I just made some homemade blueberry jam the other day, and what better to have with jam than homemade scones. This recipe is nice because it is easy to make, delicious, and a good base recipe if you want to add other ingredients. I plan on making another batch this week and adding chocolate chips. You could add fruit, nuts, chocolate, or whatever your heart desires. These scones are moist and have a nice slightly sweet taste.
The key to making scones and biscuits is to use cold butter and to grate the butter with a cheese grater. Butter is quite slippery and will get warm from the heat of your hands, so keep it in the wrapper as best you can.
Ingredients:
3 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
5 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup cold butter
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk or half and half
Combine all of the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
Grate the butter and cut it into the dry mixture with a pasty cutter or a fork and knife. I finally got a new pastry cutter! Woohoo! For those of you that read my blogs know that I have been without one for quite some time.
Put the beaten egg in a measuring cup and then fill to the 1 cup mark with the milk or half and half. I used a combination of half and half and milk. Mix the two together and add a little at a time to the dry mixture. You shouldn’t have to use all of it.
The dough shouldn’t be too moist, just add enough so that the dough will stick together once kneaded. It won’t look like it will in the bowl, but you can tell by using your hands and squeezing some together.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board and knead until it comes together. Roll the dough into a circle about a 1/2″ thick.
Use a pizza cutter or a knife to cut the dough into 8 pieces, this made very large scones. If you would like them smaller divide the dough in half, then roll it out and cut into 8 pieces.
Place the scones on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 12-13 minutes or until brown.
Then enjoy plain or with some jam! Yum!
This baked french toast will be your “go to” brunch recipe from the moment you taste it. I started making this years ago for Easter brunch, and it has become a dish that my family looks forward to all year. It has become such an awaited favorite that I am pretty sure I would be disowned if I ever were to decide to make something else. No joke, it’s that good.
This recipe makes enough for a large and a small glass baking dish of french toast. Since this year it was only the four of us, I started to just prepare one dish and the evil stares I received from my children made me quickly realize that was a bad idea. I guess if you wait 365 days for something, you want as much as you can get. A few days extra of this yummy treat for breakfast was a small price to pay for my children’s happiness.
To make your new brunch favorite you need:
2 large French breads
8 eggs
2 cups of milk
1 1/2 cups half and half
2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 cup butter
1 1/3 cups brown sugar
3 tbsp. light corn syrup
Butter a large and a small glass baking dish. Cut the french bread into 1″ – 1/2 ” pieces and arrange in the baking dishes.
Whisk together eggs, milk, half and half, cinnamon and vanilla in a mixing bowl.
Ladle over the bread ensuring that every piece is covered.
Cover and refrigerate overnight so the egg mixture can absorb into the bread.
The next day combine the brown sugar, butter, and corn syrup in a saucepan over low/medium heat until everything is melted.
Spread the mixture on the french toast until evenly coated. I never use it all, but that is up to you.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes, sometimes longer, until the egg is fully cooked. You may need to cover with aluminum foil near the end to prevent excessive browining.
Absolutely delicious! You will see why my family counts down the days until I make this french toast again.