St. Patrick’s Day Recipe Roundup!

Oh my goodness ya’ll…St. Patrick’s Day is only 7 days away. Tomorrow I will be starting my annual St. Patrick’s Day blog-a-thon. Yup, I’ll be sharing one lovely Irish-y recipe everyday with you, right up to the big day Wednesday March 17th! Now I think managing to publish one recipe daily for seven days straight is a pretty impressive feat. But, a few years ago I was completely mad and used to start on March 1st and do a new recipe each day until March 17th. That is why you can find over 100 delicious St. Patrick’s Day recipes on my blog. If you’d like to take a peek at my past St. Patrick’s Day posts, you can click Runcible Eat/Recipes up at the top navigation bar and scroll down to the St. Patrick’s Day category. That’s where you’ll find them! And stay tuned here for my latest additions this year. Today I thought I might inspire you with some of my favorite St. Patrick’s Day dishes from years past. We’ll start it off with some bread:

• 

  Classic Irish Soda Bread

• 

  Theresa’s Prize-Winning Scones w/Strawberry Jam & Clotted Cream

Classic Irish Soda Bread & Theresa’s Scones

And here are some drool worthy mains:

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  Chicken Skink

• 

  Guinness Braised Beef Sandwiches on Waterford Blaa

• 

  Irish Ale Potato Cheddar Soup w/Beer Battered Leeks

• 

  Crock Pot Corned Beef & Cabbage Soup

• 

  Dublin Coddle

• 

  Guinness Beef Stew

• 

  Irish Stew

• 

  Smithwick’s Beef & Cheddar Pies

Chicken Skink, Guinness Beef Sandwiches, Potato Cheddar Soup, Corned Beef & Cabbage Soup, Dublin Coddle, Guinness Beef Stew, Irish Stew, Smithwicks Beef & Cheddar Pies

I wouldn’t want to forget the sides:

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  Corned Beef & Irish Cheddar Potato Nests

• 

  Champ

Corned Beef Potato Nests & Champ

And take a peek at these decadent desserts:

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  Baileys Bite sized Cheesecakes

• 

  Chocolate dipped Baileys Pistachio Shortbread

• 

  Guinness Pretzel Truffles

• 

  Guinness Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 

  Baileys Salted Caramel Pots de Crème w/Baileys Whipped Cream

Baileys Cheesecakes, Baileys Shortbread, Guinness Truffles, Guinness Chocolate Chips, Baileys Pots de Crème

And last but not least…something to wash it all down with:

• 

  Irish Whiskey Marmalade Cocktail

• 

  Guinness Hot Chocolate topped w/ Homemade Guinness Marshmallows

• 

  Whiskey & Orange Oat Cream Toddy

Whiskey Marmalade Cocktail, Guinness Hot Chocolate, Whiskey Toddy

Is your mouth watering yet? Quite the galleries of goodies if I do say so myself. And there are many more recipes to be found on my blog as well as seven new ones starting tomorrow! Don’t miss out!

P.S. I tried to get links to the recipe added to the pictures, but with my limited skills, was unable to make it work. You can find links to the pictured recipes in the gallery captions. Sorry ’bout that!

Theresa’s Prize-Winning Scones with Strawberry Jam & Clotted Cream

I can’t believe it! Here it is, March already. And St. Patrick’s Day is a mere 5 days away! That means it is time to start my annual St. Patrick’s Day blog-a-thon. In the days leading up to March 17th I will be sharing a delicious assortment of Irish-y recipes. I’ve been doing this for several years now, so I’ve collected 106 St. Patrick’s Days recipes at this point. Yup! I said over one hundred!!! And that doesn’t take into account all the delicious dishes coming your way this year. If you’d like to take a peek at my past St. Patrick’s Day posts, you can click Runcible Eat/Recipes up at the top navigation bar and scroll down to the St. Patrick’s Day category. That’s where you’ll find them! And stay tuned here for my latest additions. I am very excited to kick off this year’s series of Irish recipes with Theresa’s Prize-Winning Scones with Strawberry Jam & Clotted Cream.

