Let's just talk about the scones.

yum.

Instead of regaling you with the story of today, otherwise known as 'the day the universe decided I needed a good punch in the kisser,'  I will write to you of scones. Scones are nice, aren't they? Scones are the opposite of a day spent at the Department of Motor Vehicles, the Social Security office, three (count 'em three) auto service stations including the dealership, and in all probability, having to take legal action against one of those service stations for a botched job that has resulted in:  1.not being able to change the oil in my car, 2. passing an auto-inspection required by the state of Oregon, 3. not being able to register my car in Oregon until this is resolved, 4. not being able to legally adopt my husband's name or apply for an Oregon driver's license until all of the above are resolved, and 5. the domino effect this will have on tax returns and did I mention the pouring, relentless rain that battered my head for just under 7 hours?, and OH MY GAWD, PEOPLE, I said, I wasn't going to talk about it, and I am completely talking about it. Did somebody just holler 'whiner!' from the back row? You back there. I heard you. And you're totally right, so let's move on to the scones, and pray this whole mess figures itself out before I lose my apologetic composure. So. Scones. Lovely, wonderful, stress-relieving, manna from heaven, scones. These are quickly becoming a Sunday morning tradition around here. I don't know about you, but I like to spend my lazy Sundays in pajamas and robe with my favorite mug full of Peet's coffee.


Let's do this.

Variations of this recipe have been floating around the interweb over the last few weeks, and can be found at both Chocolate & Zucchini and Cooking with Amy, with a few differences. Believe me when I say, you cannot screw these up. All you need is a bowl and a fork and opposable thumbs, for cryin' in the night. This recipe usually calls for strawberries and strawberry yogurt, but I think most of us who are trying to eat locally and seasonally are none too keen on buying strawberries right now. For late-winter, early-spring I suggest these, or cranberry-orange, having made them with great success using plain yogurt and re hydrated cranberries (just soak the dried ones in hot water for a few minutes), adding a few teaspoons of orange zest. Also delicious.

Scout's Blueberry-Vanilla Yogurt Scones

You will need:

- 215 g  (1 3/4 cups) of all-purpose flour
- 30 g  (2 1/2 tablespoons) of sugar
- 30 g (1/4 cup or 1/2 a stick) of unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon of baking powder
- 2 tablespoons of milk
- 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract (or more, depending on your tastes)
- handfull of fresh or re hydrated blueberries (or any kind of berry you like)
- 125 ml (1/2 cup) of *ORGANIC vanilla yogurt

*Trust me on this. We all know that organic is best, but please don't let the eewey gelatinous texture of non-organic yogurt come anywhere near your scones. Organic = milky & creamy. Milky & creamy = fluffy scones.

Easy-peasy Directions:

Take butter out of fridge ahead of time. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Put on sweet tunes.

In a medium bowl, mix the flour, sugar and baking powder. Add in the diced, room-temp butter and blend it all together with a fork, until no lumps of butter remain. Feel the burn.

Add the yogurt and milk and vanilla extract, and keep working with the fork to mix it all together, until the dough forms a ball. Stop mixing as soon as the dough starts balling-up, otherwise the scones won't rise as much. Fold in the berries (and zest, if using).

Shape the dough into a circle about and inch thick and cut into eight wedges, or just divide the dough into eight balls. Brush them with milk and sprinkle a wee-bit of brown sugar on top. Place the wedges a few centimeters apart on the cookie sheet. Bake for 15-17 minutes, until the scones have risen and turned lightly golden. Serve warm with lots of butter and blueberry jam, or drizzle with honey.

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Either way, your kitchen will smell marvelous, your pajamas will be cozy, your belly full, and you will be nowhere near The Department of Motor Vehicles. Sounds perfect to me. And after the scones have been gobbled up, you can admire the lovely stains that blueberries leave on parchment paper and white plates.

