Secret Recipe Club: Berries & Cream Scones

It's Secret Recipe Club time again! If not for SRC, my blog would be already dead and gone. After two more months of SRC, I will be taking a few months off though. I need some time away from the blog to focus on the family and while I will miss blogging, I know I will be back.

This month, I was super excited to be assigned the fabulous blog Camilla's Culinary Adventures! Oh man - Camilla really is a star. She manages a fabulously loaded blog on which she posts amazing recipes very regularly, she runs a beautiful family and she is also our Group B moderator here at SRC. I need lessons from this lady on time management! Hats off to you, Camilla. You're an inspiration!

I honestly had such a hard time picking a recipe this time around. She has so many recipes in almost every style of cooking. I was tempted to pick a bread recipe, or a Madeleine recipe (I adore Madeleines) or one of her amazing cupcake recipes since my daughter has been nagging me for cupcakes. Finally, I ended up with a breakfast recipe when i needed to make a quick batch of scones for someone. I remembered seeing this recipe on Camilla's site and went back to it. 

The recipe is originally strawberries and cream but I didn't have strawberries in the house at the time, and so I made it with blueberries instead. I'm sure it would have been amazing with strawberries though! Next time! 

Berries and Cream Scones

Adapted from Camilla's Culinary Adventures

Ingredients 

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder 

1/2 cup white sugar 

1/4 tsp salt

8 tbsp unsalted butter, cold

2/3 cup double cream 

1 large egg 

1/2-3/4 cup fresh or frozen strawberries 

1 tbsp double cream (for the top)

Method 

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat. 

2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt. Stir well to combine. 

3. Add the butter and using either a pastry cutter or just the tips of your finger, work the butter into the dry mixture until the mixture resembles chunky breadcrumbs. You could even do this in the food processor. 

4. Add the cream and egg and gently bring the dough together. 

5. Once the dough is formed, add the blueberries and be very gentle to disperse the berries. Take care not to bruise the berries too much. 

6. Transfer the dough onto your prepared baking sheet and pat into a circle that's about 1/2 inch thick. Slice into wedges and drizzle the top with the reserved cream. 

7. Bake in the preheated oven for 18-20 minutes or until the scones are lightly golden and raised. 

8. Serve warm drizzled with a glaze of your choice or with cream and jam. 

These scones were different from the ones I've made before and we all loved them - especially my husband! The base and edges had a crispy cookie like texture that we couldn't get enough of, and the middle was soft and crumbly, and as Camilla mentioned that her son noticed, - the flavour was intensely buttery and delicious!

Thank you for this amazing base recipe for scones Camilla. You can bet I'll be using this to make many amazing combinations for years to come! Please go check out Camilla's blog and I promise you a treasure trove of recipes that you can't stop bookmarking! 

Don't forget to check out the other awesome SRC recipes below!

Until next time :)

An InLinkz Link-up

Strawberries & Cream Scones

I love that strawberry season comes twice a year. The whole family rejoices when we walk into the market and find a table filled with box upon box of ripe, red strawberries. Both my daughters are just plain strawberry-mad! I've been buying so many boxes! Most of the berries are just washed and eaten, but I usually manage to hide a box or two to bake with. I love baking with fresh strawberries.

This recipe is one that I've made a few times now. It is no secret that our breakfast favourites are muffins and scones. So, I'm always trying out new scone and muffin recipes, and my family never complains. Of course, when you're trying out so many new recipes, you're bound to have some recipes you never want to try again. This isn't one of them.

If you want a lighter crumb and are baking for an occasion or for guests, and you don't want to worry about health, you could just bake it with all regular flour.

Strawberries & Cream Scones
Adapted from Taste of Home 
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup sugar (plus 2 tbsp for sprinkling)
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp flaxseed meal
1 tsp orange zest
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup cold butter, cubed
2/3 cup half and half, or medium-fat cream
2/3 cup chopped fresh strawberries
1 egg, lightly beaten

Method
1. Preheat your oven to 200C/400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or greaseproof paper, or use a silicone baking mat.
2. In a large bowl, combine the flours, 1/3 cup of sugar, baking powder, flaxseed meal, orange zest, salt and ground cinnamon. Mix well.
3. Add the cold butter and using just the tips of your fingers, work the butter into the flour mixture. Work quickly, and gently until the mixture resembles bread crumbs.
4. Add the cream and bring the dough together gently.
5. Turn the dough out onto a work surface, and add the chopped strawberries.
6. Working very lightly, so as to not bruise the berries too much, gently work the strawberries into the dough.
7. Transfer the dough onto your lined baking sheet, and form into a rough 8 or 9 inch circle. Pat down the dough until it is about 1/2 inch thick. Using a sharp knife, cut the circle into six or eight wedges.
8. Brush the top of the scones with the egg and sprinkle with the 2 tbsp of sugar you have reserved. You could also sprinkle the top with chopped nuts.
9. Bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes or until the top is a light golden brown.