You may be thinking “Who’s Theresa?” – well let me tell you. Theresa is one of my best friends from college. She is amazing in the kitchen. I remember back when we were starving students, and practically surviving on buttered toast (and perhaps the occasional pint or two…), we had actually run out of sliced bread. I looked around the kitchen and quickly announced “We’ve got nothing to eat in there.” Theresa popped out to the kitchen and returned in no time with a big plate of warm fluffy lovely scones. Just like that! To me, who definitely was not of any use in the kitchen at that point (all my cooking skills developed post marriage) it was nothing short of magic! A couple of years ago, Theresa published her first cookbook where you can find the recipe for these scones and the strawberry jam along with over 100 other delicious seasonal fruit recipes. It is called Fruit on the Table: Seasonal Recipes from the Green Apron Kitchen.

Theresa runs a business, The Green Apron, which is an artisan preserve company. Theresa grows much of the fruit and vegetables she uses in her preserves at her family’s orchards at Derryclough and in the walled vegetable garden at her parents 18th Century castle, Glenwilliam.

Her award-winning preserves are made in small batches by traditional methods using locally sourced, organic produce where possible and without artificial preservatives, colours or setting agents. The Green Apron has won 12 Blas na hEireann Irish Food Awards, 7 International Great Taste awards and is listed not only in McKenna’s Guide, but also in Georgina Campbell’s Guide. The Green Apron is also now offering workshops on sustainable living, preserving and bee keeping.

Theresa’s book, Fruit on the Table is a top 10 best-selling cookbook in Ireland , has won a Gourmond award there and has been selected to compete for an International Gourmond award. In her book, Theresa follows the seasons and tells you how best to keep fruit on your table all year round. It is an absolute treasure trove, filled not only with her family recipes for jams, jellies and chutneys but it also runs the full gambit of meals, including recipes for cocktails, snacks , mains and going all the way through to desserts. And it doesn’t stop with the mouthwateringly delicious recipes, Fruit on the Table also gives you the low down on growing your own fruit, the ins and outs of preserving, tips on foraging as well as drying fruit. I’m proud to be sharing these recipes from her book this year and I shared quite a few last year as well, but I’m telling you, they’re only the tip of the iceberg. You’ve just gotta get ahold of this essential cookbook. And if you find yourself in Limerick, you simply must stop by the Limerick Milk Market and pay the Green Apron shop a visit!

I’m sure you must now be inspired to make both these tender fluffy scones as well as the divine strawberry jam with which they are topped. Your first step will be making the scrumptious Strawberry Jam. You will end up with a bit more jam than you require to slather over these scones, but it is great to have on hand. It is very versatile and you can use it many other recipes…hint, hint – it might make an appearance again later this week. Strawberry Jam is my favorite and this jam, free of pectin, is just bursting with strawberry goodness.

And scones…Well, I just love them. With the first bite of these little gems you will understand why they are prize-winning.

And topped with strawberry jam and clotted cream…I am absolutely over the moon! The Husband loves scones with jam and clotted cream as well. In fact, his first experience with this delicacy was in Dublin, shortly after we were married. As he gobbled down every morsel, I just might have heard him murmur “Where have you been all of my life?!!” And I’m fairly certain he was referring to the scones rather than me.

As it turns out it recently came to my attention that there is an etiquette to topping your scone. My friend Keela informed me that spreading your scone with the clotted cream first and then dolloping your jam on top is the Devon way, whereas jam first and cream second is the Cornish way. I checked for the Irish method with my friend Theresa and she said butter goes on the scone first the jam and then cream. No one she is aware of puts the cream on first. Hmmm….the good news here is that Scones with Strawberry Jam and Clotted Cream are pretty heavenly no matter which way the toppings go on. Make up a batch and see for yourself!

• Servings: 18 dainty scones
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

recipe from: Fruit on the Table: Seasonal Recipes from the Green Apron Kitchen by Theresa Storey

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 300 ml (1/2 pint) milk
• 450 grams (1 lb.) all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 110 grams (4 oz.) unsalted butter
• strawberry jam (recipe to follow) and clotted cream for topping

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F/Gas 6).

Beat the eggs in a measuring jug with enough milk to make 300 ml (1/2 pint) of liquid. You will have a little milk left over.

Put the dry ingredients in a bowl. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add three-quarters of the liquid and mix well. If the mixture is too dry, add a bit more liquid or, if wet, add a bit more flour. You should have a soft dough that you can stick your finger through. (Don’t over-handle the dough or the scones will be tough.)

Roll out the dough on a floured surface to 2.5 cm (1 inch) thick and cut into the desired shape. I use a 5 – cm (2 inch) round cutter usually, but sometimes I cut the dough into squares or diamonds.

