Vacation Preperations

As we travel it's always nice to have some food along that's been prepared ahead of time.  This year I've gone so far as to begin prepping 2 weeks ahead.  I had a carton of whipping cream in the refrigerator that I had planned to make into scones, but had not yet gotten to it and the expiration date had past.  A quick sniff told me it was still fine so Scones would be the first make ahead, some for breakfast and some to freeze for the trip.

This recipe from my friend Candace has become my go to breakfast treat.  I keep trying new additions.  The recipe is the original, I'll post my variations below.

Giant Apricot-Walnut Scones

2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder 
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
Powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 400.  Whisk first 3 ingredients in large bowl.  Stir in walnuts, apricots and raisins.  Add cream; stir with a fork to just blend.  Transfer dough to work surface sprinkled with powdered sugar.  Knead dough until smooth, about 10 turns.  Form dough into 1" thick round.  Cut into 6 wedges, I usually do 10-12.  Sift powdered sugar over.  Transfer to baking sheet.

Bake scones until golden brown and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 18 min.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

  DO AHEAD Can be made 8 hours ahead.  Cool completely, cover and let stand at room 
temperature.  I've had good luck freezing for short periods and reheating.

Other stir ins I've tried:
*3/4 a cup of diced candied ginger, 1 tsp powdered ginger and no nuts.
* 1 cup of blueberries and zest of one lemon
*dried cherries, almonds and 1 tsp. of almond extract
*blackberries and no nuts, 1tsp vanilla
* 1 white peach chopped, 1/2 cup raspberries and 1/2 cup slivered almonds (pictured)

From Bon Appetit December 2009

Click here for printable recipe

Blueberry Cinnamon Rolls

Yummy! I decided to make these because Mark loves all things blueberry, and I liked the way they went together.  There was no heating of milk and dissolving yeast.  I was worried about the consistency of the dough, but all for not!  Everything went together as stated.  Can't wait for summer when the four blueberry bushes I planted produce enough to make these again.

Printable Recipe

Yield: 8-12 large cinnamon rolls or 12-16 smaller rolls

Ingredients:
For the cinnamon rolls:
6½ tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
5½ tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 tsp. lemon zest
3½ cups bread flour
2 tsp. instant (rapid rise) yeast
1 cup plus 2-4 tbsp. whole milk or buttermilk, at room temperature

For the filling:
3 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. sugar
¾ tsp. ground cinnamon
1½ cups fresh blueberries

For the glaze:
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
6-7 tbsp. milk
1 tsp. lemon zest

Directions:
In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the sugar, salt and butter on medium-high speed until smooth.  Mix in the egg and lemon zest until incorporated.  Mix in the flour, yeast and milk until a dough forms.  Switch to the dough hook and knead on low speed, about 8 minutes until the dough is silky and supple, tacky but not sticky.  (You may need to add a little extra flour or liquid to achieve this texture.)  Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, turning once to coat.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature for about 2 hours, or until doubled in size.

Mist a work surface with spray oil.  Roll it out into a rectangle with a rolling pin, lightly dusting the dough with flour if needed to keep it from sticking (about 12 x 14 inches for larger rolls or 9 x 18 inches for smaller rolls).  Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and mix to blend.  Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over the surface of the dough.  Sprinkle the berries over the top evenly of the dough.  Starting with the wide edge, roll up the dough into a cigar-shaped log, creating a cinnamon sugar spiral as you roll.  Pinch the seam shut, and with the seam side down, slice the log into your desired number of rolls.  Transfer them to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, placing the rolls about ½-1 inch apart.

Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature 75-90 minutes, until the rolls have grown into each other and have nearly doubled in size.  At this point, the rolls can also be covered and retarded in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.  Pull the pan out of the refrigerator 3-4 hours before baking to let the dough proof.

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until golden brown.  Let cool in the baking about 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.  Whisk together the glaze ingredients in a medium bowl until smooth and then swirl over the top of the cinnamon rolls.  Let cool at least 15-20 minutes before serving.

From Annie's Eats