The flaky, buttery scone is rich with cream and loaded with tangy-sweet berries that drip their juice and make a very welcome mess. I wish I could get my hands on some clotted cream. I think it would be perfect with these particular scones.

My husband had a valid complaint. While he love the sugary crunch on the top of the scones, he felt these scones would benefit with some more texture and crunch. So the next time around, I thought I'd throw in some hazelnuts or pistachios for some texture.

In other news, with my birthday and Valentine's Day falling in the same month, I have received a bounty of new cookbooks that I am SO excited about. I have the best husband, friends and family in the world! I can't wait to be sharing some awesome tried and tested recipes from these awesome new books! :)

But, for now, watch out for another awesome strawberry recipe to celebrate the season of yummy strawberries!

Until next time…

Blueberry Cream Cheese Muffins

I can't believe 2014 has already come to an end. This year has been a wild ride. Personally, it has been more highs than lows. Thanks to God for His favour and protection! I have so much to be grateful to Him for. But I know it has been a difficult year for a lot of people I know, and for the world in general. And it has been a year full of bad news - literally. I've hated even looking at the newspaper most of this year. Here's hoping 2015 is better! 

I wanted to make something nice for the last breakfast of the year. If you know me at all, you know how much I love baking (and eating!) muffins. So that's what we had for breakfast this last morning of 2014. The flavours are classic, the recipe is easy and the muffins are pretty darn good!

Blueberry Cream Cheese Muffins
Adapted from this recipe on food.com
Ingredients
1 3/4 cup all purpose flour + 1/4 cup corn starch (or 2 cups cake flour)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
Scant 1/4 tsp salt
2/3 cup sugar
90g (slightly more than 3oz) cream cheese, at room temperature
2 tsp fresh lime juice
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
4 tbsp melted unsalted butter
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup fresh/frozen blueberries

Method
1. Preheat your oven to 180C/350F. Prepare a 12 cup muffin tin by greasing and flouring, or lining with paper liners. I used free-standing paper muffin cups, and lined them up on a cookie sheet. So convenient! 
2. In a medium bowl, combine the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. Stir well to combine. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl or in the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the cream cheese, lime juice and vanilla.
4. Add the eggs, one at a time, until the mixture is creamy. 
5. Beat in the melted butter, mixing until completely incorporated.
6. Beat in the buttermilk and whisk well to combine.
7. Add the dry ingredients and fold together until combined, and no dry pockets of flour remain.
8. Fold in the blueberries.
9. Spoon into your prepared muffin tin, and bake in the preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes until the tops are lightly browned and the tops spring back when touched.

The cream cheese flavor in these muffins is subtle but it adds so much! The crumb is moist, the tang is subtle but brilliant - enhanced by the lime juice, and the blueberries are fresh and bursting with flavor! I just loved this recipe to bits! The base recipe is brilliant and I think would be great with so many other add-ins. Next time, I think I'll try strawberries or a cinnamon-sugar ripple! Mmmm…

The only addition I would make to this recipe would be to add a nice crumb or streusel topping. The muffin itself isn't too sweet, which is how we like it. But some sweet crunchy topping would definitely be welcome! 

Try this recipe, and I'm sure you won't be sorry!

So that's it for 2014, folks! I'll see you in the new year. And once again, I pray that 2015 will be good to us all. God bless you!

The unfailing love of the LORD never ends! By his mercies we have been kept from complete destruction. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day. I say to myself, "The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!" Lamentations 3:22-24

Secret Recipe Club: Blueberry Muffin Streusel Cake

It's time for another Secret Recipe Club post. This is only my second month but I am totally loving it!

This month I was assigned to Anne-Marie's wonderful blog, This Mama Cooks. And boy, does she cook! She cooks up a storm. Her website is a treasure trove of wonderful recipes of all kinds. And best of all - if you have a special dietary need, she probably has something for you. Just fantastic healthy recipes, eggless recipes, low-cal weight watchers recipes, and tons of gorgeous gluten free recipes! Plus she has so many other fun lifestyle and health posts! I think I am now addicted to her blog. 

