scones!
serves 12-14
i've always digged scones ever since those pre-A level days where i would just study at KAP or guthrie and head for the confectionary section in cold storage when i needed a bite. of course this baking was assisted by analyn (the maid)
Ingredients:
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar (i used red man caster sugar cause i thought it would be better)
5 tablespoons grape seed or expeller-pressed canola oil (i used olive oil)
optional: 1/2 tsp almond extract
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest
1/2 cup oatmeal (not instant)
1/4 cup wheat bran (since i didnt have this, i just used more oatmeal and flour)
1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour (all purpose/ self-raising flour would do)
* 2 tablespoons millet
* 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
1 1/2 cup dried cranberries (or any other dried frut) (i actually used raisins and chocolate chips as substitutes)
1 cup almonds (or any other nut, preferably diced or in smaller pieces)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (which can be excluded, to your preference)
1/2 cup milk (UHT fresh milk, HL milk, etc)
*not a fan of those seeds so i actually experimented and excluded millet and poppy seeds, and it turned out fine, but you could still include it in of course =)
ZESTY LEMON TOPPING:
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar (caster sugar as well)
1. Preheat oven to 190 deg cel.
2. Whisk the egg, sugar, almond extract, and oil together in a bowl. Mix the lemon zest and the flour, wheat bran, millet, poppy seeds, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg together in a separate bowl and stir with a wooden spoon until all of them are evenly dispersed throughout.
3. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the egg, almond extract, sugar and oil, and mix to create a thick dough. Add the milk and mix well. Fold in your cranberries and almonds (or any other ingredients you think you would like)
4. Lightly grease a baking pan. Scoop up tablespoonfuls of the dough and drop them one by one in mounds onto the baking sheet (alternatively use a muffin/scones pan), leaving 2 inches of space between. (if you have those cupcake papers, you can actually place it into the pan to facilitate you removing the scones later) You should have about 12-14 scones. Bake for 15-20 minutes, just until the crust is barely golden brown and the dough is dry. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
(Be sure to allow the dough mix to cover the nuts/raisins to prevent them from being overcooked)
5. With a fork or a whisk, mix together the lemon glaze ingredients until the sugar is completely dissolved. Drizzle 1 tablespoon over each scone. (This step is really optional; my family actually prefers the original taste without the lemon, so its really up to your preference)
lemon juice with sugar
and, guess what. i mistook the 1 tsp of almond extract for 1tbsp. even as i was pouring it, i was asking my maid why do we have to put so much. sheesh )): so this batch has a real strong almond smell (almost pungent). and the texture of the scones are kinda in between muffins and the authentic hard ones, just like scoffins! so there :]
adapted off drweil :)
THEN, i also decided to make some carbonara sauce from scratch for her, different from jamie's. This recipe was given by joel's maid and is pretty good, (people who prefer their carbonara more creamy would like this over jamie's) just that i didnt really copy the proportions. its about agaration.
Carbonara sauce:
Steps:
1) Slice bacon into small chunks (or you could just use any meat balls)
2) Fry garlic for 0.5 mins, then add the onion in and fry for another minute.
3) Add the bacon in and fry till golden brown, leaving the onion and garlic to one side of the wok.
4) Stir everything together, adding in about 100ml UHT whipcream (Greenfield preferred, easily available in supermarkets).
5) Add chicken stock (ratio whipcream to stock 1:1) and stir together until mixture starts to boil.
6) Season with black pepper (even lemon juice and zest)
7) sieve in cornflour if you want it more creamy
8) Stir in the eggs (~2) right before it boils (this is an essential step cause you do not want to add the eggs in when the mixture is boiling or what you would get is small lumps of egg whites in the sauce)
8) Meanwhile, prepare pasta according to the instructions written on the packet.
I had to stir the pasta continuously to prevent the bottom from being burnt, together with the salt and oil for more taste and to prevent the noodles from sticking together respectively.
9) When the pasta is ready, take a colander and drain the water away, leaving just a little for the pasta to prevent it from drying up, at least till you serve it.
10) Separate the sauce from the pasta until before serving. this is to prevent the sauce from being absorbed by the pasta.
TA-DAA! maybe sprinkle parsley for garnish or even add some lemon juice to the noodles to whet your appetite.
all the best! =]
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