to brew him some of this when he gets up. It might be just the ticket!

Many thanks to Ben and York Coffee Emporium for sending me this lovely mix of teas!



Now, you don't think I'd have someone over for tea and not offer them some sustenance along with their cuppa do you??? Of course not!! I baked some Jam Filled Scones!



These scones are lovely. They can be a bit fiddly to make and they seldom stay together when they are baking . . .



You may even think they're a tiny bit ugly . . . but I can promise you the taste is anything but . . . ugly that is. Perfect for elevensies or afternoon coffee break! (See those bubbles??? There's money in that cup of tea. My mom always says those bubbles meant money, so it must be true!)



*Jam Filled Scones*
Makes 10

A scone with an unusual twist . . . jam in the middle. Perfect with your afternoon cuppa.

300g self raising flour (2 cups)
pinch salt
2 TBS caster sugar
30g of chilled butter, chopped (1 ounce)
200ml of milk, plus extra to glaze (7 fluid ounces)
2 1/2 TBS jam (I used raspberry and blueberry)
Sifted icing sugar to dust



Preheat the oven to 220*C/425*F/ gas mark 7. Line a baking tray with baking paper, or lightly grease.

Sift the flour and salt into a bowl. Whisk in the sugar. Drop in the butter and rub it into the flour mixture using your fingertips until you have a mixture which resembles fine dry breadcrumbs. Make a well in the centre.

Add almost all of the milk and mix to a soft dough, using a fork, and adding remaining milk if necessary. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead briefly to bring it together into a smooth ball. Roll out with a floured rollin gpin to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into 3 inch rounds with a sharp round cutter, using a direct up and down motion, without twisting the cutter. Pat out a bit and make a hollow indentation in each, about 1/2 inch from the edge along one side. Spoon a little bit of jam into each indentation. Brush the edges with some milk and carefully fold the dough in half to make a semi-circle, covering the jam and pinching the edges to seal. Place about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking tray. Brush the tops with a bit more milk.

Bake for 12 minutes until well risen, golden brown on top and on the bottoms. Serve warm, dusted with some icing sugar.



*How To Brew The Perfect Cup of Tea*
It's not really all that hard if you follow a few rules of thumb . . .

1. Use a good quality loose leaf or bagged tea
2. This must be stored in an air-tight container at room temperature
3. Always use freshly drawn boiling water
4. In order to draw the best flavour out of the tea the water must contain oxygen, this is reduced if the water is boiled more than once.
5. Measure the tea carefully
6. Use 1 tea bag or 1 rounded teaspoon of loose tea for each cup to be served, plus one for the pot.
7. Allow the tea to brew for the recommended time before pouring
8. Brewing tea from a bag in a mug? Milk in last is best