DISH: Jalapeno-Cheddar Scones
MAIN INGREDIENTS: Cheddar, Egg, Flour, Cream
It’s no mystery that I am not a baker and, unlike certain other BGSK bloggers, I do not feel obligated to bring dessert to every event. So you might think I would have had the good sense to shy away from making rushed, frantic scones at the last minute for Rodrigo’s housewarming party, particularly when I had never made scones before, let alone any recipe that called for a pastry blender.
I mentioned my intentions to make these scones from Smitten Kitchen, and my concerns about baking equipment to Cara that afternoon during our Field Hockey match. She told me not to be silly, no need for a pastry blender, just to use my hands, and it will all be fine.
But, as any unskilled baker might reflect, I really don’t know what happened next, or why, but everything proceeded to go horribly horribly wrong. All I know is that when the recipe called for me to turn out the dough onto a well-floured surface, I looked into the bowl at the not-so-pea-sized lumps of flour and butter swimming in a sea of wet ingredients, and thought to myself: how the hell does Deb expect me to knead this, “gently?”
My well-floured surface was a mess. My hands, arms, and sleeves were too. In a moment of panic and frustration, I nearly dug my messy hands and sleeves into the soupy dough and threw it in the trash can. Instead, I tossed handfuls (of all shapes and sizes) violently onto my baking sheet, which I had neither greased nor lined with parchment paper.
For the next 20 minutes, I wasn’t praying, or dreading, for that matter. In fact, I had so accepted my failure, that I entirely forgot about the sheet in the oven. But then I began to smell sweet buttery, cheesy deliciousness. And much to my horror, there were the scones: round, risen, rustic, and utterly perfect.
Just as the dough looked nothing like hers, the scones weren’t quite the beautiful, uniform rounds Deb had pictured on her site. But they were a beautiful thing to me.
From my kitchen, covered in wet scone, to yours,
Phoebe, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK
Jalapeno-Cheddar Scones
Makes 8ish Scones
Recipe on Smitten Kitchen
As for this recipe: it might not turn out as you had planned, but I encourage you to jump right in. The unanticipated result is foolproof.