It took me a while, and I almost made something else (it was my husband's birthday yesterday and I almost made this Gluten Free Flourless Chocolate Walnut Torte), but I ended up making a recipe that we all love eating around here. This is the kind of stuff that my family loves, and so I made this gorgeous muffin cake for breakfast one morning. And I was right - they loved it! I try not to make these indulgent breakfasts too often - maybe a couple of a times a month.

I didn't make too many changes in the recipe apart from substituting some of the all purpose flour with whole wheat, and reducing the sugar just a little.

Blueberry Muffin Streusel Cake

Adapted from this recipe on This Mama Cooks 

Ingredients 

Cake:

1 cup flour (I used equal parts of all purpose and whole wheat) 

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup milk

1 egg

2 tbsp canola oil (or any neutral flavoured  oil)

1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen 

Streusel Topping:

1/2 cup flour (I used equal parts of all purpose and whole wheat)

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 

1 tsp vanilla 

3 tbsp unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup raw pecans, roughly chopped 

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 180C/350F. Grease a 9x9x2 square baking pan and lightly dust with flour. Set aside. 

2. In a medium bowl, combine all the streusel ingredients and mix well to combine. I got a nice even mix by using my fingers. I think a food processor would work well too. Set aside. 

3. In another medium bowl, combine all the cake ingredients except the blueberries, and stir just until completely combined. You don't want any pockets of dry flour. 

4. Fold in the blueberries gently. 

5. Pour the cake batter into the prepared baking tin and sprinkle the whole top of the cake with an even layer of the prepared streusel topping. 

6. Bake for about 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. 

7. Serve warm. 

My favourite thing about this recipes was how easy it was to put together. No fussing about. Combine all the ingredients, mix and bake! Just loved it!

Another fabulous thing is that even though the cake and topping have very little butter/oil, it doesn't taste that way. It tastes really, really good - especially that awesome crunchy streusel topping with those amazing toasty pecans! The whole thing was polished off in a matter of hours! 

The level of sugar was just right for us but if you have a sweet tooth, you should up the sugar and use what Anne-Marie originally recommends. And while you're visiting her, make sure to check out her other fabulous recipes, and don't forget to say hello from me. Right now, apart from that gorgeous walnut torte, I also plan to try my hand at her awesome looking homemade chorizo, and this totally tempting Baked Pumpkin Chocolate French Toast with Bananas. I mean, how good does that sound?!

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did! Check out the other fabulous SRC recipes at the link below. 

An InLinkz Link-up

French Breakfast Muffins

My older daughter just turned five. I can barely believe how quickly time is passing by. It seems like just last week that she was a teeny weeny little baby. She's now a sweet, loving, smart, talented and beautiful five year old teenager. Oh and did I mention drama queen? She had a fun, small birthday party and got the pink bicycle she has always wanted and prayed for. 

She also loves to help me when I cook or bake. She always has. I remember her helping me shell peas when she was as little as 17 months old. She loves looking through cookbooks with pictures and picking out recipes for us to make. And she picked this recipe out from the cookbook based on Disney's animated flick 'Ratatouille'. She loves this book and was contemplating asking me to make the dirt cake - complete with plastic rats and gummy worms - from this book for her birthday. But finally, she decided on a Barbie cake which we had fun baking together. 

This morning she asked me to make these breakfast muffins from the cookbook and we had a good time making them together. 

I modified the recipe slightly to make it a little healthier and reduced a little of the sugar in the recipe.

French Breakfast Muffins

Adapted from Disney's Ratatouille Cookbook

Ingredients 

1 1/3 cup all purpose flour

2/3 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg 

3 tbsp flaxseed powder

1 large egg

90g/6tbsp butter, melted

1 cup milk

3 tbsp yoghurt

1 tsp vanilla 

1/2 cup of dried, chopped cranberries 

Topping:

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon powder

1 tbsp butter, melted 

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350F/180C and prepare a 12 cup muffin tin with liners or lightly grease and flour each cup. 

2. In a large bowl, combine the flours, sugar, salt, baking powder, nutmeg powder and flaxseed powder. Stir well to combine. 

