OATMEAL SCONES

To keep my sanity during these stressful times, my baking marathon continues.  For me, baking is not only relaxing, it gives me something to focus on, fuels my creativity, as well as provides a really yummy end product (well, most of the time).  Even if it doesn’t look good, most bakes taste good and that’s really all that matters.

I found this recipe (originally from the Quaker Oats company) as I was cleaning out old cookbooks.  It looked quick and easy, perfect for today’s rainy day … and perfect to go along with a hot steamy cuppa and a good book.  Give it a try, you won’t be disappointed.

OATMEAL SCONES
Bake at 425° for 20 to 30 minutes.  Makes 8 to 10 scones (or more, depending upon the size)

2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup oatmeal (any type will do)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 stick cold butter, cubed
3/4 cup milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla

Topping – optional
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons sugar

Glaze 
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons orange juice

First, line up all your ingredients.  Don’t be one of those bakers who goes looking for things as you go along.  If you have everything in front of you, you’re less apt to make a mistake and forget something.  Then, preheat your oven and prepare your pan.  Most ovens take 20 minutes or more to heat up thoroughly.  A $5.00 oven thermometer is a great investment and saves a lot of baking disasters.

You don’t need any special equipment to make these, but I did use my food processor.  Nothing is quicker than a food processor … as long as you know how and when to use it.  The “pulse” button is all you need for these!

In a large bowl (or food processor) add the dry ingredients.  Mix well or pulse two or three times.  Cut the icy cold butter into cubes and add it to the dry ingredients until it resembles fine crumbs.  Again, if using a food processor, PULSE 10 or 12 times … no more!

In a small bowl mix together the egg, milk and vanilla.  Then add this wet mixture to the dry mixture.  Stir it in with a fork or PULSE a few times just to combine everything.

Turn the mixture out onto a floured board.  Knead a few times to bring it together.  Do not overwork the dough or your scones will be tough and won’t rise properly.

Form the dough into a round and with a rolling pin, gently roll until you have about 3/4″ thickness.  Cut the dough into triangles (or you can use a cutter to cut out shapes).  Place the triangles onto a parchment lined baking tray.

In another small bowl, mix the chopped nuts, sugar and cinnamon.  Sprinkle over the scones, pressing down lightly to fix them onto the scones.  This is completely optional.

Bake the scones in a preheated 425° oven for 25-30 minutes (if smaller scones are made, you may need to reduce the baking time.  When they have baked through and are browned, remove them and place them on a wire rack to cool.

Combine the powdered sugar and orange juice and just drizzle over the top of the scones.  Then be prepared to watch them disappear.

Be sure to put the kettle on and enjoy this easy-to-make, delicious treat …
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Digestives

Digestives!  What in the world could I be thinking!  Do you know what a Digestive Biscuit is? Honestly, it is a relatively unexciting cookie made with whole wheat flour, some oatmeal (not much), brown sugar and baking powder, but Brits love them … and they go so well with a good cuppa.  Fifty-two Digestive biscuits are said to be eaten every second of every day in Great Britain.  Prime Minister Gordon Brown caused a huge uproar in 2009 when he refused to acknowledge which manufacturer he thought made the best biscuit.  Digestives are a huge export item and are found in most grocery stores in the international foods aisle.  Of course, Hubby loves the chocolate covered ones, which makes this cracker-like cookie a little more interesting.  So, I’m going to ‘give them a go’.

In doing research for a good, authentic recipe, I’ve learned that Digestives actually originated during the elaborate Victorian period of Great Britain when long multi-course breakfasts and dinners were served. The Digestive biscuit was created as a way to ‘help’ aid digestion either after or before one of these marathon meals.  The thought was the whole wheat flour and oatmeal would add fiber and the antacid properties of baking soda would aid “digestion”.  Hence, the “Digestive“.

Producing 27 million biscuits every single day, the largest manufacturer of Digestives today is McVitie (pictured above).  They claim to have created this their signature product in 1894, the recipe for which is kept very secret, but they may have a problem.  Huntley & Palmers  claim to have created the ‘wholemeal biscuit’ in 1839, 55 years earlier.  But it seems even Huntley & Palmers may not be the creator.  An advertisement in theManchester Courier and Lancashire General Advertiser placed by J. Hutchinson, proprietor of Abernethy’s, on September 19, 1829 states that his biscuits are “… highly approved by medical men.”

This early recipe from the 1890 cookbook The Bread And Biscuit Baker’s And Sugar-Boiler’s Assistant by Robert Wells may be interesting, but I think I’ll  make them using  something a little more current.

“5 lbs. of granulated wheat meal, 1 lb. of butter, ¼ lb. of sugar, ¼ lb. of ground
arrowroot, 4 eggs, 1 quart of milk, ¼ oz. of carbonate of soda. These are mixed up
in the usual way, pinned out and cut with a small round cutter, docked and baked
in a moderate oven.”

If you haven’t tried a Digestive, they are not sweet cookies – more like a cracker – and I must admit these aren’t as good as the packaged ones (sometimes the original is just had to beat), but they are pretty darn close.  Not only can Digestives be served as an accompaniment to a dessert (especially the chocolate covered ones) or alone to dunk in a hot cuppa, they can also pair very nicely with a good quality cheddar and glass of wine.

DIGESTIVE BISCUITS
Makes 3 dozen.  Bake at 350° for 20 to 25 minutes.