Have a wonderful evening, friends. I hope you have fun giving these a whirl. I'm off to finish the whole lot of them. There is nothing that baked goods cannot cure.

All love,
*Andrea

Comments

[shari]

beautiful scone photo. they look and sound so good. can't wait to try them. so sorry about your crappy day. hope all is better soon. hugs!

[Angie]

Sorry to hear about your bad day. Those scones sound really good, I'll have to try the recipe, thanks! Thanks also for the sweet comment you left on my blog the other day :-)

[emily]

aaah. the power of baked goods to cure all that ails.

[lisa s]

all i can say is YUM.

also hope things are going better....

[julia]

yuk. at least you had something yummy to ease the pain.

[Nik]

What a yucky day, thank goodness for edible therapy. I loved the recipe- put on sweet tunes? hell yeah!- but I think in order for scones to be theraputic for me, I'd have to deep-fry them. :)
Miss you A-bomb...

[jmboyle]

you poor thing!! I had a similar situation when we bought our house. For some reason in NY you can change your name but need a million documents in order to change your address. We've been in our house for 4 years and my drivers license still has my rented cottage address!! Thank God for on line bill paying!!

[Eunice]

oh, i'm there with you about department of motor vehicles. hate them with a passion, no matter what state you are in, there will always be an unbelievable amount of red tape (and bills! oh the bills!) ...and all because they NEVER tell you anything until the last minute!

but i'm glad scones are helping. i had some biscuits with sugared blackberries to join in your merry feast. :)

[sulu-design]

Damn. The world is pissed at you, isn't it? What the heck?!? Let's get together and drink lots of coffee and eat yummy things that someone else prepares for us soon, alright? Between breakfast out and your scones, we'll make everything okay.

[Tinuviel]

Scones ARE the cure for what ails you. And scotch. And Peet's coffee. Cozy robes don't hurt either. Yours looks like the one I just bought for myself--Macy's post xmas day sale because it's the one thing I asked for and didn't get-thankyouverymuch!

I do hope you get your DMV stuff straightened out. It feels like being dropped down a rabbit hole sometimes ;) Good Luck!

[Tinuviel]

Scones ARE the cure for what ails you. And scotch. And Peet's coffee. Cozy robes don't hurt either. Yours looks like the one I just bought for myself--Macy's post xmas day sale because it's the one thing I asked for and didn't get-thankyouverymuch!

I do hope you get your DMV stuff straightened out. It feels like being dropped down a rabbit hole sometimes ;) Good Luck!

[Tinuviel]

Scones ARE the cure for what ails you. And scotch. And Peet's coffee. Cozy robes don't hurt either. Yours looks like the one I just bought for myself--Macy's post xmas day sale because it's the one thing I asked for and didn't get-thankyouverymuch!

I do hope you get your DMV stuff straightened out. It feels like being dropped down a rabbit hole sometimes ;) Good Luck!

[carolina]

Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan. Forget red tape. You got wrapped around some rainbow tape. Take a deep breath birdie. Love from Cali to you.

[Molly]

Curses, curses to the DMV and automobiles in general. Also to the hassle of the name change. Which reminds me. I should have changed mine with social security by now. It's only been five or so months. Eh. :)

[Donna]

oh, this recipe is good. I made them this morning and I'm seriously considering making another batch.
thanks for posting the recipe!

I hope things are straightened out with the DMV, or will be soon!

[meg]

I tried your scones (with blueberry and lemon zest) Sunday morning. My husband and I ate the whole batch for breakfast with our coffee (topped with whipped cream). He usually doesn't care for scones because he thinks they are "like hockey pucks," but these....he actually loved them, and i think we may adopt your Sunday morning scone tradition. Thanks!

[Mary Beth]

scones....yummmmm
Just what the dr. ordered

[maggie]

found this when googling "blueberry yogurt scones" and it really is delicious...but it needs salt! either salted butter or add in 1/4 tsp. they tasted a little flat. nice texture though! thanks!