Place the scones on a lightly floured baking tray and then brush the top with the remaining egg and milk mixture. This gives them a nice shine and color when they are cooked.

Bake for 10 -15 minutes or until they are golden. Remove from the oven and leave to cool on a wire rack.

Spread with strawberry jam and clotted cream. You can even go crazy and slather the scone with a little butter first before adding the other goodness. The sky is the limit!

Variations:

Add the zest of one lemon to the dry ingredients; or 2 tablespoons of raisins or sultanas; or ground cinnamon and the juice and zest of one orange. For savory scones, leave out the sugar and add herbs or grated cheese.

Strawberry Jam

Ingredients: 

• 2 kg (4 1/2 lb) Strawberries (hulled and halved if big)
• Juice of 3 large lemons
• 150 ml (1/4 pint) water
• 2 kg (4 1/2 lb) sugar

Directions:

Place a saucer into the refrigerator to chill. You will use it to test the setting point later.

Put the strawberries, lemon juice and the water into a preserving pot and cook over low heat until the juice starts to run from the berries and they begin to soften. Remove the pot from the heat and put it onto a sturdy work surface.

Take a potato masher and squash the strawberries in the pot. You don’t want them completely puréed but you do want them broken up. Give it about six mashes.

Put the pot back onto the stove and continue to cook the fruit over a low heat until the strawberries are completely soft and the juice starts to darken in color.

Add the sugar, stir in well, and cook on a high heat, stirring occasionally, until the jam reaches settings point. Spoon a little of the boiling preserve onto the cold saucer. Let it cool and then push it with your finger. If it has reached setting point, the top of the blob of jam will wrinkle. You want strawberry jam to be barely set, because if you cook it for too long some of the flavor will be lost.

Pour into warm sterilized jars to within 6 mm (1/4 inch) of the top. Wipe any drips off the rims of the jars to make sure there is a good seal between the jar and lid. A dampened paper towel works well for this. Place lids on and seal.

Enjoy!

Theresa’s Prize-Winning Scones with Strawberry Jam & Clotted Cream brought to you by: Runcible Eats (www.leaandjay.com)

Links for helpful kitchen tools & ingredients for Theresa’s Prize-Winning Scones with Strawberry Jam & Clotted Cream:

Fruit on the Table: Seasonal Recipes from the Green Apron Kitchen

OXO Good Grips Stainless Steel Food Scale

Cuisinart Pro-Classic Food Processor

Kilner Stainless Steel Jam Pan

Ball Mason 4 oz quilted jelly jars

Canning Magnetic Lid Wand

Norpro 600 Jar Lifter

Ball Canning Funnel

 

Fresh Apple Cinnamon Chip Scones

Want your house to smell like a perfect Fall day, all cozy and cinnamon-y? Bake up a batch of these Fresh Apple Cinnamon Chip Scones. And let me just say right here…it is still Fall. I know you’re seeing all those Christmas holiday decorations going up. I think folks have barely put their forks down from their Thanksgiving dinner and they’ve already got their Christmas trees up and decorated. Why rush it folks? It really is still Fall. At least I keep telling myself that. In good old Virginia yesterday it was 76°F (24°C)! We were in short sleeves and I could’ve probably gotten away with shorts. Not my idea of Fall weather. But after a line of thunderstorms roared through last night, we’re back down to the 50’s, which is a respectable range for Fall weather I think. Anyhoo….back to these scones! I love them because they are chock full of fresh crisp apples, which you should be able to find easily this time of year (being Fall – I will say again). They are very soft and tender inside and have a wonderful crunchy cinnamon sugar crust over the top.

It took no time at all to whip these up. Easy-peasy I say. And I can’t tell you how delightful it was to kick back with a hot cup of tea and an Apple Cinnamon Chip Scone, warm from the oven and slathered with butter. No better way to enjoy a crisp FALL day!

 

• Servings: 12 large scones
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

recipe from: King Arthur Flour

Ingredients:

For the Scones:

• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) cold butter
• 3/4 cup chopped fresh apple, in 1/2″ pieces (about half a medium apple); leave the skin on, if you like
• 3/4 cup cinnamon chips
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup applesauce, unsweetened preferred

For the Topping:

• 3 Tablespoons coarse white sparkling sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and spices. 

Work in the butter just until the mixture is unevenly crumbly; it’s OK for some larger chunks of butter to remain unincorporated. 