3. In a small bowl, whisk the egg lightly. Add the melted butter, milk, vanilla and yoghurt and whisk well to combine. 

4. Add this liquid mixture into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. 

5. Stir in the cranberries. 

6. Divide the batter between the 12 muffin cups and bake for about 20-25 minutes until the muffins just start turning lightly golden and the tops spring back when touched. 

7. Remove the tray from the oven and allow to cool slightly in the tin. 

8. While they are cooling, in a small bowl, stir together the sugar and the cinnamon powder. In another bowl, pour in the melted butter. 

9. When the muffins are cool enough to handle, remove each muffin from the tin, dip the tops lightly in the melted butter and then roll the tops in the cinnamon sugar. 

10. Shake off the excess sugar and place on your serving plate. 

These muffins were really lovely in texture and flavor. Considering I am big fan of the flavors of nutmeg and cinnamon, I was in heaven. The tart cranberries cut through the sweetness nicely and were a great addition, if I do say so myself. 

 

My husband and I both felt the sugary topping was a little too much for us. The kids didn't complain of course. Us grown ups just brushed off some of the sugar just before we dug in.

I was glad to be able to get in the berries, flaxseed and the whole wheat flour without any complaints. Next time we make this recipes, I'm going to add some oatmeal and maybe some seeds or nuts, too. This one is a keeper!

 

Until next time :)

 

Cranberry Hazelnut Coffee Cake

This is my favorite cake at the moment. It is PERFECT. I don't want those fancy cakes with fondant. I don't want a pretty cake with frosting. Heck, I don't even need a glaze. This is my kinda cake. Loaded with flavor, texture and just so much goodness!

I baked it in the evening yesterday, with the intention of cake for breakfast on Saturday morning. Saturday breakfasts are usually special around here. If I know everyone has the day off, I usually make something indulgent. So, my plan was that I would make the cake on Friday evening, photograph it in the morning when the light was good, and then serve it for breakfast. Well, we all know about best laid plans...

One look at the cake, and my husband wanted a slice for dessert after dinner. My daughter wanted a nibble and I was drooling every time I walked past the cake platter. So I did what I had to. Made the ultimate sacrifice. Who needs natural light!!? I just clicked a few shots and we dug in. It is an amazing cake! We had it for breakfast again in the morning....

Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature for this recipe. You can replace the heavy cream and yogurt mixture with sour cream. I didn't have sour cream, and this worked great for me! If you're using sour cream, just use one 8 oz tub.

Cranberry Hazelnut Coffee Cake
Adapted from this recipe on myrecipes.com
Ingredients
115 grams or 1/2 cup heavy cream
115 grams or scant 1/2 cup natural yogurt
1 tsp vinegar

185 grams or 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

25 grams or 3 tbsp corn starch
200 grams or 1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 large egg plus 1 large egg white
1 tsp vanilla extract
70 grams or 5 tbsp butter, softened
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, cleaned and halved

Streusel Topping:
30 grams or 1/4 cup sifted flour
1 tbsp flax seed powder
50 grams of 1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
15 grams or 1 tbsp butter, melted
A pinch of salt

Method
1. Prepare a 9" spring form cake tin by lining the base with grease proof parchment paper and brushing the sides with melted but or spraying with cooking spray.
2. In a small bowl, combine the yogurt, heavy cream and vinegar. Set aside while you get the rest of the ingredients assembled.
3. Combine all the streusel topping ingredients and set aside.
4. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, corn starch, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk to combine.
5. In another medium bowl, whisk together the egg, egg white, vanilla and 1/4 cup of the yogurt mixture. Whisk to combine.
6. In a large bowl, combine the remaining yogurt mixture and the soft butter. Mix well using a whisk or an electric mixer. Beat for 3-4 minutes. 
7. Preheat your oven to 180C/350F.
8. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and mix in until just combined.
9. Add 1/2 the egg mixture and mix till combined.
10. Add another third of the flour mixture and mix just until combined.
11. Add the remaining egg mixture and incorporate.
12. Add the last of the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Do not over mix.
13. Into your prepared tin, spoon half of the cake batter and spread it in an even layer.
14. Sprinkle the top of the cake batter with all halved cranberries.
15. Cover the cranberries with the remaining cake batter and spread it evenly.
16. Sprinkle the top of the cake with all the streusel topping.
17. Bake in your preheated oven for 45-50 minutes or until the cake is risen and golden and a skewer entered into the center of the cake comes out clean. The cake will fall a little as it cools. 
18. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before releasing from the spring-form tin.
19. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

This cake tasted best when it was slightly warm. I had no complaints the next morning either. The cake was amazingly delicious the next day too. Every one, including my 20 month old who doesn't have a sweet tooth, loved it.

