Q. I buy a scone on my way to work almost every day. I would like to make them. Blueberry is my favorite. Can you find a recipe?
A. Then blueberry it shall be. This recipe is from “Standard Baking Co. Pastries” by Alison Pray and Tara Smith (Down East Maine, 2012). Use fresh or frozen berries. If frozen, don’t thaw them, just toss them right into the dough.
WILD BLUEBERRY OAT SCONES
Makes 9 scones.
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon plus 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
9 tablespoons (1 stick plus 1 tablespoon) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3/4 cup rolled oats, plus more for garnish
3/4 cup fresh or frozen wild blueberries
1 1/2 cups half-and-half
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons turbinado sugar, for garnish
To prepare oven, baking sheet: Position racks in upper and lower thirds of oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
To mix dough: In large bowl, whisk together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using fingertips, break up any clumps. Add cubed butter. Using fingertips, work it into flour mixture just until a few pea-size chunks of butter remain. Add oats and blueberries. Using hands, toss, making sure blueberries are coated with dry ingredients. In glass measuring cup with spout, combine half-and-half and vanilla. Gradually add liquid to flour mixture, using rubber spatula or plastic scraper to mix dough just until it comes together. (Note: Dough will be very moist.)
To shape scones: Using 1/2 cup measuring cup for each scone, loosely scoop dough and drop into mounds onto prepared baking sheet, spacing mounds 3 inches apart. Garnish with additional oats and turbinado sugar.
To bake scones: Bake for 25 to 27 minutes, rotating baking sheets after 15 minutes for even baking. (Note: They will have golden brown ridges and feel firm in center.) Remove from oven. Transfer scones to wire rack to cool slightly before serving.
Q. I love those molten chocolate cakes that are served in restaurants. I have seen many recipes, but they usually make six servings. Would you be able to reduce a recipe so I could make only one or two of them?
A. I don’t need to do that. Joy Wilson has a single-serving cake in her book “Joy the Baker Cookbook” (Hyperion, 2012). You can serve it plain, or dusted with confectioners’ sugar and a dollop of whipped cream.
SINGLE GIRL MELTY CHOCOLATE CAKE
Makes 1 small cake.
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 large egg
4 teaspoons sugar
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
To prepare oven, ramekin: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place cookie sheet in oven. Generously flour and butter -3/4- or 1-cup ramekin.
To melt chocolate: In small pot, bring 2 inches of water to a simmer. Place butter and chocolate in heatproof bowl. Place bowl over, but not touching, simmering water. Stir until chocolate has melted. Allow to cool slightly.
To make cake: In small bowl, whisk together egg and sugar. Pour chocolate mixture into bowl. Whisk until well incorporated. Add salt and flour. Mix until just combined.
To bake cake: Pour batter into prepared ramekin. Place in oven on top of cookie sheet. Bake for 7 to 10 minutes. (Note: The less time it’s in oven, the more gooey the cake will be.) Remove from oven. Allow to cool for 2 minutes. Using pot holders, invert cake onto plate. Serve immediately.
Q. My brothers and I were talking about a casserole our mother used to make in the 1970s. It included layers of prepared stuffing and chicken topped with eggs beaten with broth. She served it with a sauce made with cream of mushroom soup. Can you find this recipe for us?
A. I found this recipe in a church cookbook from that same era. The contributor said she won a 1970 cookbook contest in the Duluth Tribune with this casserole.
CHICKEN AND STUFFING CASSEROLE WITH MUSHROOM SAUCE
Makes 12 servings.
Casserole:
1 package (8 ounces) herb-seasoned stuffing, prepared according to package directions
3 cups diced or shredded cooked chicken
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
Dash of pepper
4 cups chicken broth at room temperature
6 eggs, slightly beaten
Mushroom sauce:
1 can cream of mushroom condensed soup
1/4 cup milk
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup chopped pimiento
To prepare oven: Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
To prepare stuffing and chicken: Spread prepared stuffing in 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Layer chicken on top of stuffing.
To make casserole sauce: In large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, for 1 1/2 minutes or until thoroughly combined. (Note: Do not brown.) Add broth, stirring until mixture thickens. Whisk small amount of hot broth mixture into slightly beaten eggs. Whisk eggs into saucepan mixture. Whisk until thoroughly combined. Pour over chicken.
To bake: Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until knife inserted halfway to center comes out clean. Let stand for 5 minutes to set before cutting into squares.
To make mushroom sauce: Meanwhile, in saucepan, mix together mushroom soup, milk, sour cream and chopped pimiento. Stir over medium heat until hot.
To serve: Serve casserole with mushroom sauce on side.
Q. I have a 5-pound bag of pinto beans and would like to can them to use in chili. Do you know how I’d do that?
A. You can preserve cooked, dried beans. Because beans are a low-acid food, for safety reasons they must be processed in a steam-pressure canner rather than a hot-water bath. Below are the instructions from the “Ball Blue Book of Preserving.”
Cooked beans also freeze very well. You could cook a large batch, then divide it into 1- or 2-cup amounts for recipes. Drain some of the cooking liquid, leaving just enough to cover them. Package them in plastic freezer bags or other freezer containers, leaving an inch or so of space at the top of the container to allow for expansion.
Frozen beans keep their shape better if you thaw them slowly, either in the refrigerator overnight or by adding to a dish toward the end, so they don’t cook too long.
DRIED BEANS OR PEAS
2 1/4 pounds dried beans or peas
Salt (optional)
Water
To soak: Cover beans or peas with cold water. Let stand for 12 to 18 hours in cool place.
To cook: Drain. In large saucepan, cover beans or peas with cold water by 2 inches. Bring to a boil. Boil for 30 minutes, stirring frequently.
To process: Pack hot beans or peas into hot jars, leaving 1-inch headspace. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt to each pint jar, 1 teaspoon salt to each quart jar, if desired. Ladle hot cooking liquid or boiling water over beans or peas, leaving 1-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Adjust 2-piece caps. In steam-pressure canner, process pints for 75 minutes, quarts for 90 at 10-pounds pressure
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