Family Time On the East Coast

                                Maryland with the pine trees and water

I flew back to the east coast for the first time since the end of the pandemic (well, since at least 2023 anyway) and visited with family. It was so wonderful that I ask myself why I waited so long.

It was actually a longer trip than that because I started with a visit with my daughter and her family first. Two days that sped by, which featured one on one visiting and group chats, shared food (of course), including seeing my grandson working at his job at a great Redmond restaurant. He even gave me a hug at the restaurant as I left since I was leaving so early the next morning for the airport. 

The next morning I flew from Seattle to Virginia. After a two hour drive through rush hour (driven by my extremely kind brother who picked me up at Dulles airport) we arrived in Maryland near the Potomac and Chesapeake, a true waterman's area. The top photo in the post gives you an idea of how it looks.

Not sure that I actually have a bucket list, but I have had a few things that I've wanted to do with my brother and his family, plus a few things for this particular trip. I was able to stay in their home, which was so good. Apparently I fit right in! One of the days I was there I started gingerbread waffles in the evening and finished the batter in the morning. Their waffle iron is similar to the one we used growing up, so it really was a great time for memories and yummy food. Here is my brother enjoying his waffles. The recipe is at the bottom of this post.

 

I was finally able to go sailing with my brother, plus with his son and wife. It was a perfect day with a bright blue sky and sunshine and Goldilocks temperature and wind that wasn't too brisk...best for a first sail I think. I really loved it, especially watching my brother and is son work the sails together with the kind of teamwork that has to be developed over time. We drove home right at sunset, which looked like this.

My brother has worked in boat yards most of his life and worked his way up to management and then to concierge services after retirement from the boat yard, so he has sailed for a long time. My daughter remembers sailing with him when she was a girl, but I had never had the pleasure myself. Our ancestors built boats on the Shannon river in Ireland, so I guess it's in the blood, and I enjoyed myself out on the water.

The next day two of the particular things for this trip happened. I have a sister who lives in a house with a dock on the Chesapeake about an hour and a half closer to D.C. She agreed to visit and take care of my brother's cats for a few days, so we drove up and brought her south. Before we picked her up, we stopped in a strip shopping center and got excellent North Carolina style (with a vinegar based BBQ sauce) from a hole-in-the-wall shop. It was excellent and they were generous with the pork filling and also with samples. Unfortunately I don't know the name and I didn't get a photo, but I try to get good BBQ pork when I'm on the east coast, so another wish fulfilled. Seeing my Next Sister Down in person instead of just on Zoom was another wish that was fulfilled. Racking them up! She has a wonderful memory and has contributed to this blog, often in the comments, with extra details and with things I have forgotten from our childhood on the occasions when I blog about childhoods foods and things. She is also a skilled writer, so it's great to read anything she writes. Wonderful to get to spend time with her, even if it was too short.

The next day we traveled three or four hours to Sperryville, VA and I was finally able to visit the cabin inherited by my sister-in-law when her parents passed. She has been going to this property that is located at the end of a country road in a hollow in the mountains near Skyline Parkway. 

A river runs by the house and you can hear it when you sit on the deck. 

There is also bird song and the breeze in the trees. So peaceful. Here is Kate enjoying some of those things as she reads.

Inside the first floor is one open space, except for the bathroom, and it's all heated with a great woodstove. There is also a large loft under an A-frame roof and the deck overlooking the river is spacious and gives a birds eye view of a trail into the woods. 

Tall trees surround the cabin and they were just starting to get some fall color. The sense of peace was very strong. I've been hearing about this cabin for years and it was another place I've always wanted to visit. An added pleasure was that one of their sons lives there and I got to meet his new-ish girlfriend and she is a delight. 

Because my brother was able to find a nearby rental, I was able to stay there and so was my older sister and her husband. Another sister was traveling north from South Carolina anyway, so they also came and parked by the rental. All in all there were ten of us, including four siblings, and this mini-reunion just sort of fell together. I feel so blessed that we were able to gather and enjoy each other, plus husbands, wives, and offspring, plus girlfriend in such a beautiful place. Particularly nice was that it wasn't for a big event, or wedding or funeral. Our family is quite adept at doing little but cooking and eating, plus talking and talking and talking by the hour. We had lots of time to do that! The next post will get into the food we ate in Sperryville, but below is the recipe for the Gingerbread Waffles from the Maryland part of the trip. Enjoy!