The cake is not too sweet. Light, soft cake, tart berries and crunchy nuts - a taste of heaven! The tart cranberries and the crunchy hazelnuts and the nuttiness of the flax meal makes for an amazing combination of textures and flavors.

If you have company coming over, or are planning a brunch or an indulgent breakfast, this is the recipe for you. Make this and please write to me here or on my Facebook page, share a picture with me, and let me know how much you loved it! I just know you'll love it! Until next time :)

Healthy Banana Blueberry Breakfast Cake with Pecan Crumb

I know I've said it before, and I'll say it again - I love breakfast baking!

This recipe is pretty special. Awesome for breakfast, tea time or just anytime you feel like snacking on something sweet. This recipe happened because I was stuck with a couple of really overripe bananas and I wanted to do something new with them. Those blackish, smelly overripe bananas are the best, aren't they?

The recipe looks a like it has a lot of ingredients, but once you've assembled all of them, the cake comes together easily. If you want it with fewer ingredients, and not as healthy, I've linked to the original recipe below. 

Healthy Banana Blueberry Breakfast Cake with Pecan Crumb
Adapted from this recipe on Food Network

Ingredients 

3/4 cup all purpose flour

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup wheat bran

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon powder 

1/4 tsp freshly grated cinnamon

1 scant tsp salt

1/3 cup sugar 

1/4 cup dark brown sugar 

1/2 cup olive oil (NOT extra virgin)

2 tsp vanilla 

2 large eggs

2 large overripe bananas, peeled & mashed well

1 cup frozen blueberries 

Crumb topping 

4 tbsp all purpose flour 

1 heaped tbsp wheat bran

1 tbsp dark brown sugar

1 tbsp sugar 

2 tbsp cold unsalted butter

1/4 cup pecans, chopped

Method 

1. In a large bowl, combine the flours, bran, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt. Stir well to combine and set aside. 

2. Whisk the oil and sugars together in medium bowl. 

3. Whisk in the vanilla and eggs. 

4. Add the mashed banana and mix in well. 

5. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet mixture. 

6. Stir well until just combined. 

7. Stir in the blueberries. 

8. Pour or spoon the batter into a 7 inch round cake tin that has been greased and floured, and the bottom lined with a parchment paper circle. I used a disposable cake pan this time and so I didn't bother with any of that. 

9. Combine the flour, sugars and butter for the crumb topping in a small bowl. Using the tips of your fingers, work the mixture until it resembles fine crumbs. Don't knead or press the mixture together. You want it to be a light and crumbly. Gently mix in the chopped pecans 

10. Sprinkle the crumb mixture over the top of the cake in an even layer. 

11. Bake in an oven preheated to 180C/350F for 40-50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. It may take a little longer depending on your oven. 

12. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before unmolding, gently slicing and serving. 

This cake is just so amazingly moist! When I cut the cake, the knife went through like a hot knife through butter! At that point, I was sure I was cutting through raw cake. Cooked cake couldn't be THAT soft! But it sliced beautifully, was cooked all the way through and was just so good!

The sweetness was also just right! The crumb is slightly sweeter than the cake and it all balances it out perfectly. The bursts of blueberry throughout the cake is just amazing!

All this, plus the fact  the whole wheat flour, bran, bananas, berries and nuts are so good for you, means that you must make this for your family soon! You won't regret it. I promise!

Blackberry Oat Scones

I think when I finally start writing my cookbooks (hey, a girl can dream!), I would just have to start with an entire book on muffins and scones. They have to be my favorite baked goods. I think that this is pretty obvious from my blog. I have so many muffin recipes, and the scones are catching up!

I adapted this recipe (ever so slightly) from this recipe found on orangette.com. These scones were easy to mix up, kinda messy to form, not so pretty to look at, but oh so good to eat! 

I had almost 1 cup of frozen blackberries, and I couldn't bear to not have a whole cup of berries in there. So I ended up adding a handful of frozen blueberries. This stained some of my scones blue, while the others were stained a beautiful purple. Not complaining!

Try this recipe. You will love it! Even without the berries, I think the oat scone recipe is just fantastic as it is! You could always add something else instead of the berries. Chocolate perhaps? Mmmmm...

