AWARD-WINNING CRANBERRY SCONES

Another Platte County Fair has come and gone until next summer. This was a first for me - at least for the Platte County Fair - to enter some items for judging. I entered three things and all three took ribbons. Yay. So exciting. 

I was planning on entering one of my lap quilts like I make for Blankets of Hope; I just needed to get it finished. But when I was encouraged to enter three things so I could get a pass for all four days, I thought I would enter another quilt I had made with a "farm theme" - animals and food. I actually made it for Blankets of Hope but liked it so much I was talked into keeping it. The third item, I wasn't sure of. 

Saturday afternoon, the day before I was supposed to take the items to the fairgrounds to drop off my entries, I was missing doing any baking and decided to make some cranberry scones. I had found the recipe earlier when I was going through a cookbook I thought I could donate. Well, they tasted so good and looked nice enough, I decided I would package up a few and they would be my third entry. 

Image my surprise when we went to the fair Wednesday afternoon and  I saw that both of my quilts had ribbons hanging from them. Third place on the first one I wanted to take and fourth place on the "farm theme" one. 

Then Wayne and I started looking for my cranberry scones. I had just about given up on finding them, when we both saw them at the same time. There was the closed container just as I had brought it in with a blue First Place ribbon attached to it. I was so surprised. I was really surprised that they had replaced the paper cardboard cover so no one could see what they looked like. But right above it was a coconut cake that had also won a blue ribbon and it was covered with the plastic wrap so you really couldn't see how delicious it looked. Oh Wayne said he wasn't surprised at all because they tasted so good.

The scones are really delicious and were so fast and easy to make. They are cut into 2 - inch circles, but if you think scones have to be cut in triangles, there is no reason, other than the fact you don't end up with as many servings, you couldn't cut them that way when you press the dough out into a circle to cut them into 2 - inch circles.  My sister-cousin, Marie, is allergic to cinnamon so she will have to omit the last step or try substituting nutmeg maybe for the cinnamon. She can also just sprinkle some sugar on top, too.

Print recipe.

 CRANBERRY SCONES

2-1/2     cups flour

2            teaspoons baking powder

1            teaspoon baking soda

1/2         cup sugar

6            tablespoons butter

1/2         cup dried cranberries

1            egg, beaten

1/2         cup plain yogurt

1            teaspoon dried orange peel

Cinnamon/sugar mixture for the tops

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly spray/grease a large cookie sheet. Set aside.

Sift together the first four ingredients together into a large mixing bowl. Cut in the butter until mixture is crumbly.

(I thinly slice the cold butter and add a few at a time and work them in with my fingers.)

Add the cranberries, beaten egg, yogurt, and orange zest. Blend all well to make a dough that barely holds together.

(I used my hands to work the ingredients until there are no dry ingredients.)

Drop dough onto a floured surface/board and pat dough out until about 1/2 inch thick.

(Make sure the dough is smooth.)

Using a 2 - inch round biscuit/cookie cutter, cut rounds using all of the dough. (Lightly work unused dough and flatten to 1/2 inch and cut.)

Place the rounds 1 inch apart on the cookie sheet. (I made about 17 scones so also used a second pan. I used two racks in the oven.)

Sprinkle the tops with the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly golden and well-risen.

Thought you would like to see my lap quilts that won the other ribbons.

Third Place:

Fourth Place:

CINNAMON ROLL - APPLE PIE BAKE

 I have been trying, not too hard, to get rid of some of my cookbooks since I have so many. So far we have taken 21 to Hillcrest Thrift Store, but that isn't even a dent in my collection. 

I found this recipe for a Cinnamon Roll - Apple Pie Bake in  Better Homes & Gardens' Hometown Favorites. It is actually pictured on the front cover of the cookbook and looks so delicious. It was one of a couple of recipes I discovered as I was going through it hopefully to give away. (Maybe soon.) It looked like something I might want to make for the gathering of my quilting friends' canasta group. That occasion came sooner than later.

Due to food sensitivities I needed something without dairy and soy. The list of ingredients looked like there wouldn't be a problem but as I had to buy the canned cinnamon rolls, I soon realized my problem. The popular brand of cinnamon rolls contains soybean oil so I couldn't use them. I checked the store brand and they did also. I was thinking I would have to find something else to bake when I picked up Annie's organic cinnamon rolls. They didn't have soybeans! Yay. I didn't drizzle any of the icing over the part I gave Friend Diane.