Spicy Amazing Overnight Gingerbread Waffles
based on a recipe from Mollie Katzen's Sunlight Cafe' Cookbook

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tablespoons ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon yeast
1 tablespoon brown sugar
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups milk (I used soy milk)
1/4 cup dark molasses
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 large egg (I used ¼ cup egg substitute)
Nonstick spray
Butter for the waffle iron
Lemon curd – optional, but nice
OR Applesauce - especially home made - wonderful
OR Pure maple syrup – hard to resist on waffles
whipped cream - hard to resist on anything

Combine the flour, spices, yeast, sugar, and salt in a medium bow. l Stir the milk  into the flour mixture until blended. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let stand overnight at room temperature (or put in the fridge if room temp. is over 70 degrees F.)

The next morning, preheat the waffle iron. Melt the 6 tablespoons butter and let cool a bit, then stir in the molasses. Beat the egg in a small bowl (unnecessary if using egg substitute) then beat it into the batter along with the melted butter. The batter may be a bit thin.

Lightly spray the hot waffle iron with non stick spray, top and bottom plates, and then butter a piece of bread and use that to rub some butter on top and bottom plates. Make sure that indicator light/gauge shows iron is still hot enough. If not, let it heat a little more.

Add just enough batter to cover the cooking surface…this varies by waffle iron…about 2/3 cup. Lower the top and cook until dark golden brown…it’s OK to check now and then. It takes about 2-3 minutes. The steam usually almost stops rising when it is done.
Serve hot, right away, with lemon curd, applesauce or maple syrup, whipped cream, or toppings of your choice.

Note; If you have too many waffles for the number of people you are feeding, bake the leftover batter a little less than the ones you are eating, let cool on a baking rack, then freeze and store in the freezer tightly wrapped. Re-heat in the toaster.

Fall Travel and a Savory Crostata with Butternut Squash

Look for the recipe for this crostata at the bottom of this post.

"There's something about October that stirs the travel lust in me. The seasons change to my favorite one and I want to see how that looks elsewhere, far from home." 

That's what I wrote on October 1st in 2008 on this blog, and that yearning to travel in October is still with me almost two decades later.

I'll be leaving soon for the Pacific Northwest and from there to the Maryland shore and the Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia. We just finished a week of 90- 100 degree daytime heat so it takes some imagination and memories to comprehend that in a few days the night time temperature will be close to freezing and in the daytime it will be 30 degrees or so cooler. No more sandals or shorts!

I'm looking forward to family time in all those places. Zoom calls and phone calls are great, but face to face is even better. Because what we are going to eat is often front and center with my family, I'll bet that on my return I'll have some new recipes to share, or at least some stories of delicious eats I had.

Preparing for this trip, with it's longer length than usual, means that I had to figure out how to prep the vitamins, supplements and RX for Sweetie (and myself) and store his here in a way that would make sense to him, especially when we got past seven days since he is here and I won't be. He has a great container with boxes for seven days and, fortunately, I found a used segmented small box that was perfect for holding the following days' pills that could be labeled with the dates past seven. One less thing to be concerned about because we each help the other out with not forgetting to take them when life gets busy.

The other challenge for prep is to pack light but still enough layers to stay warm and some rain gear, too, to stay dry.  Once that's done the rest is just the tedium of airports and airplanes. The sweet part is seeing so many wonderful people!

See 'ya here when I come home.

Now, before I go, I want to share with you a recipe I made this week. It's perfect for this season because it uses butternut squash and mushrooms and onions. More flavor and protein is added with some cooked chicken, sour cream, and three of kinds of cheese. I think the blue cheese really pull all the other flavors together but the mozzarella is important for adding the gooey factor and the Parm the saltiness. You layer these ingredients in the middle of a ready made pie crust then fold the rest of the crust over it all, add a bit more Parmesan, and bake. What a wonderful combination of flaky crust, both mild and zingy dairy, with the savory deliciousness of mushrooms, onions, butternut squash and herbs. I could barely taste the chicken as an ingredient, so you can leave it out if you want to go vegetarian. Don't forget the walnuts. They add a nice crunch!