Blackberry Oat Scones
Adapted from this recipe on orangette.com

Ingredients 

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup soft brown sugar

1 tbsp plus 1 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda 

3/4 tsp salt 

155g unsalted butter, cold, chopped

1 cup heavy cream 

3/4 cup whole milk 

1 tsp vanilla 

1 cup rolled oats 

1 cup frozen or fresh blackberries 

(If using frozen berries, DO NOT thaw. Use frozen.)

For topping: 

3 tbsp rolled oats

1 tbsp granulated sugar 

Method 

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and the salt. Mix well until combined. 

2. Add in the chopped butter and work with your fingertips until you have a coarse mixture that looks like breadcrumbs. 

3. Mix in the oats. 

4. In a small bowl, combine the cream, milk and vanilla. Stir well to combine. 

5. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the cream mixture. 

6. Using a spatula or flat metal spoon, lightly fold and mix until the two mixtures are combined. Do not over-mix. 

7. Add the frozen berries and lightly fold. 

8. Form into discs handling the sticky dough as little as possible. If you find it too hard to handle, chill the dough for 10-15 minutes before forming the scones. Place the scones on a parchment or Silpat lined baking tray. I divided the mixture into 15 scones. 

9. At this point you can bake it straight away. I made one batch straight away and froze the rest of them to bake later. And I must mention that there was a remarkable difference in texture! If you have the time, freeze them. You don't need to thaw them, just pop them on the tray frozen and straight into the oven they go!

10. Bake in an oven preheated to 180C/350F for about 25-30 minutes. 

Note: Steps 1 & 2 can be done in a food processor. This is preferable as it reduces the handling of the butter and keeps it cold. After pulsing in the food processor, transfer to a large bowl and continue from step 3. 

Serve warm with butter, fruit curd, preserves or whipped cream. The next morning, I popped the leftover scones into scones back into the oven until the outside crisped up and it was warmed through.

I love love love love the wholesome taste of these scones. Next time, I am going to replace some of that all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour to amp up that wholesome taste. The buttery, flaky, slightly cakey scones with bursts of almost jammy, tart berry are just too yummy for words!

Berry Apple Crumble Pie

Pie has always been my first choice when it comes to dessert! There's something about decadent and delicious fillings encased in buttery pastry that appeals to me like nothing else. And when I make pie, I always overeat. Which is why I don't make them often. 

This pie was born of nagging. My four year-old was fixated on making this pie ever since she heard me mention to my husband that 'these blueberries would make an awesome pie'. And since that day, I heard the words 'strawberry blueberry pie' at least 10 times a day. Well, it worked! The pie got made. And it got eaten. The pie lasted only a few hours. That's how much we loved it.

This is kinda a long recipe, but the process isn't long. The crust takes the longest to make, but of course, if you wanted to skip that, you could just use a ready-made pie crust, if available. I prefer to make mine at home because I want it to be all-butter. 

Berry Apple Crumble Pie
Recipe Source: Crust & Crumble: Allrecipes.come, Filling: The voices in my head

Ingredients
Pie Crust 
250g (2 cups) all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp granulated sugar
180g (3/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes 
1 Egg yolk (optional)
Iced water, as needed

Pie Filling

5 cups mixed berries (I used 2 cups each of frozen blueberries and fresh strawberries, and 1 cup of frozen raspberries)
1 Granny Smith Apple, peeled, cored and chopped 
Zest of 1 orange 
1 tbsp orange juice
4 tbsp cornstarch 
1/2 - 3/4 cup granulated sugar, depending on how sweet your berries are (I used 3/4 cup)
1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter

Crumble topping
1/4 cup cold unsalted butter
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional) 1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

Method
For the pie crust  
1. If making in a food processor, add all the ingredients except the water into the processor and pulse until you achieve breadcrumb-like texture.
2. Transfer to a bowl or your counter and add a couple of tablespoons of ice cold water and form the dough.
3. If making the crust by hand, mix the flour, salt and sugar together in a large bowl.
4. Add the pieces of butter and mix into the flour using only your fingertips, until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs.
5. Add the egg yolk and 2 tablespoon of water and mix lightly until incorporated.
6. Add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough just starts to come together. (I needed only 3-4 tbsp of water in all.) Do not over-work the dough.
6. Shape into a thick disc and wrap in clingfilm.
7. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before rolling out and lining your pie tin. Once the crust is in the tin, prick all over with a fork.
8. Preheat the oven to 200.
9. Line the pie crust with baking parchment or aluminum foil, fill with baking beans or uncooked rice, and bake for about 10 minutes until set.
10. Take the crust out of the oven, remove the beans and foil, and brush the inside of the crust - bottom and sides - with the egg white.
11. Bake for 2-3 more minutes.

