Blueberry Scones With Lemon Glaze

by: Tyler Florence

I made these "pre-blog" but they're so good, I have to share the recipe here. *Note: I've made the dough, cut it into the triangles and then frozen them. With a little extra baking time, they're just as good!

Blueberry Scones:
2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons sugar 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut in chunks 1 cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing the scones 1 cup fresh blueberries
Lemon Glaze:
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice 2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted 1 lemon, zest finely grated 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Sift together the dry ingredients; the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Using 2 forks or a pastry blender, cut in the butter to coat the pieces with the flour. The mixture should look like coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center and pour in the heavy cream. Fold everything together just to incorporate; do not overwork the dough. Fold the blueberries into the batter. Take care not to mash or bruise the blueberries because their strong color will bleed into the dough.
Press the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle about 12 by 3 by 1 1/4 inches. Cut the rectangle in 1/2 then cut the pieces in 1/2 again, giving you 4 (3-inch) squares. Cut the squares in 1/2 on a diagonal to give you the classic triangle shape. Place the scones on an ungreased cookie sheet and brush the tops with a little heavy cream. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until beautiful and brown. Let the scones cool a bit before you apply the glaze.
Technically you should make this simple lemon glaze in a double boiler (i.e. over a pot of simmering water with a heatproof bowl set on top) but it's even simpler to zap it in the microwave. Mix the lemon juice and confectioners' sugar together in a microwave-safe bowl. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the lemon zest and butter. Nuke it for 30 seconds on high.
Whisk the glaze to smooth out any lumps, then drizzle the glaze over the top of the scones. Let it set a minute before serving.

Pasta with Lemon Cream Sauce, Asaparagus and Peas

(Cooking Light)

I accidentally bought angel hair instead of linguine (which I was going to sub for the fusilli). I also added chicken seasoned with lemon pepper. The sauce (I followed that part of the recipe exactly) was delicious!!!! Next time I will add a little more cornstarch to thicken it a bit more and will use a twisted or lined pasta because the angel hair didn't really hold the sauce. Overall, this was a very yummy meal!

8 ounces uncooked long fusilli (twisted spaghetti)
1 3/4 cups (1 1/2-inch) slices asparagus (about 1/2 pound)
1 cup frozen green peas, thawed
1 tablespoon butter
1 garlic clove, minced
1 cup organic vegetable broth (such as Swanson Certified Organic)
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/3 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Coarsely ground black pepper

PreparationCook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Add asparagus during last minute of cooking time. Place peas in a colander. Drain pasta mixture over peas; set aside.
Melt butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic to pan; sauté 1 minute. Combine broth and cornstarch in a small bowl; stir until well blended. Add broth mixture to pan; bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute or until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in cream, juice, salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Add pasta mixture to broth mixture; toss gently to coat.
Serve immediately.

Yield4 servings (serving size: about 1 1/2 cups)


Nutritional Information
CALORIES 351(29% from fat); FAT 11.2g (sat 6.7g,mono 2.9g,poly 0.5g); PROTEIN 11.5g; CHOLESTEROL 35mg; CALCIUM 49mg; SODIUM 471mg; FIBER 4.9g; IRON 3.6mg; CARBOHYDRATE 52.9g

Marcia Smart
Cooking Light

Barbeque Turkey Burgers and Roasted Cauliflower

BBQ Turkey Burgers (3 servings)
My husband actually liked this burger (with cheese added) and he's not into ground turkey...

1lb Ground Turkey
1/3 - 1/2 c bread crumbs
pepper
barbecue sauce

Combine ground turkey and bread crumbs. Add black pepper. Mold into three burgers. Heat skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Cook burgers brushing several times with barbecue sauce. I usually cook them about 5 minutes a side and then a little longer because I never believe they're done!

Roasted Cauliflower with Browned Butter (3 servings)
(From Cooking Light magazine)

This was delicious! I had the rest the next day with lunch. The browned butter is great!
1 head of cauliflower
cooking spray
salt
pepper
2-3 tsp butter

Preheat oven to 400. Cut cauliflower into florets. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray. Spread cauliflower on baking sheet and coat with cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. "Roast" at 400 for 25 minutes.

Cook butter for 3 minutes in small saucepan until brown.

Toss cauliflower with browned butter.

Mexican-Inspired Sausage with Macaroni and Cheese

Mexican Sausage (2 servings)

4 links italian sausage (I used pork, but will try turkey next time.)
1/2- 1c canned black beans, drained
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/2- 1c frozen corn kernels
1/4 c diced green chiles
taco seasoning
chili powder

Cut sausage into 1 in pieces. Cook with water in skillet until no longer pink. Empty any remaining water from the pan and brown the sausage. Add desired amount of taco seasoning and water (2/3 c for the entire packet). Add onion and pepper. Cook till tender. Add beans, chiles and corn. Cook until everything is heated through.

"Mexican" Macaroni and Cheese (3 servings)

10 oz pasta (I used mini shells.)
1 c milk
1 1/2 c shredded mexican cheese blend (cheddar, jack etc)
1 tbl butter
1/4 c onion
1 tbl flour
taco seasoning

1 handful tortilla chips

Cook pasta.
In medium saucepan, melt butter and cook onion until tender. Add flour and then milk. Stir until bubbly and starting to thicken. Add cheese and desired amount of taco seasoning. Drain cooked pasta and add to cheese, stiring until well combined. Crushed the tortilla chips and sprinkle on top to create a crunchy topping like on baked mac n cheese.

Starting a blog...

I'm not really sure that anyone else will be interested in this, but I love food and I love talking about food! I'll post recipes that I've tried and also my thoughts on various new foods that I find at the grocery store etc. Enjoy!