Here's layer 1

Butternut Squash Crostata with Mushrooms, Onions, Chicken and Three Cheeses 

An Elle the Baker Recipe
Serves 6-8

1 pre-rolled refrigerated pie dough round, such as Pillsbury Readycrust

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup chopped yellow or white onions
4-5 oz. fresh mushrooms, cremini preferred, wiped clean and chopped roughly
1/4 teaspoon dry thyme
1/8 teaspoon paprika
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup sour cream (or use Greek yogurt as long as it isn't really wet)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided (I used the Costco true Parmesan Reggiano
1 small baked and peeled butternut squash, about 1 1/2 cups
1 cup grated mozzarella cheese

1 cup cooked, diced chicken

1/4 to 1/2 cup blue cheese (depending on how strong a blue cheese taste you want)

1/4 cup chopped walnuts
salt and pepper to taste

1 egg whisked with 1 teaspoon water

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a pizza pan with olive oil or baking spray or build the crostata on a sheet of parchment cut to fit a pizza pan. If you have one, put a baking stone in the oven on a low rack before turning on the oven.

If cold, bring the refrigerated pie dough round to room temperature. Bring the other ingredients to room temperature, too. 

In a medium skillet, over low heat put the olive oil and heat. Cook the onions in the olive oil  low heat, stirring often, until translucent about 10 minutes.  Add the mushrooms, thyme, paprika, salt and pepper, stir, cover the pan and continue cooking until the mushrooms release their juice, about 3-4 minutes. Uncover, stir often, and cook until mixture no longer has runny juices but is still moist. Set aside, uncovered, to cool.

To assemble the crostata, roll out the pie dough on a lightly floured clean work surface to 10 or 11 inches in diameter. (If you don't have a cake lifter or similar tool to move an 8-inch wide pastry, cut a piece of parchment or foil and place the pie dough on it. If it's foil, lightly grease it with baking spray.

Spread  the sour cream over  the dough circle, leaving a 2-inch edge with no sour cream. This dough will be folded up and over the finished topping later. Sprinkle on 3/4 the Parmesan evenly over the sour cream. Top with the butternut squash as evenly as you can. Top with the onion-mushroom mixture, distributing the vegetables over the squash. 

Sprinkle on the mozzarella cheese. Top with the chicken, then the blue cheese, and then the walnuts, distributing as evenly as possible.

Fold the plain outer edge of the dough over the filling, pleating and folding as needed. Use a pastry brush to coat the egg wash over the dough, including at the back of the pleats and folds. Gently push the egg-washed pleats and folds towards the rest of the dough to adhere Sprinkle with the rest of the Parmesan.

Once the crostata has been filled, pleated and egg washed, check to make sure that the pre-heated oven is hot. Move the crostata to the pizza pan, either using a cake lifter or using the parchment or foil as a sling. Alternately, build the crostata on parchment or foil already on the pizza pan...your choice. I've done it both ways.

If you are using a baking stone, slide the pizza pan onto the stone and bake until the dough is golden brown. If you're not using a baking stone, slide the pizza pan onto the lowest oven rack and bake until the dough is golden brown.

Bake for about 20-25 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the cheese and walnuts of the filling is beginning to brown, too.

Let cool a couple of minutes, then serve or let cool to warm or room temperature. Serve in wedges.

FYI, the 20th anniversary of this blog is coming up later this month and today the page views went over 4 million 250 thousand! Who would have thunk it all those years ago?

A Chocolate Cake for an 80th Birthday

I have a dear friend who turned 80 this month. She is an artist and writer and ecology instructor, she sings in her church choir and does square dancing and loves to play Rumi cubes. I feel very lucky to have her in my life.

For her big round number birthday party she wanted a chocolate cake. Since our group...one of at least three celebrations!... only numbered six women, I decided to bake a smaller Bundt cake. The pan holds 2/3 of the recipe, so I baked the rest in a loaf pan...to freeze for another time. The second Bundt cake will be used for a tea party next week.

This is a great Ina Garten recipe, slightly altered by me...as is often the case...to use coffee and Bourbon instead of orange zest and juice. I also eliminated the chocolate chunks the recipe called for in the cake originally, to make it easier to serve, left out the syrup soak in the original recipe, but I did keep the ganache on top. With some sprinkles and a few extra decor sprinkles, it looked like a party!

Chocolate-Coffee-Bourbon Bundt Cake

• Servings: 12 to 16
• Time: 2 hours
• Source: Barefoot Contessa Parties!
• Altered slightly by me 

You can make this as a bundt (as written below) or two loaf pans (8 1/2×4 1/2-inch is ideal; baking time is 45 to 55 minutes). 

