Simply Scones

We recently visited a new little coffee shop and cafe in Wood's Bay called Priscilla's Pour House. Our friend Ashlee and her husband Ben are the owners, and we were excited to support their budding business, even if it meant a 40 mile drive. While we were there enjoying the scrumptious Eggs Benedict Ben whipped up for us, I noticed a small basket of baked goods displayed for sale. "Who makes your pastries for you?," I asked...just curious. Ashlee went on to tell me that they bake all of their own pastries in house - except for the scones. "I don't know, we've never really tried scones," she said "and I'm kind of scared of them."

That conversation got me thinking this morning, after I had thrown a batch of fresh scones in the oven for breakfast, that maybe there were other people out there, just like Ashlee and Ben, who were unnecessarily "scared" of scones! Now, I understand if you've never actually attempted to make scones, the task could seem daunting, but let me assure you, it is not. All you need is a simple recipe and a bit of creativity, and you'll have another quick and easy addition to your breakfast menu that the whole family will love!

So, don't let those kitchen jitters get the best of you. Bake your own scones, and next time you're in Wood's Bay, stop by Priscilla's Pour House and tell Ashlee and Ben they should too...

Scones


2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons sugar
6 tablespoons butter
2 eggs
1/3 cup cream, milk or half-and-half

Instructions: Combine dry ingredients, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs,. In a separate bowl, combine eggs and cream until well blended. Stir wet and dry mixtures together until just blended. Over-stirring will result in hard scones. Place dough on ungreased cookie sheet in 6-8 evenly spaced mounds. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until scones are golden brown.

That's the simple base recipe, now here comes the creativity part...

Tasty additions for scones:

Note: I usually put my additions into the dry bowl before adding the wet ingredients.

~ Grated Lemon Peel and Blueberries or Huckleberries
~ Fresh Raspberries and Chocolate Chips
~ Grated Orange Peel, Dried Cranberries, and Slivered Almonds
~ Fresh Strawberries and dollops of Cream Cheese
~ 3T Cocoa Powder and Mixed White, Milk and Dark Chocolate Chips
~ Slivered Almonds, Chocolate Chips and Coconut

The possibilities are only limited to your imagination. For our scones this morning I substituted the sugar with 3T Molasses for a more rich flavor, then I added Chopped Pecans, Butterscotch Chips and Coconut. The results were...Well, you decide...

Homeschooling 101

Today marked the beginning of a new adventure in the Bell household. Our voyage began in the playroom on a little wooden picnic table that sprouted legs (with a great deal of imagination) and took us on a tour of the world from a bug's eye view.  Pencils in hand, we helped a caterpillar grow legs by drawing from top to bottom, and then assisted a bee in finding her food by drawing from left to right. We found that fingerprints make for perfect little ants marching, in a row, up and down the letter A. Best of all, we discovered that learning is great fun, and with a bit of effort we, like all those tiny little diligent ants, will soon have a wealth of knowledge to fuel our imaginations with.