doing double duty

My sister-in-law, Kate, is coming over this morning for coffee. I decided to make the all time classic Newton scone that can do double duty for coffee this morning and for the guys tomorrow morning. 


I made the lemon poppy seed version.  While making them I was remembering how I would make these when living at 10 Montague with Aunt Gillian.  It took a few tries before I was able to figure out the correct conversion for butter - in England butter comes in blocks of 250 gms. I would borrow the poppy seeds from Aunt Gillian's spice shelf.  If I could manage, especially while they were fresh from the oven, I would bring 2 or 3 down to share with Aunt Gillian to have with her coffee, or tea depending on the time of day.
 She would always exclaim over them - then generously spread butter on the halves, which she said was the best way to eat a scone even if it did give her indigestion.

Newton's lemon poppy seed scone:
2 cups flour
1 Tbs baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbs sugar
1/2 cup butter (8 Tbs)
3/4 cup of butter milk/plain yoghurt/soured milk
zest of 1 lemon
1 1/2 Tbs poppy seeds

• mix dry ingredients, poppy seeds and lemon zest
• cut in butter - using pastry cutter or food processor
• mix in the butter milk, if using a food processor (which I have been using) dump flour butter mixture onto the counter or into a bowl and fold in the buttermilk. 
• gently knead the dough 3-4 times then pat into a round about 3/4 inch thick
• cut 6-8 pie slices and place on a rimmed cookie sheet
• bake at 400 for 10-15 minutes 

for the icing -
2 cups powdered sugar - give or take a little for the right consistency
1-2 Tbs lemon juice
1 tsp milk
1 tsp light corn syrup *optional* I sometimes like to use it to help harden the icing a tiny little bit

• mix all ingredients with a wisk
• ice the tops of scones (or entire thing if you desire) after the scones have cooled  

These keep for about two days if you put them in an airtight container, but are best eaten as soon as possible.

and if you are feeling indulgent, you might try your with a thick

spread of butter as recommended by Aunt Gillian.

the towels in the kitchen...

One day last winter I was down stairs in Aunt Gillian's kitchen helping with some washing up.
We were chatting away about something or other and soon enough all the washing was done. All that was left was a bit of drying. I reached up and grabbed the towel hanging on the rack near me and began to dry the dishes in the strainer. Mid-sentence, Aunt Gillian interrupted herself and exclaimed, "What are you doing?!" confusion must have been written all over my face because she went on, "Why are you using a hand towel to dry the dishes? You should be using a tea towel for the dishes." Feeling a little silly I explained I had no idea there was a difference between the two towels - and to be honest did it really make that much of a difference?

So I got a mini lesson right there and then about kitchen towel rules and etiquette. One must always have a hand towel and a tea towel in use in ones kitchen for both have unique purpose.

• the Hand towel: used to dry your hands after washing, or used to wipe food and juices off your hands while cooking (ie - perhaps you are making some tomato sauce and you get a little on your hand and so you wipe the sauce off on the hand towel). It is understood that this towel may get dirty quickly.
• the Tea towel: Used to wipe clean dishes dry, also can be used to cover dishes to keep them warm before being placed on the table. This ensures that clean dishes are always wiped with a clean towel, and that guest are not presented with a dirty towel covering the food they are about to eat.

Huh - it made so much sense! I decided to try it out for myself and probably if ever you come to my house and have a peek into my kitchen you will find some version of this kitchen towel advice being put to practice... though I will admit that I am not as vigilant about it as Aunt Gillian!