Coconut Chocolate Scones

It's snowing as I write this. It's not a blizzard, and it's not staying on the ground, but it is snowing. I'm partially excited because the air is fresh and it's snowing ever so lightly that it's more calming than chaotic white mess. But then again, it's snow, it's the beginning of 6 months of winter and two pairs of pants. At least we have baked goods to get us through. For some reason I think of scones as winter food. They're dense, sweet and need a cup of tea - all things I crave in a snack during the colder months. These scones are moist and slightly chocolatey and the perfect accompaniment to my day cozied up with a blanket and a book. 

Ingredients
Adapted from Hungry Girl

2 cups all-purpose white flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
3 tablespoons white granulated sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cubed
1/2 shredded coconut, toasted
1/2 semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon milk
1/4 cup shredded coconut, toasted

Preheat the oven to 425 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Using a pastry cutter or two knives, mix in the butter until the mixture is similar to sand, the butter being no larger than pea sized.
Stir in the coconut and chocolate chips and make a well in the centre. Pour the cream and vanilla into the well and gently combine, until a dough begins to form. On a floured surface, knead the dough (about 10 times) until the dough is well formed. Pat the dough into a large circle, approximately 1 1/2 inches thick - or your desired thickness. Cut into 8 large triangles and place on the baking sheet. Brush scones with milk and lightly dust with coconut. Bake for 12-14 minutes, until the bottoms are lightly browned.

Out & About: Bouchon Bakery

If you follow me on Instagram you may be aware that over the holiday season, I took a mini vacation with my family to New York City. I had only been there once before, in high school with the school band, so this time around I was excited to cross a few things off my list of must-do's in the Big Apple. New York City is an awesome place, everybody knows that, and there is so much to do, see, and eat that it's easy to cram your day full of things and yet miss so much at the same time. Most of what we did day-to-day revolved around bakeries, cafes and restaurants I wanted to eat in, which I'm sure by now is no surprise to you. One of the first on my list was Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bakery.

This bakery is a beautiful place. With open windows to the baking process in the back and an open display of the freshly baked goods - ranging from croissants to macarons to cookies and more - it's difficult to walk out empty handed. Having just had lunch at Hale & Hearty near the Rockefeller, we decided to finish with something sweet and caffeinated from the bakery I had heard so much about. Mom and I split the cranberry-orange and the egg nog macarons, while my dad and brother each had a TLC cookie - nobody was disappointed. The macarons were perfection, perfectly smooth and crisp on top, chewy inside, and not too sweet - oh how I hope to one day make macarons just like 'em. 

Happy to have crossed the bakery off my NYC list, a few days later on Christmas I was pleasantly surprised to open up the beautiful Bouchon Bakery cookbook. It is filled with gorgeous pictures and stories on how the bakery came to be, various baking techniques and suggestions, and of course drool-worthy recipes of items from the bakery itself! I tried out the carrot muffins (post to come) and they were delicious. This book is a great one to add to your cookbook collection, and the bakery is an even better place to stop off for a quick cup of coffee and sweet tooth satisfier. 

Note: None of these pictures are my own - mine were lost to an unfortunate phone+water incident. 

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Apple Oat Scones

Happy first day of fall! Even though technically it was yesterday I am celebrating today with hot cups of tea, snuggly blankets, cozy sweaters and everything pumpkin, apple and spice. School has been hectic and come October there will be even more to get done, but fall is my favourite season so I'm going to do everything I can to welcome it with open arms. These scones are perfect for just that. Our CSA shares have been filled with apples recently (and I know I didn't post Week 9, but it just came and went so quickly!) and the combination of oats and apples in Martha's scones were just perfect! Here's my version of the recipe:

Ingredients

1 2/3 cups of all purpose flour

1 1/3 cups rolled oats

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

2 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cubed

1 1/2 cups diced apple 

2/3 cold buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 400 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Mix together the flour, oats, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a pastry blender (or two knives works well too) cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly. Stir in the apples and buttermilk just until mixed. On a lightly floured surface shape the dough into a large rectangle, about 1 1/2 inches thick. Cut the dough into 12 square scones and place onto the baking sheet. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until lightly browned.

As with most baked goods, these scone are best served warm on the day of. They're moist, not too dense and have the perfect amount of apple and spice. 

Quick and Easy Tea Biscuits

So remember when I went strawberry picking while visiting my Poppy a couple months ago? What a great day. One thing you can always count on at Poppy's house is an abundance of baked goods made by his wonderful wife, Diane. Diane never fails to have food ready for unexpected guests - whether its salads, cakes, pies, cookies, or my favourite - her scones. Diane has been baking long enough that she could probably make most of the family favourite recipes with her eyes closed, and the scones were no exception. When I asked about them she listed off the ingredients without question, and I quickly made note of them on my phone. These scones are made without butter giving them a much lighter texture, and are great either plain or with any mix-in your heart desires. I finally got around to making them the other day and thankfully it's not a family secret so I can share the recipe with you!

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour

3 tablespoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup 1% buttermilk

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

3/4 cup (approximately) of your mix-in

(I chose dried cranberries)

Preheat the oven 350 F and cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, soda and salt. Stir in the mix-in of your choice. Add in the buttermilk and vegetable oil and gently fold until just combined, don't over work it. Spoon drops of the batter onto the baking sheet (about six biscuits) and bake for 10-15 minutes until crusty and brown on the bottom.

Even though these tasted great, I don't think they'll ever compare to Diane's, there's something about a visit to Poppy's house that makes everything taste better, even his toast is better than mine! Either way these are so easy to make, the perfect compliment to a cup of tea. They are best served warm out of the oven with a little butter or with some homemade strawberry jam.

