Sigh . . . the sun did not shine . . . it was too wet to play . . . so we stayed in the house . . . all that cold, cold . . . wet day . . . (Thank you Dr Seuss!)
Boy, oh boy, have we ever had a wet week! I think it's probably safe to say that drought conditions will soon be lifted in this country . . . we've had more rain in this past week than we had all winter! This is the kind of weather than can get you down if you let it . . . really and truly.
The grass is really green though! And the roses are blooming profusely . . . tis something you can really appreciate and admire from the comfort of a dry and warm armchair . . . through the window, with a hot cuppa in one hand and a tasty scrummy scone in the other.
Yep . . . nothing tastes better on a rainy day. Well, that's my opinion anyways!
You all know how much I love blueberries . . . they are one of my favourite things, hands down! Mmmm . .. des bluets . . . c'est le monde de mon coeur. C'est magnfique!! C'est si si si bon!! Bien sur . . .
Today I decided to switch out my favourite Strawberry and Mint Scones . . . and change them to Spiced Blueberry Scones . . . coz . . . one, I love these scones . . . and two, I love blueberries.
Ta da!! Beautifully buttery and short, with just the faintest hint of spice . . . cardamom and cinnamon . . . and topped with sweet wild blueberry preserves . . .then baked until crisp and brown on the edges . . .
Cooled and then drizzled with a lightly spiced lemon drizzle icing . . . these turned out fabulously delicious! Moreishly Scrummy!!! Nom Nom Nummy!!!!
I bet YOU can't eat just one.
*Spiced Blueberry Scones*
Makes 14Printable Recipe
Crisp on the outsides, soft and buttery on the insides and scrummily moreishly good. 'Nuff said.
300g of plain flour (2 cups) plus more for dusting
110g caster sugar (1/2 cup)
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
6 TBS unsalted butter, cold and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
225ml of double cream (1 cup heavy cream)
wild blueberry preserves (I like Bon Maman)
For the dizzle:
225g of icing sugar, sifted (1 cup)
pinch ground cardamom
1 TBS lemon juice
hot water as needed
Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Line two baking sheets with baking parchment paper. Set aside.
Sift the flour into the bowl of a food processor. Add the sugar, baking powder and salt. Blitz a couple of seconds to mix. Drop in the butter cubes. Blitz until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer to a medium sized bowl. Stir in the cream with a fork, mixing it in until the mixture forms a soft dough. Knead several times to bring it all together. Lightly dust the countertop. Tip out the dough. Pat out to a large circle (about 10 inches in diameter) and 1/2 inch thick. Cut out with a sharp 3 inch round fluted cutter. Place onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving soem space in between each for spreading. Reroll any scraps and repeat until you have used up all the dough.
Gently make an indentation in the centure of each with your thumb. Spoon about half a teaspoonful of blueberry preserves into the centre of each.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until the edges are golden brown and they are dry and golden brown on the bottoms. Remove from the oven and let stand for about five minutes before removing to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Sift the icing sugar into a small bowl together with the ground cardamom. Whisk in the lemon juice and enough water to give you a smooth and drizzable consistency. Drizzle this icing across the cooled scones. Let set for 30 minutes before serving or storing.
Store in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