• 1/2 pound (8 ounces or 225 grams) unsalted butter at room temperature
• 2 cups (400 grams) granulated sugar
• 4 large or extra-large eggs, at room temperature (Ina calls for extra-large but large works fine here)
• 3 cups (390 grams) all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons (15 grams) (or 3 cups flour (390 grams) mixed with 3/4 cup dark cocoa powder for a chocolate version)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons espresso powder
• 1/4 cup Bourbon
• 3/4 cup (175 ml)  plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract

Ganache:

• 8 ounces (225 grams) semisweet chocolate chips or chopped semisweet chocolate
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon instant coffee granules or espresso powder (optional)

 

Make the cake: Heat your the oven to 350°F (175°C). Butter and flour a 10-inch bundt pan.

 Cream the butter and  sugar together in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for about 5 minutes, or until light and very fluffy.

 Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the bowl between additions.

 Sift or whisk together 3 cups flour, dark cocoa powder, the baking powder, baking soda, salt and espresso powder in a large bowl. In another bowl, combine the Bourbon, buttermilk, and vanilla. Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately to the creamed butter, beginning and ending with the flour. Pour into the pan, smooth the top.

Bake: For 45 minutes to 1 hour, until a cake tester comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. If using smaller, multiple pans, start checking at 25 minutes.

For the ganache: Melt the chocolate, heavy cream, and coffee in the top of a double boiler over simmering water until smooth and warm, stirring occasionally. Drizzle over the top of the cake.

 Do ahead: This cake keeps very well for four days in the fridge. (I only chill it because of the cream in the chocolate. If skipping the ganache, wrap in foil at room temperature.)

 

Grandad's Applesauce Cake

My grandad lived in New York City, but on occasion he would come visit us in Virginia. When he did, my Mom always made this cake...it was his favorite.

Early in the month I harvested some Gravenstein apples from our tree. For some reason there aren't many this year but the ones on the tree are really large, so five of them made a good sized pot of applesauce. I did peel them (which I don't usually do) so the applesauce was a bit chunky, but not chewy. I seasoned it with cinnamon and a bit of brown sugar. It was delicious all by itself, but also great for making this seasonal cake.

The recipe calls for a Bundt cake pan, but I decided to bake the batter in two loaf pans. That way I would have a cake to share with our neighbors across the street and one house down. They are a younger couple with two lovely daughters and are really kind. Chris has been keeping the bank of grass and weeds along the road trimmed all summer so it seemed like a good idea to surprise him with some cake.

This cake does call for vegetable shortening...like Crisco. I had some in the fridge, so that's what I used, but you can also use room temperature butter. Just be sure to beat it until light before adding the sugar to it, and them beat some more with the sugar. This makes a moist, tender cake with a lovely apple and cinnamon flavor. Bake it in the Bundt cake pan and you will have dessert for a crowd! 

Applesauce Cake

Makes 1 Bundt cake
Recipe from Nancy, my Mom

3 cups flour
1 ½ teaspoon soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon cloves
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
¾ cup shortening
2 cups sugar
3 eggs, beaten lightly
1 ½ cup applesauce
1 cup raisins
1 cup nuts - chopped (walnuts are good)

Sift flour with soda, salt and spices. Set aside.

Cream shortening and add sugar gradually; cream until light. Add beaten eggs and beat to combine.

Add flour mixture alternately with the applesauce, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

Fold in the raisins and nuts. Turn batter into a greased and floured Bundt pan.

Bake in Bundt pan in preheated 350 0 F oven for one hour or until done. Toothpick inserted will come out clean or with only a few crumbs stuck to it.

Cool on a rack 10 minutes, then turn out on a wire rack to cool.

Historic Washoe House

I live in the western part of Sonoma County, CA. A lot of the area where I live was settled with Americans (as opposed to the native Americans who lived here for centuries before we took their land) in the 1850s.

Sweetie and I like to have breakfast now and then at the Washoe House, a bar and restaurant that has been in business, one way or another, since 1859. 

“The legendary Washoe House was constructed in 1859, and over the years - in addition to being one of the most iconic saloons of Sonoma County - the building has served as a stagecoach stop, a hotel, a community hall, and depending on who you ask, everything from a post office to a Wild West brothel.” This bit of history is from their website.

If you go, be sure to look up as soon as you walk in. They are locally famous for their ceiling covered with dollar bills...and maybe some older kinds of money.

