Thursday, February 13, 2014

Happy Valentine's Day.

 This Valentine's day, most of our peeps are clear across the country. We couldn’t think of a better way to show some love than mailing them (snail mail style) a homemade card. All we needed were a few things from Michaels Craft store and we were ready to spend the snowy night creating. Last week we got all of these little cards out so that they would make it in time. 




Sorry, the shiny envelopes don't photograph well. 



And for the locals

Today was another snow day here in NC. I decided that baking would give me something to do (since I was stuck indoors all day). And I heard that neighbors LOVE food. So I figured that it was a win, win for me to bake them up a little treat. My friend, Jackee, made these for us in December. I loved the mix of rosemary with sweet jam. And they just seemed just festive enough to give out as Valentines. 

Rosemary & Strawberry Scones
Created By: Giada (Food Network)

Ingredients

Scones:

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup strawberry jam

 Glaze:

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, from 1 large lemon

2 cups powdered sugar

1 to 2 tablespoons water Special equipment: a 3-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter



Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with a silpat or parchment paper. Set aside. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, baking powder, rosemary, salt, and butter until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl. Gradually stir in the cream until the mixture forms a dough. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough into a 1/2-inch thick, 10-inch circle. Using a cookie cutter, cut out pieces of dough and put on the prepared baking sheet.  Using an index finger or a small, round measuring spoon, gently make an indentation in the center of each pastry . Spoon a heaped 1/2 teaspoon of jam into each indentation. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Transfer the cooked scones onto a wire rack and cool for 30 minutes. For the glaze: In a medium bowl, mix together the lemon juice and powdered sugar until smooth. Gradually add the water until the mixture is thin enough to spread. Using a spoon, drizzle the glaze over the scones. Let the glaze set for about 30 minutes. Serve or store in an airtight plastic container for 2 days.



 I chose not to glaze mine.


The packaging: nice and simple.



The moral of the story here is this... Bake some scones.  They're delicious. 
- Nicola & the Little Pup

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