Strawberry Shortcake

Strawberry shortcake is my all time favourite dessert, no question. On most birthdays I've requested it over birthday cake, I've deemed it the perfect Canada Day dessert (red and white!) and if I'm ever asked for my opinion on what should be had, it's strawberry shortcake, always. So remember how I went strawberry picking a couple weeks ago? Well not only did we make some homemade jam, but we also had tonnes left over to freeze and use for future desserts - strawberry shortcake being one of them.

There are a few variations of this dessert, from layered cakes to mini angel food cakes but I decided on the classic layered biscuits - I'm also a big fan of individual portions. I first tried this recipe from Martha Stewart but it was a huge fail and I ended up with what seemed like gigantic pancakes. After scrounging through the internet some more I settled on adapting this recipe from one of my new favourite food blogs, Pastry Affair. They are dense and wholesome and were the perfect base for strawberries and cream.

Ingredients 

2 cups slice strawberries

1 tbsp sugar

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup white flour

1/4 cup white sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/3 cup cold salted butter

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup 2% milk (or half and half cream)

1 cup whipping cream

To start, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 400 F. Sprinkle the sliced strawberries with 1 tbsp of sugar, and set in the fridge until needed. Whisk together the flours, sugar, baking powder and cinnamon in a large bowl. Cut the butter into small cubes and cut into the flour mixture until it is crumbly. In a separate bowl whisk together the egg, vanilla and milk. Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and combine until just mixed and a dough begins to form. Knead the dough together a couple times to bind it and then roll it out onto a floured surface. Cut 3-inch rounds using a biscuit cutter or glass and transfer to the baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the bottoms are golden brown. While the cakes are baking, whip the cream using an electric mixer on high speed until firm peaks form. Wait for the cakes to cool slightly, cut the in half and layer with strawberries and whipped cream. There isn't much else left to say other than enjoy! I could eat these biscuits plain with butter or jam even, but of course everything is better with strawberries (and much better) with whipped cream. You could also try adding in some chopped rhubarb or diced strawberries to the biscuits for even more flavour. Excuse me while I go feast...

Mixed Berry Buttermilk Scones

One of the best parts of heading up to the cottage is all the delicious food we get to eat. Even though our trips are only a few days long, they feel like mini vacations which also means letting ourselves pig out a little. When ordering some bread from work for the long weekend, Mom also wanted to throw in some scones to go with tea. The scones we make at the bakery are amazing but I decided to make some of my own this time, so I looked through my Pinterest boards and decided to follow this recipe.

Ingredients 

2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

6 tbsp cold salted butter

1 cup buttermilk

1/3 cup frozen blueberries

1/3 cup frozen raspberries

Preheat the oven to 425 F. Whisk together the flour, sugar and baking powder. Cut the butter into small cubes and combine on medium-low speed until the mixture is crumbly. Mix in the buttermilk. Gently fold in the berries just until they're evenly distributed. Sprinkle a flat surface with flour and form the dough into a circle (for smaller scones make two) about 3/4 inch thick. Sprinkle some sugar overtop and cut the circle into 8 wedges. Place the wedges on a non-stick baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes until the bottoms are golden brown.

These were great for breakfast, lunch or a snack in between. I warmed them up in the microwave and spread a little bit of butter inside, but they are also great with jam, clotted cream or even plain - just as they are! For some added sweetness try adding in some white chocolate chips, or make your own fruit combinations with what you have!

Out & About: Tea at the Windsor Arms

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Anyone who knows me will tell you that my soul is more akin to an eighty year old grandmother than it is a twenty five year old. Though I do enjoy a good party now and again (more so if there is karaoke involved), I am just as happy, if not more, cozying up with a nice cuppa tea. That being said, it makes perfect sense that I spent my birthday weekend drinking lots of tea, watching movies, and heading downtown for afternoon tea at the Windsor Arms Hotel. For those of us in North America, Sunday was also Mother's Day so as a dual celebration we made a reservation for four a couple months ago to ensure we had a spot.

The hotel is beautiful. It is classic, small and chic and located in the luxurious Yorkville, Toronto. The tea room has three spaces of slightly different decor that seats a fair number of people without being too crowded, and design that gives your afternoon outing the right amount of elegance without being overdone.

We were seated in the contemporary 'Purple Room' and afternoon tea started with our choosing of one of about twenty loose-leaf teas. I chose a passion fruit green tea that was the perfect combination of earthy and sweet. Next came the tiers of treats. The top plate featured four different kinds of miniature cakes (from a white chocolate cup with edible gold to a mini dark chocolate cupcake), the middle plate had a variety of tea sandwiches (such as smoked salmon with caviar and sun-dried tomato cream cheese with cucumber) and the bottom plate held four homemade scones. Of course it wouldn't be a proper afternoon tea if Devon clotted cream (bringing me back to my exchange student days) and jams - mixed berry and strawberry-guava - weren't provided. Since most of the other guests were there celebrating Mother's Day it was assumed we were as well, but my Dad informed our server that it also happened to be my birthday. After we finished our plates of goodies, out she came with a white chocolate and pistachio dipped strawberry courtesy of the chef! The final course was a raspberry sorbet with a small shot of champagne poured over top - delish.

Needless to say my family and I experienced a major sugar crash-food coma afterwards, but it was well worth it. The service was impeccable, the atmosphere was cozy and elegant, and the food was nothing less than perfection. If you are ever in the Toronto area I highly recommend making time for tea at the Windsor Arms. Thanks to my wonderful family and friends for a fantastic birthday - and to my mother for giving me a birthday to celebrate!