Scones From Heaven

"Oh the depths of the riches, of the wisdom and knowledge of God!"-Romans 11:33

There are three foods I could not live without. 

.Carrots

..Porridge

...Scones

Not in that particular order, but yes, those are some of the most amazing foods on this earth. I didn't say they're my favorite foods, but they definitely are awesome. Carrots taste delicious raw, boiled, sauteed, baked, mashed (yes, mashed) and in pretty much any other way you can use them. You can put them in mixed vegetables, rice, casseroles, or just a bowl on the table. They're one of my favorite snacks and are extremely healthy, low in calories, and just...yummy!!

Porridge is pretty much really thin oatmeal with sugar (unless you're Chinese), though sometimes I leave the sugar out. I don't know why, but just by itself, with no added milk or brown sugar or anything else, I love oatmeal!!! It tastes amazing to me, and I could literally eat it for any meal. Plus, it's full of fiber that keeps you full until your next meal and is also low in calories and fat. Did I mention I love it?? Mm.

Scones. I honestly had no idea what in the world these were a month ago. I thought they were triangle, really hard biscuit that were pumpkin flavored at Starbucks in the fall. . . and Australians adore them and call them 'sgons.' Turns out, I was really really wrong. They're not just pumpkin flavored, they're definitely not hard, and they aren't always triangles! (Australians really do love them) 

I've made so many scones this past week and a half and I get giddy at the thought of trying new ideas. It intrigues me that they can be sweet or savory, and so far I've made pumpkin scones, cheese scones, and there are ham and cheese scones sitting on the counter right now, still warm and fresh from the oven and waiting to be conquered and destroyed whenever my Dad gets up. These are by far the best, and I would include a recipe, but you honestly don't need one. Find a recipe for scones, like Starbucks Pumpkin Scones, use it as your basis, take out the pumpkin, spices, and icing, add your ingredients, and bake for 15 minutes at 425F! It's so easy, it's not even funny!! It is pretty delicious though. I used shredded lunch meat ham and cheddar cheese, though you might want to ad more ham then I did, because they just tasted really cheesy. I added some pepper for flavor and popped them in the oven. To be humble...they were really really really really REALLY good!!! 

Here's the type of scones I would like to try. If you know a good recipe send me it, but right now I'm just making it up as I go along (that's sort of how I do everything):

Sweet-

Pumpkin Scones

Maple Cream Cheese Scones (?)

Apple Scones

Cinnamon Scones

Cranberry Nut Scones

Raisin Scones (with cinnamon)

Blueberry Sugar Scones

Blueberry Lemon

Mixed Berry Scones

Walnut Scones

Yogurt Scones (?)

Cinnamon Chippy Scones

Chocolate Scones

Strawberry Spice Scones

Orange Scones

Savory-

Cheese Scones

Basil and Parmesan Scones

Ham and Cheddar Scones

Oatmeal (raisin, cinnamon, chocolate, apple, cranberry, blueberry, lemon, nut, pumpkin, yogurt, cheese) Scones

Chili Scones (?) 

Cheddar Apple Scones

Cheddar Pepper Scones

Onion Sausage Scones

Bacon (anything) Scones ;)

So that's my list of yummy sounding scones, and yummy foods that I could eat all day. I'm pretty simple when it comes to food for someone who loves making it so much. I could make my Mom spaghetti with garlic, parsley and red pepper for lunch but then go and eat porridge or carrots by myself. Any food is yummy, especially simple ones. 

Thank God for food!!!!!!!!!! :)

other adventures this week:

blueberry walnut free-form tart ( * * * * )

rustic  zucchini and cheese sausage tart ( * * * )

mom's italian chicken breast & rice ( * * * * * )

lemon peanut butter ice cream ( * * )

Rustic Apple Tart

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us," - Hebrews 12:1

My day started at six o'clock in the morning. Really, I know that isn't early. . . unless you fell asleep after one o'clock the night prior. Still, it was for a good reason, and when I wake up that early tomorrow morning I'll definitely make sure to get to bed at a way better hour. 

Did you know that in my house, if a young girl wants to make scones she can't? There's no butter!

Sin.

After my Mom bought butter (actually, it was margarine. . . more sin. ) I set to work with my apple tart, which was sooo easy, since I had no recipe to follow. I based it off of something I saw on a blog a few days ago, but last night I went to look and couldn't find it anywhere online! So I had to try and remember what the recipe was from memory but ended up just guessing and doing my own thing. It was pretty good considering.

Here's what I used, but like I said, I made it up, so you can make yours up too. 

5 Rome apples, 1 granny smith (these are the apples that we had, so I used them. You can use whatever type you think goes best in a pie)

1 Store-bought or home-made pie crust, rolled out flat

1/4 c. of melted butter

3 tbs sugar

sugar for decor

Preheat oven to 375F and grease a baking sheet.

unroll pie crust and set on baking sheet. 