Stir in the chopped apple and cinnamon chips.

In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla, and applesauce. 

Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until all is moistened and holds together.

Line a baking sheet with parchment; if you don’t have parchment, just use it without greasing it. Sprinkle a bit of flour atop the parchment or pan. 

Scrape the dough onto the floured parchment or pan, and divide it in half. Gently pat and round each half into a 5″ to 5 1/2″ circle about 3/4″ thick.

To make the topping: Stir together the coarse sugar and cinnamon. Brush each circle with milk, and sprinkle with the topping.

Using a knife or bench knife that you’ve run under cold water, slice each circle into 6 wedges. 

Carefully pull the wedges away from the center to separate them just a bit; there should be about 1/2″ space between them, at their outer edges.

For best texture and highest rise, place the pan of scones in the freezer for 30 minutes, uncovered. While the scones are chilling, preheat the oven to 425°F. (So don’t skip this step! Freeze those scones!! Time in the freezer will allow the gluten to relax which will result in a much more tender scone. And the butter will solidify which will make the scones flakier. All good things, so put them in the freezer and chill out with a cup of coffee or something for 30 minutes.)

Bake the scones for 18 to 22 minutes, or until they’re golden brown. When you pull one away from the others, it should look baked all the way through; the edge shouldn’t look wet or unbaked. 

Remove the scones from the oven, and cool briefly on the pan. Serve warm. When they’re completely cool, wrap in plastic and store at room temperature for up to several days.

Enjoy!

Apple Cinnamon Chip Scones brought to you by: Runcible Eats (www.leaandjay.com)

Useful Links for Kitchen Tools & Ingredients for Apple Cinnamon Chip Scones:

Cinnamon Chips – I used these from King Arthur Flour, but you can also get them on Amazon.

Irish Coffee Scones with Whiskey Butter

Here it is, Day 9 of my St. Patrick’s Day countdown and I think it’s time for another yummy breakfast treat. We haven’t had one since back on Day 1 when I posted about those irresistible Chocolate & Raspberry Buttermilk Doughnuts. Not that I’m opposed to the occasional slice of cold pizza, or even better, cold, left over french fries for breakfast. But I’m talking about a recipe for “official”  or ” classic” breakfast food. How about some lovely Irish Coffee Scones? Yeah, scones are perfect for breakfast. And these are for St. Patrick’s Day, so let’s do this thing up right. It’s a special occasion. Not an everyday thing. These scones have coffee, which is an essential for breakfast. And they have Baileys, I think we have established how I feel about the Baileys Irish Cream. It has been in high rotation in my recent culinary creations. So all that is missing for these to be a well-rounded St. Patrick’s Day breakfast would be a nice shot of Jameson. Oh…I’ve got it! We’ll stick it in the butter! Whiskey Butter….that’s what I’m talking about! How fantastic, Irish Coffee Scones with Whiskey Butter!

These Irish Coffee Scones are very moist, quite tender and definitely have a pronounced coffee-y/Baileys flavour. They are very light, almost more cake-like than biscuit/scone like, perhaps due to the addition of the cake flour. They are pretty easy to make, though I will say the dough is quite sticky, so just make sure your hands and prep surface are well floured. As long as you’ve got that covered, you’ll be fine. As with all scones, make sure your butter is very cold when you cut it into the flour and once you’ve added liquid to your dry ingredients, handle the dough as little and as gingerly as possible, otherwise your scones will be tough. Make sure that you don’t forget to sprinkle sugar-in-the-raw over the top of your scones, as it gives them a really lovely crunchy texture. And oh….when serving these delectable little morsels, the Whiskey Butter is not optional. It is a requirement! Start St. Patrick’s Day off right and bake up a batch!

Irish Coffee Scones with Whiskey Butter

recipe from: Buttercream Blondie

yield: 8 scones

Ingredients:

• 1 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 cups cake flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cold & cubed
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup strong coffee
• 1/4 cup Baileys Irish Cream

Directions:

Brew coffee & set aside to cool.

Combine dry ingredients together in a bowl.

Cut in cold, cubed butter.

Whisk eggs with cool coffee and Baileys.

Add to dry ingredients and mix till it comes together. This is a wet dough at first & kind of sticky.   It will come together.

Turn dough out onto a well floured surface.

