Life, Love & The Pursuit Of Butter

Life it would seem is a crazy thing where we are constantly being bustled about whether its because of work or the disaster that is the University scene. There are days that I feel the pressure more than others for instance today.  

My husband who I adore is one of the most kind, thoughtful , caring and at times the most neurotic person I know. He is also applying to grad-school the question is not when he gets in rather it is where he gets in. I think that is what drives me the craziest, not knowing where we will be or if there is a culinary school there. 

I am not worried about leaving I mean truly I can not do what I want too here. There is not a food scene beyond what is fried, frozen or guarenteed to give heart burn for the most part with a few exceptions.Example the most brilliant culinary treasure in claremore being the Belvedere  Mansion whos food is quaint, but roast duck with wine sauce is not on the menu as often as salads containing fruits depending on the season.  Now I am not against junk food I actually love it from time to time and I look forward to some of our weird little things we do here like the Universities Chili cook off where for $5.00 you could sample, vote and suffer gastrointestinal distress  from 19 different versions of chili.
Now I am not saying that all of the chilis were bad because well to be honest they weren't, as a matter of fact 8 of them were edible and of those, 5 were so fantastically divine that I was willing to overlook (almost) the other 11 that were in fact so bad that within 10 minutes of consuming them I was running to the bathroom.
However regardless of that there were 2 which I found so wonderful that I had to mention them  and their makers here Dr. Frank Grabowski whose divine polish chili that inspite of being cold I would have ate the whole darn thing even if it had come out of a freezer and I had to break it in chunks and though not as much my favorite Dr. Juliet Evusa came in a firm second place in my book at least with her African Chili (her name) that had a beautiful and refreshing hint of curry that made the tummy irritating nightmares seem to fade in its elegance. Yes imagine that me calling a chili elegant. 

I guess it comes as no surprise what I want to do. I want to cook. To me there is nothing more blissful than standing in a kitchen or so relaxing as watching butter melt. For me cooking is zen and the kitchen is my own cozy cocoon where nothing can touch me and even when something doesn't come out in the kitchen there are always do-overs I mean if you burn caramel you wash the dish and start again life never gives you these guarentees.Though my Mother in law Teases me because I can not master boxed Jello Whether making Brie Souffle, Ratatoullie, crisp air light Meringues ,(my Husband and Aunts Favorite) Creme Brulee (another one of hubbys fav.), or a batch of wonderful Cream Scones that seem like a Mommy hug on a bad day. 

 Like today, today is a cooking day a day when everything seems to suck and I know I can cook and everything will go away. I guess thats why I am starting this not just for myself but for all my friends and family who have asked me for recipes or how I made something so for all my friends here is my much coveted recipe for Cream Scones.

Cream Scones

2 cups all purpose flour
1 Tbs Baking powder
3 Tbs Sugar
1/2 tsp Salt
5  Tbs Butter
1 Cup dried fruit ( I preffer Cran/cher myself)
1 Cup Heavy Cream 

Directions.

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425°F.

2. Place flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in large bowl or work bowl of food processor fitted with steel blade. Whisk together or pulse six times.

3. If making by hand, use two knives, a pastry blender or your fingertips and quickly cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few slightly larger butter lumps. Stir in currants. If using food processor, remove cover and distribute butter evenly over dry ingredients. Cover and pulse 12 times, each pulse lasting 1 second. Add currants and pulse one more time. Transfer dough to large bowl.

4. Stir in heavy cream with a rubber spatula or fork until dough begins to form, about 30 seconds.

5. Transfer dough and all dry, floury bits to countertop and knead dough by hand just until it comes together into a rough, sticky ball, 5 to 10 seconds. Then turning the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, cutting the dough into  wedges  Bake until light golden brown and enjoy your mommy hug on a plate.

And to all my friends, I will meet you in the OMA with a batch of scones for our Food therapy .

Life is one of those complicated things and cooking is an act of love that embraces the heart

Remember just add Butter.