scones

There is something idyllic and whimsical about the late afternoon. Overcast skies and green bits of foliage add to the feeling that there is still so much left to be done in the day.

One of my first associations with 'tea time' is the scene in Matilda (by Roald Dahl) Early on in the book, Matilda is invited to her teacher, Miss Honey's cottage to have tea. It's quaint, cosy and just above the poverty line in terms of furnishings.

My kitchen isn't so bare, and it's not even in England. I do have the cloudy sky though, and the surrounding countryside through the suburban haze is almost reminiscent of rolling hills.

I made scones after a dedicated hour to this blog endeavour, based from my father's recipe. I dutifully covered myself with flour and melted the butter diligently over the stove. After 20 minutes at 350 F, this recipe yielded scone-goodness.

5 cups flour
5 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup milk
salt to taste
1, 1/2 sticks of butter
3 eggs

Mix flour and baking powder together
in another container, mix the eggs and milk. beat until combined.

pour melted butter into flour and baking powder mix, combine with milk & eggs.

make 1/2 inch lumps of dough, and ovenate!

a little champagne goes a long way...

Tonight's supper was simple, simple to go with the kamikaze weather gracing Rohnert Park this week.

I had a unexplainable craving for champagne, which is odd coming from someone who rarely can finish a beer, much less pay attention to the differences in wine.

We dashed off to Grocery Outlet with a simple list; bubbly. After a quick Google search of 'cheap champagne' and compiled a list of: Freixenet Brut. Of course, we added eggs, Goat's cheese with garlic and herbs, as well as some tasty wheat thins.

We had a steak sitting at home in the fridge, to which Pappy's spices were added and quickly grilled on the George Foreman (an invention I was originally skeptical of, but have grown to appreciate) and warmed up corn from a can.

The bubbly was fun, tickling the mouth as well as the nose; the steak was delicious and still a bit bloody, the way I prefer. The goat's cheese was incredibly rich and heavenly.

We meandered to the couch with the rest of the cheese and the bubbly in the fading daylight reminded me of rooibos, better known in the States as Redbush tea. This scrumptious meal, ladened with a slight haze from the champagne inspired the youthful hope of scampering overseas to Europe and exploring its offerings before classes start again... sadly- for the moment-remains a pipe-dream.