Pat dough out into a circle.  You can use a rolling pin if you want, I use my hands to shape it. ( I divided the dough in half and patted each dough half into a circle, for a more petite scone. This dough is quite sticky, so make sure your surface, as well as your hands are well floured.)

Slice dough into 8 wedges (or if you have divided the dough into two halves, cut it into 4 wedges) & refrigerate until ready to bake.  Make sure the dough is cold when it goes into the oven.

Brush with heavy cream & sprinkle with sugar in the raw.

Bake at 400° F  for 15-20 minutes, rotating once halfway through.

Whiskey Butter

• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 1 Tablespoon Irish whiskey  (I used Jameson)
• pinch of salt

Whip butter with whiskey and salt.

Enjoy!

Lemon Cranberry White Chocolate Scones

I love scones! Especially the home-made ones, which put those things that a certain ever-present coffee shop sells to shame!  Scones are very easy to make, so I don’t know why I even bother with the store-bought ones. Yet every once it a while, I’m tempted while getting my morning caffeine fix and I buy one. In a moment of doubt as I’m reaching for my cash, I even think back to the last baked good I purchased there and how it really wasn’t worth the calories, much less the money. But then I convince myself that it was probably just a fluke last time and that the one that’s in the display case today look fresh. It will be different this time. But it’s not. Sad to say, the scones are always sort of stale and sickeningly sweet. What a disappointment. I should have waited til I got home, or bundled up one of my good home-made scones to take along with me for the road. I guess hope springs eternal.

I promise you these Lemon Cranberry White Chocolate Scones will not disappoint. They are just chock-full of favourites of mine, namely cranberries and white chocolate. The lemon zest gives them a wonderful fresh zing as well. Slathered in butter, clotted cream and topped with strawberries…pure heaven!

One taste of these lovelies and you’ll be ruined for the coffee shop scones. They’ll still have you for their coffee elixirs, so you shouldn’t feel but so bad for them. And one day maybe I’ll learn.

Lemon Cranberry White Chocolate Scones

recipe adapted from: The Sweet Chick

yield: 8 scones

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 6 Tablespoons cold butter, cut into 1″ pieces
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries (I used Craisins)
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
• heavy cream to brush over tops of scones
• Demerara sugar to sprinkle over scones

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Place flour, sugar, and baking powder in bowl of food processor. Whirr a few times to combine. Add butter to flour mixture and process until mixture resembles coarse sand. Place flour/butter mixture in large mixing bowl.

In a separate bowl mix egg and milk until blended.  Add to the flour mixture. Mix until just combined. Don’t overmix. Add lemon zest, lemon juice, cranberries and white chocolate chips. Mix gently. The batter will be a dough like consistency.

Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface. Divide into two equal sized portions. Roll dough out into circles which area about an inch thick. With a knife or pizza cutter, cut each of the dough circles into four equal sized  triangles.

Separate the triangles and place on prepared cookie sheet. Brush the tops of each scone with cream and then sprinkle with Demerara sugar.

Bake at 425° F for 15 minutes or until tops are golden.

Enjoy!

Scallion Cheddar Scones

The other day, I had a craving for a savory scone and these little fellows really hit the spot! They are wonderfully moist and tender. The cheddar, scallion and Dijon mustard are just brilliant together. These scones are great for breakfast but equally as good for lunch when served with a bowl of soup, chili or stew.

You can make these in the traditional triangular scone shape, but I wanted these to be in a mini sized portion. A 2″ biscuit cutter worked quite easily here. Come to think of it, they would be great for appetizers, given their perfect little bite-size as well. Just imagine them topped with a little slice of ham. I must admit, I did make them to go along with a particular spread, which I will be blogging about next time. Like a hint? It involves bacon and is unbelievably tasty! Perhaps even life changing…But until then, make up a batch of these little gems, which are fantastic all on their own, especially when slathered with butter! YUM!

Scallion Cheddar Scones

recipe from: The King Arthur Flour Baker’s Companion

yield: 20 mini scones

Ingredients:

• 2 Cups (8 1/2 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 6 Tablespoons (3/4 stick, 3 ounces) cold butter, cut into pieces
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1/3 Cup (2 3/4 ounces) cream or sour cream
• 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 Cup (4 ounces) grated sharp cheddar cheese
• 3-5 scallions (1 Cup, 2 ounces) chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375° F

Sift together the flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder. Rub in the butter with your fingers.