For the pie filling 

1) Combine the berries, chopped apple, orange zest, orange juice, cornstarch and sugar in a large bowl. Mix gently until well combined.  Do this when you're almost ready to bake.

For the crumble topping 

1) Combine all the ingredients and mix using just your finger tips until you have a crumbly mixture. You don't want to knead it. Chill until you're ready to use.

Assembly

1) Roll out the dough for the pie crust on a well floured surface using a floured rolling pin, and line your 9 inch pastry tin. Chill until you're ready to bake. Reserve the remaining dough for decorating the pie.

2) Pour the filling into the prepared pie tin. Spread evenly in the pie tin.  

3) Break up the chilled butter with your fingers and dot around the pie.

4) Sprinkle the crumble mixture evenly over the surface of the pie. 

5) Decorate the surface of the pie with the remaining pie dough.

6) Bake in an oven preheated to 180C/350F until your pastry is golden and your filling is bubbling and thick - almost 'jam-like'. This takes about 45-60 minutes.

7) Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 1-3 hours. This allows the filling to set properly.

8) Serve at room temperature with whipped cream or with your favorite vanilla bean ice cream. I like eating it as is!

I personally like to use the egg yolk in my pie crust. I feel it adds a lovely rich flavor to the crust. But I have made it without the egg yolk and it is still awesome. If you want to save time, the blind baking of the pie crust could be avoided, but this step ensures your crust doesn't get soggy from the filling juices. 

This pie was such a hit! Everyone loved it - even my super fussy one year old. But with such amazing berries and real butter every step of the way, how could it not be absolutely delicious?! :)

Until next time... <3 

Strawberry White Chocolate Chip Muffins

It's been a while, hasn't it? It has been a roller-coaster ride around here. First the kids were sick. Then I joined them and now it's my husband. It has been almost one whole month of coughs, colds and fevers. Thankfully, nothing more serious than that. We're well on our way to recovery - thanking God for that!

I have been doing a lot of baking and cooking but haven't had time to post. Will post those recipes in the coming weeks. 

Baked goods for breakfast seems to be becoming a favorite in our household! I've been making muffins, scones, rolls and so much more! And I am trying to keep them as healthy as possible! 

This muffin recipe is so good, easy and quick to put together, and really healthy too - made with whole wheat flour and oatmeal. Fresh strawberries & white chocolate - who can deny that's a match made in heaven? And add to that a crunchy topping and you're all set. Tartness from the strawberries, explosive sweetness from the chunks of white chocolate and crunchy, toasty hazelnuts. What a way to start your day!

Strawberry White Chocolate Chip Muffins

Ingredients 

(Makes 6 large or 8 regular sized muffins)

1/2 cup oatmeal

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

1/3 cup canola oil 

1/2 cup yoghurt (I used low fat)

1/3 cup light brown sugar 

1 egg

3/4 cup roughly chopped strawberries

1/3 cup white chocolate, chopped into small chunks 

1/4 cup roughly chopped hazelnuts 

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 180C/350F. Line your muffin tin with paper muffin cases. 

2. In a large bowl stir together the oatmeal, flours, salt, baking soda and baking powder until well combined. 

3. In a small bowl, stir together the oil, yoghurt, sugar and egg. Whisk until completely blended. 

4. Make a well in the center of your dry ingredients and pour in the wet mixture. With a rubber spatula or wooden spoon fold gently until you can't see dry streaks anymore. Stop mixing at this point. Don't over-mix. 

5. Gently stir in the chopped strawberries and white chocolate. Stir lightly until well-distributed. 

6. Spoon the mixture into your lined muffin tins, filling them about 2/3 full. 

7. Sprinkle the tops of each muffin with the chopped hazelnuts

8. Bake in the preheated oven for

15-18 minutes or until the tops of the muffins spring back when touched. 

Serve these warm while the chocolate chunks are oozy soft and the hazelnuts are still crunchy. Add that to bursts of freshness from the strawberries, and everyone's happy!

These are a crowd pleaser, for sure! Try them and tell me what you think! :)

Berry Banana Muffins - and hello again!