They have great breakfasts. This week we met up with some neighbors there and this is what my plate of the Senior Platter with pancakes looked like. For a few dollars more you can get the same thing, larger pancakes, and more bacon, but the senior specials are a great deal and plenty of food for me.

Thursday through Sunday they also have oysters from 8 am to 8 pm if that's your preferred morning treat! They have plenty of choices of egg dishes including omelets and benedicts, great French toast, and Sweetie's favorite, blueberry crepes. It can get loud, especially on the weekends (when there is no Senior Specials), but it's a great place, has wonderful service, and the bar is open from 8 am, too if you want a mimosa to go with your breakfast.

Here is their website: https://www.thewashoehouse1859.com. They are located at Roblar and Stony Point Roads in Petaluma, CA.

Sometime on September 12, 2026

Sometime on September 12, 2026 this blog had it's 4 millionth view. They say that blogs are passé, but people are viewing my posts, including many from the past, especially Daring Baker ones and Bread Baking Babes posts. Thank you to you, dear Readers, for keeping things active her at Feeding My Enthusiasms! 

In a little over a month I will have been blogging for 20 years. Hard to believe that cooking, baking, writing, photography, recipes and blogging have continued to hold my attention for so long. It's fun to dip back into past posts to be inspired by old recipes and to see what my life was like then. It really is a journal. Now that we are almost to Fall I expect to do more baking and to make soups and braises and more things chocolate. Since we are just at the beginning of tomato season here there will still be some summer-inspired cooking, too.

Let's see how long it takes to reach 5 million views!

Caprese Bites and Sweetie's Boat

Do you know how sometimes you take a photo and lose track of it...and then 'find' it weeks later in your digital photos? That happened to me yesterday. I was looking for a photo from early August and came across one that I took during our visit to Redmond, WA to visit our daughter and her family. It's above. The recipe is below.

Kate made an appetizer/starter one evening when we were cooking dinner. It's the perfect summer bite - a Caprese Bite made with a slice of tomato topped with basil leaves and a slice of fresh mozzarella, then drizzled with reduced balsamic vinegar. Make it now when tomatoes are at their peak of availability and flavor in the northern hemisphere.

Caprese Bites
serves 4-5

2-3 medium tomatoes...the best you can find or have grown...sliced, stem end removed
enough slices of fresh mozzarella for each slice of tomato
a bunch of fresh basil
balsamic glaze or about 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar reduced over low heat in a small pot on the stove. Stir often to prevent scorching. It's ready when thick enough that it doesn't run off when drizzled over the bites.

On a plate or board, spread out the slices of tomato. Top each with a basil leaf or two. Top that with a slice of fresh mozzarella. Drizzle with the balsamic glaze. Serve at once.

 

Sweetie had been working this summer on a wooden boat. As usual he has made some changes, including on this one adding a cabin. It's careful work. Each of the think pieces of wood for the hull were steamed and fitted to the ribs of the boat, which took a lot of time. This isn't a finished boat, but it's getting close!

Applesauce and Hand Pies

So much fun to have a bearing apple tree. Sometimes I don't have enough free time to harvest many of them, but when I do, I often make applesauce. My tree is a Gravenstein, a type of apple that turns to mush when it ages...or cooks. The first year we lived here I collected a bankers box (cardboard) of them, planning on making something with them when the weather was cooler. This is because Gravensteins ripen in August, when it is often hot! I left them in the basement and went to get them in October. All I found was a soggy box full of apples that had turned to mush. These are not keepers. They need to be prepared or eaten within a week or so of picking.

So, I made applesauce. Washed the dust off 'em, peeled them, halved them, removed the seed part and the stem and flower ends, then cut each half into about 5 or 6 slices. Into a big pot they went. I think there were about  4-5 cups of fresh apple slices. I put in 1/4 cup water to keep them from scorching and sprinkled on about a teaspoon of ground cinnamon. A tablespoon of brown sugar was added, just because. Once covered, I simmered them until they were soft. Once they cooled a bit I mashed them some, but they had mostly mashed themselves they were so soft from cooking.

That's it! I chilled mine and had some for breakfast, but in the evening I made Applesauce Hand Pies.

1 rolled out pie dough circle - I use Pillsbury ReadyCrust and roll it to about 12 inches in diameter.

Cut the circle in half and stack.

Cut each stack into 4 wedges. Try to get them about the same size.