Mix together the eggs, cream, and mustard. Add this to the dry ingredients. Stir in the grated cheese and the scallions. Mix just until combined. This is the consistency of drop-cookie dough.

Liberally flour the counter and your hands. Pat the dough to 1″ thickness. Cut dough with 2″ biscuit cutter. (You can also shape these into traditional scone triangular shapes. If you wish to do this pat the dough into a 6×9″ rectangle, about 1″ thick. Cut the rectangle into 6 smaller rectangles, and cut each smaller rectangle into two triangles, forming 12 triangular scones.)Place on well-greased or parchment covered cookie sheet.

Bake for 12 minutes, or until nicely browned and a toothpick inserted into a scone comes out dry.

Enjoy!

Happy Imbolc, St. Brigid’s Day, Candlemas and Groundhog (Hedgehog) Day!

So all of the above mentioned celebrations take place on February 1st or 2nd and have associations with fertility, fire, purification and weather prognostication. Imbolc is an old, pagan Celtic festival which marks the first day of Spring and a re-awakening of the earth. It falls halfway between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. The festival was later adopted by the Catholic church and re-named St. Brigid’s Day. St. Brigid is one of Ireland’s patron saints who lived in the early 6th Century and is associated with fire. In other parts of Europe, the Catholic Church declared this day Candlemas or the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin. It seems Jewish women went through a purification ceremony 40 days after giving birth to a male child (80 days after if the child was female…) February 2nd is 39 days after Christmas. People mark this day by both lighting candles and bringing candles to the church for the priest to bless. They are then kept in the home to be lit in times of need. When European settlers came to the America, they brought their along their own traditions for this day. All included some forms of weather divination based on the behaviour of various animals-snakes, badgers or hedgehogs. Not finding a lot of badgers or hedgehogs here, they substituted our native groundhog as the new oracle. Hence, we celebrate Groundhog Day. I must admit though, I really like hedgehogs, so Hedgehog Day would be pretty cool. Badger Day, on the other hand could be downright dangerous! A traditional poem states:

If Candlemas be bright and fair

Winter will have another year

But if it be dark with clouds and rain

Winter is gone, and will not come again.

Sounds a lot like the criteria for Groundhog Day here, but without mentioning the animal. If good ole Punxsutawney Phil comes out of his comfy den into bright and fair weather and sees his shadow, he’ll run back in thus predicting that we will have six more weeks of winter weather.

The critter himself

I certainly don’t know what will happen tomorrow, but I think Pennsylvania is currently suffering a big winter storm and is unlikely to experience any sunshine.

What Phil will likely see...

I looked around for a recipe that would be good for marking the above mentioned holidays. Milk, cheese and dairy products are associated with Imbolc and St. Brigid’s Day, so I made Cream Tea Scones with Currants. These scones are really great. They aren’t super sweet, which is how scones are usually made here in the US, but are more the traditional type scone you’d have with tea.

Cream Tea Scones with Currants

• 2 cups all-purpose four, plus extra for sprinkling
• 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 4 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup dried currants
• 1 heaping Tbsp raw sugar

Preheat the oven to 400° F (200° C) Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a bowl, stir together the flour, granulated sugar, baking power and salt. Add the butter to the flour mixture. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs and cream. Add all but 2 Tbsp of the egg mixture to the flour mixture all at once and stir until a sticky dough forms. Quickly stir in the currants, just until evenly distributed.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead gently until the dough holds together, about 6 times. The dough should be soft; do not overknead. Divide into 2 equal portions and pat each portion into a round about 1 inch thick and 6 inches in diameter. Cut each round into 4 equal wedges.

Place the wedges 2 inches apart on the prepared sheet. Brush each wedge with the reserved egg mixture and sprinkle with the raw sugar. Bake the scones until golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Makes 8 scones. Recipe from The Williams-Sonoma Baking Book.

I topped my scones with fresh strawberries and Devonshire Double Cream (clotted cream).

Actual clotted cream is difficult to find in the US. However, you can find jars of Double Devon Cream which is very similar to the fresh clotted cream.

English Double Devon Cream...YUM!

Its a bit pricey, but really worth it! Devon cream is the creamiest of cream. It is the consistency of butter or sour cream and tastes amazing spread on scones. Jay had his first taste of a scone with clotted cream on the last day of our honeymoon in Ireland and he absolutely loved it! Whipped cream on scones is nice, but if you haven’t tried clotted cream, go out and spring for some of this goodness.