cinnamon sugar scones

When I don't know what to do with myself, I make scones. I know it's kind of a weird thing to do, but I find it so comforting and relaxing. It takes my mind off of everything going on and all I can think about is making that perfect scone and then eating it, still warm from the oven. It's probably not the best habit in the world, but it's better than smoking or something, right? Right.

I love making scones because they are the perfect accompaniment to a warm cup of tea(or perfect for a tea party, holla). I can think of nothing better than a steaming cup of tea in an adorable little cup and one of these cinnamon sugar scones straight from the oven. This might make me a little boring, but little moments like those are my favorite parts of the day. And they can fix a bad day real fast.

I got a little adventurous this time and decided to fiddle around with my favorite buttermilk scone recipe(from Baking with Julia) and adapt it into a cinnamony sweet treat. Now that I'm more aware of how certain things are made, I'm trying more and more to adapt and create my own recipes. This one isn't perfect, but I think they were pretty tasty. So here's a little scone-makin' tutorial. Enjoy!

Cinnamon Sugar Scones

3 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
6 oz cold butter
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
topping:
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 425. In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients
2. Add the cold butter pieces to the dry ingredients and using your fingers, work in the butter until the mixture looks coarse
3. Stir in the half-and-half, milk and vanilla just until the mixture comes together
4. Turn the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead very(VERY) briefly.
5. Divide the dough in half and pat each half into a round of about 6 inches in diameter. Cut each round into 6 pieces
6. Transfer scones to a baking sheet and sprinkle each scone generously with the cinnamon sugar topping. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown.
7. Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly before serving. Enjoy!

i love...

Anthropologie at home...

How much sweeter would baking be with one of these adorable aprons?



and of course these little gaggle of geese measuring cups...

If I decorated my entire home in Anthropologie, I don't think I'd ever want to leave the house again. So adorable.

daring bakers: dobos torte

Dear dobos torte,

I must admit when I first looked up the August challenged I was terrified of you. I read the recipe and immediately closed the window, debating whether or not to throw in the towel on Daring Bakers on only my second challenge. You looked scary. Your recipe was miles long. You required a lot of eggs. You caused me a little anxiety. So I went home. I made muffins, scones, and ice cream to avoid thinking about you. But then, while separating all those yolks from whites for my ice cream(cookie no-dough, make it right now) I realized why I started to participate in the Daring Bakers. To be daring, to challenge myself to make something new, to get out of my baking rut. So thank you, dobos torte, for getting me to try something new and a little complicated.

Love,
Julia

ps. You were delicious. Even with my editing, leaving off that wierdo caramel layer and using Martha Stewart's chocolate Swiss meringue buttercream recipe instead(I will write you a love note soon), you were just right.

The August 2009 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Angela of A Spoonful of Sugar and Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella. They chose the spectacular Dobos Torte based on a recipe from Rick Rodgers' cookbook Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Caffés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague.

From the hosts...

"The Dobos Torta is a five-layer sponge cake, filled with a rich chocolate buttercream and topped with thin wedges of caramel. (You may come across recipes which have anywhere between six and 12 layers of cake; there are numerous family variations!) It was invented in 1885 by József C. Dobos, a Hungarian baker, and it rapidly became famous throughout Europe for both its extraordinary taste and its keeping properties. The recipe was a secret until Dobos retired in 1906 and gave the recipe to the Budapest Confectioners' and Gingerbread Makers' Chamber of Industry, providing that every member of the chamber can use it freely."


find the recipe here: Daring Bakers August Challenge

chocolate chip cookies, take 1

With a cookie as classic as the chocolate chip, it's easy to get obsessed with finding the absolute perfect recipe. The New York Times even ran a spread on perfecting this beloved cookie. And who could blame them? The cookie is such a delightful blend of sugary, chewy, crispy, chocolaty goodness that it is no surprise how much debate has spawned over the "perfect" chocolate chip cookie.

Curious to join in on the hunt, I read up on recipes all over the place. Then, in my summer library cookbook frenzy, I found Tate's Bake Shop Cookbook. It's a small little book that I wouldn't have noticed had it not been placed next to the Buttercup Bake Shop Cookbook(and how could you not pass that one by? SO CUTE). Between the cover photo, a seemingly mile-high stack of thin and crispy cookies, and Ina Garten professing in the foreward that these were the "best chocolate chip cookies you ever ate"...well, I had to try them out. And so, with Ina's words in my head, my search for the best chocolate chip cookies begins. It's not quite as serious as the NYT, but I'm determined to try out all those little variations on the cookie to find my favorite. It sounds like a fun challenge to me.

These cookies were pretty good. The flavor was absolutely amazing, the edges were crispy and the center perfectly chewy. I feel like I didn't quite do them justice, though. My cookies were extremely thin and I had trouble keeping some of them from crumbling apart. It may have had something to do with the fact that I didn't really try to make them uniform sizes, and I think this recipe really only works for cookies of the specified size. The ones that did end up being the right size were incredible.

yum, a bowl full of cookie dough...

Recipe
from Tate's Bake Shop Cookbook by Kathleen King (also available here)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup salted butter
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon water
1 teaspoon vanila
2 large eggs
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two cookie sheets or line them with Silpat.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, and salt. In another large bowl, cream the butter and sugars. Add the water and vanilla. Mix the ingredients until they are just combined. Add the eggs and mix them lightly. Stir in the flour mixture. Fold in the chocolate chips. Don’t overmix the dough.

Drop the cookies 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets using two tablespoons or an ice cream scoop.

Bake them for 12 minutes or until the edges and centers are brown. Remove the cookies to a wire rack to cool.

bonjour

image via weheartit

Welcome to the new blog! I promise it will be full of sweeter things once I get settled and start baking up a storm. Until then, I'd love suggestions for anything you'd like to see. Merci!