I decided to buy Granny Smith apples since they are tart and so tasty in an apple pie, but you can use your favorite apple.  I didn't think about it until after I put the apples in the oven to bake that I had forgotten to buy golden raisins. I didn't mention that to my friends and so no one missed them.

Everyone wanted to know the recipe and I have a feeling some of them will be making it. We might even see it again at one of our bi-monthly meetings.

Print recipe.

CINNAMON ROLL - APPLE PIE BAKE

1/2     cup sugar

2        tablespoons flour

1        teaspoon ginger

7        cups peeled, cored, and sliced apples (I used 6 Granny Smith apples)

1/4     cup water

1        (17.5 oz) pkg (5) refrigerated large cinnamon rolls with icing, quartered.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 

In a small bowl, combine the sugar, flour, and ginger. Set aside.

Prepare the apples (After I peeled the apples, I used my handy-dandy apple corer/slicer and made 8 wedges that I then cut into lengthwise.) and then dump them in an extra large bowl. Add the water and stir to coat.

7\/\

Dump the dry ingredients over top and then toss to cover.

Spread the mixture evenly into a 2 quart casserole baking dish.

Cover the dish with a lid or foil. Place a large cooking sheet lined with foil on the rack under the dish in the oven to catch any spills as it bakes.

Bake for 50 minutes until apples begin to soften.

Cut the cinnamon rolls into fourths and arrange evenly over the top of the baked apples. 

Return to the oven and bake uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes or until the cinnamon rolls are golden brown. Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes. 

Drizzle the icing that comes in the package over the top before serving.

SILVER DOLLAR OAT PANCAKES

 If I had any doubts that summer is here, all I have to do is look at the thermometer. We enjoyed crazy up and down temperatures in spring, and all of a sudden we were in the 90s. We didn't get a chance to work up to the 90s. That means I've not been in the kitchen very much lately so that means I haven't been sharing any new posts with you. I have been quilting, but haven't taken the time to share any tutorials with you.

As we used to say a few years ago, "I'm bad." Sorry.

I have been very busy helping to organize a food drive for three organizations in the northern part of our county. The group held one in the southern part of the county back in March that I just volunteered at. It was extremely successful and I wanted to group to do one for the northern part. Anyway it will be this Saturday and then I can take a breath and get back to my new normal. (My new normal doesn't include heading up the Cafe Treats at the church anymore. After doing so for a little over two years, I decided I would let someone else have the fun. I will be making treats for them some though. In fact I signed up to make some banana bread for this coming Sunday.)

I also decided to start going through some of my cookbooks and donate them to Hillcrest Thrift Shop. So far I have 25 picked out. I was checking out a cookbook that I had tagged a few pages and I found one recipe I had not made. The other four I had made and shared with you so I wrote it down so I could add the cookbook to the pile.

The recipe is called Silver Dollar Oat Pancakes. When I was young, my parents and I went to Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO a number of times. There was a cafe we would eat at that served Silver Dollar Pancakes. They were just regular pancakes but small. We loved them. I always wanted my pancakes small like that after that. This recipe wasn't theirs of course because they used just a regular pancake recipe. This one had flour, oats. and applesauce so I decided to use whole wheat flour instead and make them heartier and healthier. I had some natural chunky applesauce and just added some cinnamon to it to make cinnamon applesauce. They were good but I decided what I didn't like was they tasted salty. The recipe called for 1/2 teaspoon salt. Next time I will either skip it all together or just use 1/4 teaspoon. We don't eat a lot of salt, so I can really taste it especially if there is too much.

I made larger ones and smaller ones for my husband and me since he likes bigger ones than I do. I made eight larger ones and four small ones.

PRINT RECIPE.

SILVER DOLLAR HEALTHY PANCAKES

1/2     cup whole wheat flour

1/2     cup quick cooking oats

1-1/2  teaspoon sugar

1        teaspoon baking powder

1/2     teaspoon baking soda

1/4     teaspoon salt (optional)

1        egg

3/4     cup buttermilk

1/2     cup cinnamon applesauce (I added 1 teaspoon cinnamon to natural chunky applesauce)

2        tablespoons melted butter or oil

Combine the dry ingredients in a medium size bowl.

Whip the wet ingredients in a different bowl.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients just until moistened.

Spoon batter onto a hot griddle coated with cooking spray for the size you wish...2 tablespoons for silver dollar size.

