Kicking it old school: Scones with Jam and Cream

Well sydneysiders, it’s definitely Winter. In case you missed the memo, the weather gods have brought a doozy of a storm this week  to remind you. Winds of 100km/h, flash flooding, very sudden drop in temperature all hit mid early on in the week but, strangely enough, I’m quite content sitting here, indoors in my onesie and slippers. Yep. it is definitely onesie weather.

Don’t pretend you’re not jealous.

What could make being warm and inside on a cold rainy day even better? Scones of course! Just like your nana used to make, just like your mum used to make. Don’t you think they look comforting?

They’re simple, fun to make and are great if you want to bake but have run out of eggs. Not to mention they’re a great excuse to get out all your jams and a good pot of tea. Bliss!

I started off with some delicious Blueberry Jam, Rhubarb Jam and double thickened cream.

I scored the jam on my last trip to the Maxwell Treats factory in Berry. Delicious!

I found the scone recipe in The Country Show Cookbook that I was given for my birthday last year. It is full of recipes that have been winners at country shows around the country. This particular recipe is from Ruby Mulley who has been exhibiting at the Camden show continually for fifty years! Holy moly! Although there are myriad scone recipes in the book, this was the first in the section, and it seemed straightforward enough to follow. Although, I do think sometimes that these women who seem to have magic at their fingertips leave out a vital step or trick. My efforts never yield quite the same results as those wonder women in country kitchens. Still, these were pretty damn good.

I followed the recipe to the T

even when it meant sifting the dry ingredients six times.

Yes, I am not the most patient of women but I did sift it

SIX TIMES!

I mixed it all up with a knife

Patted out the dough and cut the rounds

and BAM! Light as air, delicious scones.

One with rhubarb jam, the other with blueberry and BOTH with a great whack of cream

is there any other way to eat scones?

Look at that! Fluffy, warm and piled with the good stuff.

Overall it is a pretty easy recipe to follow and execute and great for a lazy morning on a rainy day. It’s also a nice accompaniment to watching re-runs of Monarch of the Glen and Heartbeat. Yes, I think my  inner homebody and oldie are definitely on display this winter. So, my lovelies, what do you like to do on a rainy winter day? And have you succumbed to the power of the onesie yet?

Scones Recipe (Ruby Mulley’s recipe from The Country Show Cookbook)

Ingredients

3 cups self raising flour

4 tsp icing sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp  salt

large 1/2 cup thickened cream

2/3 cup milk

1/2 cup hot water

Method

1. Sift all the dry ingredients together six times. Yes, SIX times. And don’t skimp if you want some seriously light scones

2. Make a well in the centre and add the wet ingredients

3. Mix with a knife until all the ingredients come together. Don’t over mix or the dough will be too dense and heavy

4. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead well. Pat the dough out until it is a couple of cm thick

5. Cut with a sharp cutter and place onto a baking tray

6. Cook for 10 mins at 230 degrees celsius (210 degrees celsius fan forced)

7. Enjoy with copious amounts of jam and cream and a large pot of tea

And now for something completely different…

Well, kinda different. Those who follow me on instagram (bakerbowie by the way!) might have noticed that my pics are not always cooking related. While I always maintain that the best thing to chill me out after a stressful day/week/month/year is to get in the kitchen and start cooking, I have found another hobby that seems to do the trick on the stress front. That hobby is sewing. And yes, I am aware that I am utterly predictable in my love of all things pink, sweet, girly so to imagine my sewing on would not be that big of a stretch.

Don’t worry, I am still cooking and have a few goodies to serve up in the next few weeks, but I want to share a few cute (simple) projects that i’ve been working on. It all started with a cardigan that I ordered from Asos a few months ago. While it looked lovely on the model, it looked pretty plain on me. When will I learn that what looks amazing on an online model will almost NEVER look the same on an ordinary human being?

It looked like this.

Cute collar, but pretty average everywhere else.

So I hopped on etsy to look for some buttons to brighten it up. Who knew that changing the buttons on a cardigan would completely change it? Now that i’ve let you in on the not so secret admission that i’m totally predictable, can you guess what kind of buttons I bought? Bows you say? Absolutely.

See? Cuteness magnified about 100000000%

So, while I work on my sewing machine skills which are pretty average, I though that I would start small by customising some cardigans. I went out and bought myself a few more to experiment on. At $10 a pop, how could I just stop at one? So I bought five.

Don’t judge. I know that you wouldn’t have passed that up!

I added swarovski buttons

sugar sweethearts? Nah, plastic buttons, but cute nonetheless!

And I like their use of the imperative.

HUG MEEEEEE!

So yes, all my sewing things are pink too…

which is nice when i’m sewing buttons on a pink cardi

because we all know that matchy matchy is the way to go!

these ice-cream buttons are just so damn cute it hurts.

It hurts in all my cuteness glands.

By the way do you like how even my sewing is cooking/food related? Thought you would!! So what do you do to chill out, lovely readers?

Im in heaven – Fusion Sweets Artisan Confections

I’m a big believer that most things happen for a reason.

Which is why, after a very disappointing and frustrating day of nothing going right, this package that I had purchased from Fusion Sweets Artisan Confections arrived to cheer me up. The universe had timed it perfectly. Not only was it the perfect package to brighten my day, but it arrived at a time when I had completely forgotten that I had even ordered it. Of course, this package had to be food related, but to give you a hint regarding the enormous joy that was to be found within its cardboard exterior, I must furnish you with a photograph.

Sweet, salty, supple and soft, these caramels are hands down, the best caramels I have ever tasted.

