Lewis-Style Scones

Now that Shannon is living away from home and out of state, it has become more challenging to make food for her.  Whenever I make the things that we used to enjoy together, I can't help but think of her and feel really sad.  Soon Brahms might land somewhere further than where he is now - UC Davis.  So I now begin to write some of our family recipes one at a time so that they will have somewhere to refer to whenever they feel like cooking foods that remind them of home.

Fruited Scones

(This is something we started making after we came back from our family's first trip to the UK in 2004.  The recipes we see on cookbooks are often harder and less sweet than what we'd like scones to be.  So Tim and I experimented on existing recipes and came up with something we like.  We serve our scones with freshly whipped cream.)

                1/3 cup margarine or butter

                1 ¾ cups all-purpose-flour

                6 tablespoons sugar

                2 ½ teaspoons baking powder

                ¼ teaspoon salt

                1 egg, beaten

                1 cup dried fruits –mango, cranberries or raisins

                4 to 6 tablespoons half-and-half (or up to ¾ cup buttermilk)

                1 egg, beaten (for brushing the dough)

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Hydrate dried fruits with hot water for 5-10 minutes.  Cut margarine into flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt with fork or pastry blender (I prefer to use my hands) until mixture resembles fine crumbles. Stir in one egg, the currants and just enough half-and-half so dough leaves side of bowl.  If you prefer soft scones use buttermilk enough to make the batter sticky and soft.

Using spoons shape and then drop them on cookie sheet.   Brush dough with beaten egg.  Bake 10-12 minutes (depending on oven) or until golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet; cool. Serve with freshly whipped cream accompanied with a cup of tea.

About 15 scones; 130 calories per scone.

Savory Scones

(Way back when, I made this recipe for a Parent/Child Chess tournament that my kids participated in.  It was a big hit to the kids as well as their parents and the teachers.  To this day, Miriam and Brahms still remember how good they were.  They might have forgotten how the tournament went but the scones were definitely memorable.)

                1/3  cup margarine or butter

                1 ¾ cups all-purpose-flour

                3 tablespoons sugar

                2 ½ teaspoons baking powder

                ¼ teaspoon salt

                1 egg, beaten

                1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

                ½ cup bacon bits

                 ¾ - 1 cup buttermilk

                1 egg, beaten (for brushing the dough)