Writing makes me really hungry. Does this happen for any of you? I mean, I am sitting here, pounding out page after page of thesis paper and all I can (subconsciously) think about is the next snack break! Or, more accurately, I can feel the next snack break come on. Today I found my perfect writing snack when I stopped at the Pastaworks in my neighborhood, these scrumptious Swedish gingersnaps. The bag has been open and sitting next to me on my desk for the duration of the six hours I have been here thesis writing, slowly (or not so slowly) withering down to the crumbs at the bottom. Each cup of tea I make prompts another handful of these heart-shaped wonders, which leave a lovely spicy aftertaste in your mouth only making you want more. I hardly ever buy sweets (mostly because I make them on my own so often, but also I am never sure what is put into them. These have all natural ingredients, thank goodness, because desperate times call for desperate measures aka: store bought cookies!).
My thesis has actually been really interesting to work on and I am excited about it! In short, I have been positioning eating design within the broader context of design history, more specifically product and graphic design. I am absolutely and unabashedly nerding out (because I get SUPER excited) on graphic design history and theory!
Now that you know what has been consuming me these past days making me scarce with my blog posts, I will share with you (another!) favorite scone recipe. I made these the other night after a friend of mine had told me how magical they were (yes, I do believe she used the term magical). It was 9:45 pm, there was 15 minutes until the store closed, I ran to the store as a woman with an extremely important mission of finding crystallized ginger to put into these scones. It was a late one in the kitchen that night, but the scones were wonderful, light, airy, delicious, and I got my baking fix.
Ginger Lemon Scones (recipe adapted from Orangette)
½ c milk
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ stick (2 ounces) unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
3 Tbs sugar
Flavorful additions of your choice, to taste
a handful of chopped crystalized ginger
half of a lemon, zested
Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
Beat together the milk and the egg and then set aside. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Rub the butter into the flour mixture, working until you have no lumps bigger than a pea. Add the sugar and whatever additions you choose, and stir or toss to mix. Pour the wet ingredients into the dries, reserving just a tad of the milk-egg mixture to use as a glaze. Bring dough together gently with a wooden spoon.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured counter and knead it no more than 12 times. [Apparently, twelve is the magic number here; surpass it at your own risk.] Pat dough into a round approximately ½-inch thick, and cut into 8 or 12 wedges. Place on an ungreased baking sheet or a Silpat, if you have one. Using a pastry brush, glaze wedges.
Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until golden. Cool on a rack.
Enjoy!