And honey, i’ve tasted many caramels.

I first came across these babies whilst trawling through etsy and was wooed by the delicious photographs, exotic flavours and sheer creativity of the sweets available. Mango, Rose and Lime Berlingots? Sure! Raspberry Lemonade Marshmallows? Yes please! French Sea Salt Butter Caramels? Oh god, I think I can die happy right now. For my first order it took me days to make up my mind but I finally settled on the French Sea Salt Butter Caramels.

Beautifully packaged, these come in an 8oz box for US$13.50

Each caramel comes studded with chunks of sea salt, smooshes of vanilla bean seeds and the most divine soft, sweet, smooth texture i’ve ever had.

So can you blame me when I went  back for more? Only to find that there was (perhaps) an even more amazing sweet on offer. Now, if you imagine that I was in uncontrollable raptures before, just think how insane I became after receiving these…

caramallows

yes, that’s right

home made marshmallows wrapped in caramel

insane in the brain.

These too are ridiculously soft with a deliciously yielding marshmallow centre as well as smooth, velvety caramel outer layer.

The Vanilla Caramallows come in a box of 10 pieces for US$13.00

And you thought I was done there didn’t you? But surely you know me well enough by now to know that that could not possibly be true. And if you were astute enough to assume that then you would be correct. But again, how could you blame me? When I was faced with this…

Spanish Hot Chocolate Mix with a range of home made marshmallows (US$10.99)

Oh. My. God.

Deliciously rich hot chocolate with chunks of dark chocolate scattered through to give it that extra chocolate kick

This is not for the faint hearted

but the addition of some cutely named ‘not so boring vanilla bean marshmallows’ will surely warm the cockles of your heart

I would say that pink pyjamas are optional, but really, who am I kidding?

I can’t wait to try all the different flavours of these marshmallows!

Kay is an attentive and communicative seller, always answering my questions quickly and kindly. After hearing my dismay at the high shipping cost, she was very willing to suggest options which would allow for a reduced price, although I still shake my fist at the US postal service for imposing such ridiculous shipping charges. Overall, purchasing from Kay is an extremely pleasant experience and, having ordered and received several packages from her now I can say that her sweets are consistently top notch quality.

So, my lovelies, what is your all time favourite sweet? And can you think of something as amazing as a caramel wrapped marshmallow? I’m dying to hear!

All products were paid for by me and this review was unsolicited by the seller.

An even better Lime Syrup Cake

So I am a little obsessed with limes. And when they get made into delicious things like…

lime syrup cakes

can you blame me? Now if you’re feeling like you’ve got a bit of deja vu, then you wouldn’t be too far off. I did post the CWA Lime Cake way back in 2010 when I began this blog. But with the second birthday of this little blog of mine swinging round, I thought i’d bring back my old favourite but with a little delicious tweak.

I saw this recipe on the beautiful Kiki’s blog after i’d scored a bag of limes ridiculously cheaply. Apart from making a Key Lime Pie and some watermelon, lychee and lime cocktails, Lime Syrup Cake was the perfect way to use these babies up. And the Women’s Weekly recipe that Kiki used intrigued me with its addition of ricotta. What I love about the CWA recipe is the beautiful light buttery texture of the cake as well as the lovely limey syrup left at the bottom. This recipe is much more dense but infinitely soft and oh-so-lime-syrupy!

I used Greek Style Yoghurt instead of ricotta because I couldn’t get my lazy ass to the shops to buy some. Oops.

But look at the cute tea cosy behind it!

If you’re currently suffering from the chilly turn in Sydney, I’m sure this hot, fresh out of the oven cake will warm you up

The super moistness and limeness of this cake comes from a little lime in the batter but mostly the lime syrup trickled over the top while it is still warm.

I recently discovered Weis Vanilla Bean Icecream. This has to be hands down the best vanilla ice-cream i’ve had so far. A few scoops of this baby cuts through the lime if you’re not such a fan of the sour.

mmmmmmmmmmmm

and an action shot, just so you can feel jealous. But better than feeling jealous, you can go get some limes and make this freakin cake! You won’t be disappointed!

So, my lovelies, do you love limes? And what do you like to eat to keep away these winter chills that are currently invading Sydney?

Lime Syrup Cake – Adapted from The Australian Women’s Weekly

Cake Ingredients

200g butter

1 tablespoon lime zest

1 cup (220g) caster sugar

3 eggs, separated

250g greek yoghurt

1/2 cup (125ml) milk

1 1/2 cups (225g) self raising flour

Syrup Ingredients

1/3 cup (80ml) lime juice

1/4 cup (60ml) water

2/3 cup caster sugar

Method

Preheat oven to 180deg (160deg if fan forced). Grease a 20cm bundt pan well with extra melted butter.

1. Beat butter, rind and sugar in small bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy

2. Beat in egg yolks, yoghurt and milk

3. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in sifted flour.

4. Beat egg whites in a small bowl until soft peaks form

5. Fold into batter in two batches then pour into a greased 20cm bundt pan. Bake on 160 degrees for 40-50 mins. Check regularly as mine was truly cooked by then

6. Turn cake out onto a wire rack and cool for 5 mins before covering in syrup

 

Lime Syrup Method

1. During the last 10 mins of the cake baking, begin making your syrup

2. Stir the lime juice, water and sugar in a saucepan over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil.

3. Boil uncovered for 10 mins, keeping a careful eye on it! Don’t let it caramelise! In the mean time, stab your cake all over it’s surface with a skewer to help the syrup absorb

4. When the syrup has thickened a little, take the pan off the heat and pour gently over your cake.