Hello. I am the blogger formerly known as The Harried Cook. My name is Marsha. Remember me? Probably not! :)

It has been one year since you last heard from me on the blog - and what a year it's been! I've lost a loved one, and gained another. I've lost some weight (yay!) and gained a lot of gray hairs (not fun!). I've lost a lot of sleep and gained a lot of hugs and kisses. It's been busy, overwhelming, sad, happy and extremely eventful since I last posted here.

I said goodbye to my dear grandmother in August 2012. That was a really sad day. I still miss her and I have so many moments when I want to just pick up the phone and call her like I used to. She was really sick and went through a lot of pain and suffering, and in that sense, I am glad it's all over now. She was an inspirational woman with an inspirational story, and she did so much for me. For that, and for her, I am so grateful! She was a great cook too, especially when it came to her favorite thing to eat - dessert! And she could eat dessert for breakfast, lunch and dinner - and she often did! :) I plan to share one of her recipes soon on the blog. 

In happier news, we welcomed a new family member early this year. This is our second baby - my little girl,  Zoe Hope Thompson.

She's five months old now, and such a sweetheart (most of the time!). Both my girls are absolutely thrilled to have each other in their lives, and I am the proud momma of two perfectly precious girls! Thank you, Lord! Can you believe my older girl is in school now? Wow! How time flies! 

So much more has been happening, that it would take me forever to share all the news. I have meaning to get back to blogging, but hardly find the time to sit down at the computer these days. Life is just too full right now, and in a good way. But I need to get started, even if I don't post so regularly, just to give me something to do that's mine! 

So, here's a simple recipe to get started. These muffins are really tasty, pretty easy to make, once you have all your ingredients assembled, and will have everyone coming back for seconds or thirds. 

This is a small batch recipe - makes 4 jumbo or 6 regular sized muffins. I made the jumbo muffins. 

Berry Banana Muffins

Ingredients

1 large banana, mashed (about 1/2 cup)

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

30g butter, melted and cooled

2 tbsp neutral flavored vegetable oil

1/3 cup soft brown sugar

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup + 1 tbsp all purpose flour

2 tbsp oat bran (or) wheat germ

1/8 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp baking powder 

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 cup fresh or frozen berries (I used a combination of frozen blueberries and diced, fresh strawberries once, and the other time, I made it with just diced, frozen strawberries.)

2-3 tbsp chopped walnuts (optional)

Method 

1. Preheat your oven to 180C/350f degrees. Line a muffin tray with liners or grease and flour the tray. Set aside. 

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, banana and vanilla. 

3. Stir in the melted butter and oil and whisk until well-combined. 

4. Whisk in the brown sugar and mix well for a few minutes. Set side. 

5. In a medium bowl, combine the flours, the wheat germ/oat bran, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Mix well so all the dry ingredients are combined. 

6. Add the fresh/frozen berries into the flour mixture and stir lightly to coat the berries. This will keep your berries from sinking to the bottom of the muffins while baking. 

7. Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stir gently until combined and no dry flour is visible. Don't overmix. If you stir/mix too much, you will have tough, chewy muffins. 

8. Spoon the muffin batter into the prepared tin, filling each cup 3/4 full. If using the walnuts, sprinkle the chopped walnuts over the top of each muffin. 

9. Bake until golden and risen, or until a toothpick/cake tester inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. 

10. Cool for 5 minutes in the tin and then gently remove from the tin and allow to cool on a cooling rack. Serve warm. 

(Doesn't this muffin look positively evil? It's actually looking at you, daring you to eat it! Scary Muffin!)

I hope you enjoy this recipe! My family did. My older daughter and my husband are both big fans of muffins. They loved this recipe - especially because it was loaded with nuts, berries and bananas. This is going to be a staple recipe in our kitchen!

I am so excited to be blogging again! I hope to be able to post at least one recipe a week. I really hope I can! I have missed all my readers and blogger friends so much! Thank you for being there for me and writing in to me this year. You have no idea how much that means to me!

To keep up with what is happening in The Harried Cook's kitchen, and to receive updates on new recipes as soon as they're posted, don't forget to follow me on Facebook!

P.S. - Please excuse the photographs in this post. They were all taken on my cellphone. When I have the time to whip out the "big camera", I will update the post with better pictures!

P.P.S. - Thank you to my dear friend, Gitu, for nagging me into blogging again. I doubt I would have a post out if not for her! You are an prizeworthy nag, darling! xoxo