1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose unbleached flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons rolled oats
1 stick butter, room temperature
3/4 to 1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup cold milk
~~~
8 to 10 oz. good quality bar chocolate
light cream

In a small bowl, sift together the dry ingredients.  In another bowl, with a mixer, cream the softened butter and brown sugar together.

Add the dry ingredients to the creamed butter/sugar and mix until well blended.  Add the cold milk and continue to mix well.  When thoroughly combined, dump the batter onto a floured pastry board.  Form into a ball and knead lightly.  Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate the dough for at least an hour or more (or even overnight if you’d like).

Preheat the oven to 350°.  Working with half the dough at a time, put the other half back into the refrigerator.  Working quickly, place the chilled dough onto a floured board and roll to 1/4″ thickness.  Don’t roll too thin or they will crumble after baking.  Cut with a 2″ cookie cutter (or smaller, if you want more cookies) and place on parchment lined sheet pans.  This is a very wet dough so flour your work surface and work quickly.


Prick the tops with a fork to keep the biscuits from rising.  When finished, roll out the second half of the dough and do the same.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes at 350° or until firm.  It is not necessary to have them brown.  The longer they bake, the crisper they will be.  Remove the pans from the oven and let them cool completely before transferring the cookies to a wire rack.

For chocolate Digestives, melt good quality bar chocolate in the microwave and then thin the melted chocolate with about 2 tablespoons of cream.  Mix well.  Either dip or spread the chocolate onto the cooled cookies.  These cookies keep very well for a week or more in a tightly sealed container.

Now put that kettle on (or open a nice bottle of red wine) and enjoy!!

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References:  McVitie’s, Foods of England, Downton Abbey Cookbook, Food 52, Washington Post

 

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BLACK PUDDING or BLOOD PUDDING??

Growing up my Dad would tell us how he loved blood pudding.  He would regale us with how wonderful it was, how it was something he had grown up with, but could never find …. and when he did find it, on a menu in some obscure little diner, that place then became his favorite restaurant of all time!   On occasion my Grandmother (his mother) would find a way to get her hands on some.  We never knew how she got it, but when she fried it up with some eggs and toast, it was the treat of all treats for my Dad.

Blood Pudding

Blood Pudding

As children, would we eat it?  Are you kidding?  Pudding made out of “BLOOD”! Just the name alone was frightening.  Even if he called it by its other popular name, ‘black sausage’, I think our young taste buds would have vehemently declined the invitation.  At that time, blood pudding (black pudding, blood sausage)  wasn’t made in New England.  At least not that we knew.  It was only available if someone coming from the “old country” secretly tucked it into their suitcase when they made the trip over, which didn’t happen often.

The first time I went to Ireland, I was amazed that blood pudding was on every breakfast menu. People were eating it … and enjoying it!!  Huh?  No longer a child screwing up my face at every food that didn’t sound good, I decided I’d be brave, I’d be an adult, I’d try it … which I did. Meaty, but with more texture, a hint of spice, but not overpowering.  Bloody?  Yes, but no more than a good rare steak.  Sliced and fried up, it had a great crunch.  Hmmm, was I missing something all these years?

Black pudding in the dairy case at the airport.

Black pudding in the dairy case at the airport.

Going through the airport on my way back home, there was blood pudding available for sale in the dairy case at the duty free shops.  I HAD to bring some home to my Dad!  How could I not!!  So, I bought it …. and, yes, I “tucked” it into my carry-on, hoping that it wouldn’t be discovered (which it wasn’t).

Blood pudding ….. known by various different names in the U.K., is also very popular in other countries.   In Germany, it is blutwurst …. boudin noir in France …. buristo in northern Italy and sanguinaccio in southern Italy.  In Spain, it is called morcilla.  This delicious and very popular sausage originated from the days when no part of the freshly-slaughtered pig went unused.  The ‘sausage’ itself was created as a way of preserving meat.  Historians can trace sausage making back to 2000 B.C.  and even earlier.  Homer’s the Odyssey, written about 1000 B.C., appears to be the oldest written word about sausage.  “there are some goats’ paunches down at the fire, which we have filled with blood and fat, and set aside for supper; he who is victorious and proves himself to be the better man shall have his pick of the lot”.

And in the  satirical play by Aristophanes in 424 B.C., the sausage is described as the perfect preparation for a politician:  “Mix and knead together all the state business as you do for your sausages. To win the people, always cook them some savory that pleases them.”

A traditional 'fry up'.

A traditional ‘fry up’.

In our ever-shrinking world, imported blood pudding is now sold everywhere in New England, generally available in the refrigerated or freezer section of the supermarket.   Sales of blood/black pudding have made a remarkable turnaround …. up by 25% this year alone.

Made with fresh pigs’ blood and a filler such as oatmeal, barley or buckwheat, fat of some sort, with onions and a variety of spices, there are now local butchers who have mastered the art of making this classic sausage.   A nutritional powerhouse, blood sausage is high in potassium, calcium, iron and magnesium.  Unfortunately, it contains a lot of saturated fat, mostly because it is generally served fried as part of a traditional ‘fry-up’.

Is it possible that there is a renewed interest in this ofall.  Absolutely!  The resurgence of interest in this sausage is amazing as young chefs begin creating recipes using blood sausage and putting these delicacies back on their menus.   – Great British Chefs Black Pudding Recipes

Although I haven’t tried them, I will shortly.  Meanwhile, you can count me in as …. a lover of BLOOD PUDDING!!

References:  Sausage obsession.com, en.Wikipedia.org, Great British Chefs.com,