Take the first wedge stack (2 pieces of dough). On one of the pieces scoop some of the applesauce, leaving a 1/2-inch all around that has no sauce. Take the second piece and roll it out a bit to make it bigger. Using a finger you've run some water over, wet about a 1/2-inch all around the outer edge and then place, wet side down, on top of the applesauce wedge, press down all around so it sticks to that 1/2-inch plain dough part.  That seals the applesauce into the hand pie!

Use the tines of a fork to press down gently but firmly all around that 1/2-inch edge to further seal it. Place the wedge, now a hand pie, on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Preheat the over to 425 degrees F.

Repeat with the remaining three wedge stacks. You'll end up with four hand pies on the parchment.

If desired, brush a little cream or egg wash on the top of each pie. Cut a vent slash (about an inch) in the top of each.

Bake in the preheated over for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F and continue to bake 10-15 minutes, or until pie dough is golden brown. 

Let cool on a rack until cool enough to eat without burning your mouth. It will smell so good that you'll want to eat it right away! If desired, drizzle with an icing made with a couple tablespoons confectioners sugar, mixed until smooth with a few drops of milk or hot water. You can add another drop, or two, if it's too thick. If you ice it, let the hand pie cool completely so the icing can set. Then enjoy!!!

Flowers and Fun

This isn't a food post, but it is about having fun. Last weekend Sweetie and I visited our daughter and her family in Redmond, WA and I was able to get up close and personal with her beautiful dahlias. This is her first time growing them...and they were an inexpensive impulse purchase at Grocery Outlet. I love the vibrant colors and spikey shape.

She and I also took a ferry to Whidbey Island and met a friend, plus the friend's son and two grandkids.

 Took in the farmer's market, lunch with farm fresh ingredients, and a wonderful bookstore, plus a bit of shopping.  My sandwich at lunch was a great combo of pesto, shredded and melted mozzarella and roasted veggies on a toasted baguette. Top notch!

A relaxing day with delicious food and great conversation. Hope to do it again!  

August and Scones

August is often a changeable month, a bit like April or even March. Sometimes it's hot and you know it's summer, but then you look on the ground, as Sweetie and I have been doing on our morning walks, and you see leaves that have fallen and they have the beautiful color markings of autumn. Saw one yesterday that had a wine red center and along the edges, with markings along the ribs in dark leaf green and bright gold. Lovely as a work of Mother Nature's art, but also a reminder that the days are getting shorter. It won't be long before my favorite season is here. In the mean time we'll get foggy days and super sunny days and, unfortunately, smoky days. We aren't anywhere near actual wildfires, but the smoke has been present a number of times in the last week or so.

Normally I wouldn't be baking scones in August. Why heat up the kitchen? The reason this year is that my group, P.E.O., that raises money for scholarships for women, held a tea to honor the scholars. My part in the tea was providing five dozen scones. There were two dozen currant scones, two dozen plain scones, and a dozen mini plain scones. To keep the heat factor manageable, I baked the currant ones the night before and began baking the plain ones at 7 am. The currant ones stay moist because of the fruit, so it was fine to bake them a day early. None of them were expected to be warm. The guest list was over 50 people, so having warm scones for that many would have been something of a miracle given that all the work was being done by volunteers.

The Tea was a success, the scholars were honored, with lots of delicious tea sandwiches and small desserts...and tea...and my scones and strawberry jam. The best part was that there was lots of conversation and laughter. Well, maybe the best part was hearing from the scholars. You had to be there.

So, if you want to make some scones, the recipe is below. These scones are rich from the heavy cream and the butter. If you handle them lightly, you are in for a treat; delicate, tender, almost flaky scones that melt in your mouth. 

For this large group, I decided to make the dough ahead, shape them, and then freeze until solid. The frozen scones were stored in Ziploc bags in the freezer and baked from frozen, after I had given them an egg wash and a sprinkle of sanding sugar. Worked like a charm! You give frozen scones another minute or two longer than freshly made ones, but otherwise it's the same.

Below are the three scones: on the left is the mini, at the top is the plain, and at the bottom right is the currant scone.

Cream Scones
makes 12

1 large egg
2/3 cup cold heavy cream
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and chilled

If baking at once: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat. If baking frozen, wait until ready to bake, then preheat and prep pan as above.

Stir the egg and cream together. Set aside.

Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl. Drop in the butter and, using your fingers, toss to coat the pieces of butter with flour. Quickly, working with your fingertips or a pastry blender, cut and rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is from pea-size pieces to pieces the size of oatmeal flakes.

