I originally wanted to make cinnamon rolls this weekend, but the brown sugar in the cupboard has hardened and once I managed to roll out of bed on Saturday morning I was starving and in want of something fast and simple.
So scones it was.
I made them in between commercial breaks while watching Monsoon Wedding. This is pretty much why I like making scones, they’re that simple and really don’t demand much of you. That’s a nice feeling.
Basic scones are perfect when you only have flour, sugar, butter, and an egg left in your pantry and fridge. They’re simple, but surprisingly hearty. They’re also perfect when you happen to have cheese, pepper, herbs, oats, blueberries, chocolate chips, cinnamon, ginger, jam and anything you can think of that will taste good in cookies or bread – but you will put it in your scones because you want something more substantial than cookies, but faster than bread.
I was tempted to throw in some cinnamon, but resisted the urge because I’ve been doing that to almost everything lately. Instead, I decided to throw in kiwis on top of some of the wedges to see what they’d taste like with a more tropical/non-traditional flavour. Also, I thought they’d look pretty and colourful. It wasn’t bad, a bit tangy, but it could be good if I could offset the tanginess with something else.
These batch are the first to have ever turned out so brown and crispy on the outside, but soft and moist on the inside. Though the recipe called for only a milk wash, I decided to brush the top with an egg wash instead and sprinkled some sugar.
If there’s a calamari dish featured in your menu, I will most likely spend an inappropriate amount of time deliberating whether or not I should order it. Will it be overdone? Too tough? Too fried? If fried, will there be enough batter or too little? Will it be a plateful or -worse – just a few crumbs? Anyone who has gone out to eat with me can testify to this. I don’t know why, not quite sure when I discovered it or when I fell in love with it, but all I can say is that I love squid. I love squids and their tender, chewy, fleshy goodness. I like them crispy, I like them grilled, though I’ve never had them stuffed, from the pictures I’ve seen on TV and the net, I’m pretty sure they’re delicious.
I’ve had them at a Greek restaurant over a plate of rice, at a Cajun place in creole sauce with a side of chorizo sausage as well as at Japanese restaurants fried in light and crispy tempura batter. However, my favourite will have the be the ones my family orders from Frederick’s. It’s a Hakka Chinese restaurant, my family gets dinner take outs from there every time there’s a party. I’ve never taken a picture of it, but you’ll have to trust me, it’s just a glorious plate of perfectly fried batter falling off tender white flesh.
Someday I will make them at home.
Is there a reason why some of my cookies won’t spread out while baking? It stays in the same shape as I’ve scooped them out…