Peal the apples and slice them thinly. Toss in a bowl with sugar and butter, adding or taking away to fit your own taste. 

Pile the apples high onto the rolled out pie crust. You'll know you have the right amount if when you pull the sides of the crust up around the fruit, there's still a good sized hole left in the middle for the apples to peek out of.

Warp the edges of the dough up and around each other so they hold snugly. 

If preferred, beat and egg and tablespoon of milk and brush over the top of the crust and sprinkle with sugar.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the bottom may leek juice. 

let cool for 15 minutes on sheet before trying to remove. Slice like pie and serve.

Anyways, this recipe was actually really simple, sweet and satisfying and I personally liked it better than apple pie, which has never been my absolute favorite (sorry apple pie fanatics). You should make it. It's super yummy. 

October Leaves (And Food)

"Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!"-Psalm 118:29

It's fall, my favorite time of year, and as I sat by the window today with a cup of black coffee (wondering why in the world I was drinking it black) I spontaneously decided that today was a good day to start my own blog.

I didn't really consider the fact that I had nothing to write about and no one would read it, I just headed to the computer and...here I am!

I am an aspiring author, a health enthusiast, an equestrian, a follower of Christ, and a teenage girl.  My posts will probably mostly be about food, because I'm an avid baker and cook. Obviously I don't have much experience in this area, considering the fact I am only in my teens and I depend upon my Mom to bring home the groceries, but I'll do the best I can with foreign dishes, unique appetizers and, my favorite, rustic tarts.

My blog name is derived from the song "Dance of the Autumn Leaves" by Melody Boper, a song I fell in love with as soon as my best friend played it for me on the piano, it also ties into the theme of fall and all the amazing foods that come with it.

Listen here.

It's mid October, and we're just getting to that wonderful time of year where the air is clean and crisp and smells of rain. The leaves are in their full color in most places; even here in Southern California I'm excitedly waiting to pull out the scarves and fuzzy boots. The kitchen smells of pumpkin spice and warm apple cider and this is about where I start to get a warm feeling on the inside that makes me truly thankful for everything I've been blessed with. It's no wonder the Pilgrims had the very first Thanksgiving in November, how can you not be thankful at this time of year?

The Psalms speak of praising the Lord for his excellent goodness and bringing Him thanksgiving so often, sometimes I expect David to break out in hymns of worship for Pumpkin Pie and Cranberry Nut Bread. . . I guess I'll just have to do that myself.

In the book Pure Simple Cooking by Diana Henry she uses a lot of ingredients that are by no means simple to me. I most definitely did not grow up in a home where the words arroz con pollo y chorizo were used in a sentence, but that's what I love about the book and what made me keep using it. They really are easy recipes, but they taste so foreign and delicious and they have such weird names that they make you feel like an accomplished gourmet chef afterward. I never figured out some of them, and I'm still working through the recipes with ingredients that I know how to use, but the dishes I have tried have been completely delicious.

The other night I made a Rustic Onion Tart, and as soon as I took the first bite it soon became one of my all time favorite recipes and I knew tarts were the food for me. Montery Jack cheese has a subtle, delicous flavor so I used that and sausage to go in with the onions. As a side I decided to try Roasted Autumn Vegetables from Pure Simple Cooking and it just might have been the best veggies I had ever tasted. I just used dried Thyme, because like I said: Southern California + economy + teenager. You do the math. :)

1 1/2 lbs small waxy potatoes or larger baking potatoes

1 lb  carrots, trimmed and halved lengthwise if large

1 lb parsnips, trimmed and halved lengthwise

3 red onions, each cut into 6 wedges

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

leaves from a couple sprigs of thyme, plus 5 whole sprigs

salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375F. Cut the potatoes into chunks the size of a walnut, though some waxy varieties are very small and may not need to be cut. Put all vegetables in a large roasting pan - they should be able to lie in a single layer - and add the olive oil, vinegar, thyme leaves and salt and pepper. Todd everything together with your hands.  

Roast for 40 to 60 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Give them a shake every so often, and add a whole thyme sprig halfway through the cooking time. Cover the dish with aluminum foil if some of the vegetables are getting too dark, though it's good if some of them end up slightly charred at the tips. 

The potatoes were perfectly cooked the whole way through, the carrots tender and bursting with flavor and the onions sweet and delicious. I would highly recommend the recipe and the book, because both of them are genius and the results of this one supper now have me hooked on rustic tarts and beautiful, artistic dishes. 

My cooking may not be classy, and as you can probably tell, I fail at all grammar and English tests...but my love for baking, my love for autumn and my love for Jesus I hope has been shown to you through this entry, and hopefully will continue to be through this blog. If you don't think I'm a total loser from this post, just wait. There's still more to come! :)