Cook as normal for pancakes.

Serve hot with butter and syrup.

 

AMISH CHOCOLATE APPLESAUCE CAKE

 Yesterday afternoon I hosted the canasta group. Two of the members have soy or dairy issues so I had to look a little longer for a recipe I could make. The recipe called for shortening (lard, actually) and no milk so I thought I was good. I wasn't sure if I had chocolate chips which the original recipe called for so when I was at Aldi I thought I would buy a package just in case. Surprise! Surprise! The chocolate chips, actually all of the baking chips, contained milk and soy. I had no idea about the soy.

So I had to put on my creative cap and came up with substituting dried cranberries and they were so delicious on top of the baked cake. I had to keep checking it to see if it were done because I wasn't sure what size baking dish to use since it was not included in the recipe which took me away from the canasta game but it was worth it. My version was nice and thick because I used a glass 8 x 11 inch baking dish, but I would use an aluminum pan next time. And there will definitely be a next time for sure. It was so moist and light tasting.

PRINT RECIPE

AMISH CHOCOLATE APPLESAUCE CAKE

1/2     cup shortening

2        eggs

1-1/2  cup sugar

1/2     teaspoon cinnamon

2        cups flour

1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2     teaspoon salt

3        tablespoons cocoa (I used unsweetened special dark)

2        cups applesauce (I used natural chunky)

1/2     cup chopped nuts (I used pecans)

1/2     cup dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 13 - inch baking pan. Set aside.

Cream together the shortening, eggs, sugar, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. (I just let it beat while I prepared the dry ingredients so it was nice and light and creamy.)

Sift together the dry ingredients twice in another bowl. This will make sure that the cocoa is well blended with the flour, etc.

Add the dry ingredients and the applesauce alternately to the creamed mixture beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

Spread the batter evenly in the pan.

Sprinkle the nuts on top and then the dried cranberries.

Bake until done in the oven for 30 to 35 minutes. Check with a toothpick for doneness. (I baked mine in a glass 8 x 11 inch dish and had to cook it longer.)

Cut into squares to serve. Best while still warm. So moist and light.

COCONUT COOKIE BARS

As I have said many times, I love versatile recipe because I can make them using almost any of my ingredients in my pantry that go into desserts. Friend Sandi texted me the other day with this recipe. She had made them using M & M's alone with a zero sugar yellow cake mix and took them to her mother who lives in an assisted living apartment. Sandi does this probably does this every week because she knows that her mother and her friends enjoy sweets so much. I thanked her and told her I would definitely be making them Saturday for the Cafe Treats. Our treats are nut-free so I couldn't use the M & M's but I did have lots of other things I could use. Since I also had a Zero Sugar yellow cake mix, I wanted to keep the recipe sugar-free and chocolate chips, or dried fruit would add sugar, I decided to just add unsweetened coconut.

I was not disappointed with the results. They were so buttery and soft and chewy and perfect with the coconut since I love coconut. I might try a zero sugar devil's food cake mix the next time. I think that would be divine.

 PRINT RECIPE.

COCONUT COOKIE BARS

1     stick (8 tablespoons) + 3 tablespoons butter

1     egg

1     cake mix - your favorite (I used a Zero Sugar yellow cake mix)

1     cup coconut (I used unsweetened coconut)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 x 13 - inch baking pan. Set aside.

Cut the butter into pieces and melt in the microwave in a microwaverable safe bowl. Allow to cool a few minutes.

(I poured the melted butter into another bowl to cool faster.)

Pour the cake mix into a larger bowl and stir in the coconut to blend well. Set aside.

When the butter is not hot to touch, beat the egg in a small bowl and then pour it into the butter stirring to blend.

Make a well in the center of the dry mixture and then pour the butter/egg mixture into the bowl.

Stir with a spoon or spatula until all of the dry mixture is wet.

Drop some globs of dough into the baking pan

leaving some to be added where needed to cover the pan.

Press with your fingers the dough to evenly cover the bottom of the pan

adding small amounts to fill in holes.

Bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes. I did bake mine the full 25 minutes. Allow to cool in the pan.

Cut into squares to serve. 

For storing, place a piece of wax paper between layers.

Note: I decided to add coconut to my recipe because I wanted my cookies to be sugar-free and I had unsweetened coconut, but you could add any additive that you liked such as M & M's, or raisins, or other dried fruit, or your favorite baking chip. Your choice to make them your own.