Pour the egg and cream over the dry ingredients and stir with a fork just until the dough, which will be wet and sticky, comes together. Don't overdo it. Still in the bowl, gently knead the dough by hand a few turns (or knead briefly when you turn it out on the floured board).

Lightly dust a work surface with flour and turn out the dough. Divide it in half. Working with one piece at a time, pat the dough into a rough circle that's about 5 inches in diameter, cut it into 6 wedges and place it on the baking sheet. (at this point, the scones can be frozen on the baking sheet, then wrapped airtight. Don't defrost before baking - just add about 2 minutes to the baking time.)

Bake the scones for 20 -22 minutes, or until their tops are golden. Tops may also be slightly cracked...that's OK.

Transfer them to a rack and cool for 10 minutes before serving, or wait for them to cool to room temperature.

To make Currant Scones:

Follow the Cream Scones recipe, but add 1/2 cup moist currants after you work in the butter, but before you add the egg and cream mixture. Be sure to coat the currants with the flour mixture before adding the liquid mix. 

If the currants aren't moist, soak them in juice or whiskey for an hour, then drain off the liquid. Turn out onto a paper towel and dry off excess moisture, then add to the flour mixture.

Follow the above recipe the rest of the way.

Note: You can make variations of these scones easily. Instead of or in addition to the currants, add 1/2 cup chopped nuts. If you like lemon, the plain scones are delicious with the addition of 1 teaspoon lemon zest and 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract or oil. 
Instead of currants, other fruits can be folded in gently once the liquid is mixed in. Examples are 1/4 cup diced dried apricots, or 1/2 cup diced fresh hulled strawberries, or fresh raspberries or fresh blueberries.

 

Peach-Blueberry Crumble Topped Pie

Peaches! Ripe, juicy white peaches just begged to go into a pie. Thought I'd combine them with some blackberries from down the driveway, but it's been too hot to pick berries. Decided to go with blueberries instead and it really is a winning combo.

For this pie you take your favorite pie dough and make a single crust pie shell, then fill it with pie weights (inside a round of parchment is my favorite way to do it, and I use lentils as the weights).

While the pie shell is baking, peel and pit the peaches, then slice them. I doused them with lemon juice, too, to keep them from turning brown at the cut edges.

A mixture of bread crumbs and cornstarch in the bottom of the finished, cooled (and pie weights removed) pie shell help soak up some of the juices from the fruit.

The crumble topping gets made in a medium bowl. Don't forget the nutmeg...it goes so well with peaches. If possible, grate it fresh from an actual nutmeg.

 Now the fun begins. Half the peaches go into the pie shell, half the blueberries are scattered around, the second half of the peaches go on top of that, then the rest of the blueberries. Mound the filling in the middle a bit if you can.

The topping is spread on top and it's ready for the preheated oven.

In a half an hour or so you have a beautiful pie! Let it cool to at least room temperature before serving. There. Summer in a pie.

Peach and Blueberry Crumb Topped Pie

Pie dough for one crust
Pie weights

1 cup blueberries
4 ripe peaches, peeled and sliced and pit removed

1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest (optional)

 Topping:

1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
6 tablespoons (1/2 stick + 2 tablespoons) cold butter

 Rollout pie dough to about 10" in diameter. Line a 8" or 9" pie plate with the dough, crimping the dough around the edges of the pan. Prick lightly all over. Line with parchment paper and weigh with pie weights (raw beans do fine and can be stored and re-used). Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Remove pie weights.

 Prepare filling by putting corn starch,  dry bread crumbs and  lemon zest (if using) into a bowl and mix together gently. Sprinkle on the baked and cooled (and weights removed) pie shell. Then add half the peaches. Sprinkle half the blueberries evenly over the peaches, then the rest of the peaches, then the rest of the blueberries.

Prepare the topping by mixing the oats, flour, brown sugar, pecans and nutmeg in a medium mixing bowl. Using a pastry cutter, two knives, or your fingers, cut the cold butter into the mixture until incorporated and clumps form.

Pour the crumb mixture over the fruit filling. Spread it to cover the pie.

 Bake the pie in a preheated 350 degree F oven until the topping is lightly browned, about 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a rack. Serves 6-8.

 

Peach Time

Peaches are one of my favorite foods and now it's high peach season...it's one of the few things I like about summer.

Too late tonight to post the whole thing, but tomorrow I hope to do a post on what I made with these beautiful white peaches!