Scones

I love reading a newspaper with my morning juice (I'm not a coffee drinker) and the paper I really enjoy is the Wall Street Journal.  Of course, the "news" may be 3 days late because it comes via USPS, but the in-depth coverage makes up for what I see and hear on radio and tv.

But it's the other features of the paper which I truly enjoy and often share articles with friends and family.   I love the weekly real estate "Mansions" section; I avidly read the tech columns to learn what I should be thinking about buying next; I enjoy the wine discussions and have enjoyed giving some of the wines mentioned although now I usually give wines from our local winery Watauga Lake Winery in Butler, TN; and the recipes often catch my fancy.

 As the owner of a bed and breakfast, one article recently which said "try me" was Currant Cream Scones.  How could I not enjoy an article titled, "Romancing the Scone" - congrats to the headline writer for that one!
And try it today I did!  Didn't have any currants so made due with dried cranberries.  My guests loved them!  I loved making them since it was so easy.  Put the dry ingredients together the night before, added the heavy cream, mixed and baked!

So in case you want to try it here is the recipe.  Although it says makes 20 scones, I only made 8 as I made them a little fatter in a special scone pan.

2 cups all-purpose flour (I always use King Arthur)
1 tbls baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/3 cup sugar, plus 2-3 tbls for sprinkling
1 1/3 cups dried currants (I used cranberries, next time, dried blueberries and then...chocolate chips)
1 cup heavy cream, cold
3 tbls unsaled butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. over a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt and 1/3 cup sugar. Stir in currants.  Add heavy cream to bowl and use an electric mixer to blend on low until ingredients are just combined.
3. Dump dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead very briefly. (I used a Silpat mat instead of putting more flour into the dough).
4. Roll dough out to a 1-inch thickness.  Use a 1-1 1/2 inch cookie cutter or biscuit cutter to cut out scones.
5. Place scones 1 inch apart on a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet.  Reroll dough scraps and repeat process until all the dough has been used..  Using my scone pan, the dough filled the 8 slots.
6. Use a pastry brush to pain tops of scones with melted butter, then sprinkle with sugar.  Place pan/baking sheet in center of oven and bake until scones are golden - about 12-15 minutes.
7. Let scones cool on a baking rack.  Serve warm or at room temperature with butter and jam. (Scones can be stored in airtight container up to 24 hours or in the freezer for up to 12 weeks.
    My guests didn't need butter or jam with these light flaky scones.

Hope you enjoy yours as much as we've enjoyed these.

Selfies

"Selfie", even the Oxford Dictionary picked it up as the "word of the year in 2013".  I know a lot of people who take Selfies, but my first attempt was not a winner.  Just made me look fat so I haven't posted it here...or anywhere.  I'll keep trying.

However, I came across this site for the "Selfie Olympics" (http://read.bi/1khxZRc ) and thought what a fun weekend we could have at the Inn taking Selfies!  Then at Sunday breakfast we could have them laid out and we could pick a winner.  The prize might be 50% discount on another stay!

I'd like to hear from former and potential guests as to what would be a good time to do it.  I'm thinking Spring, maybe the 2nd or 3rd week in April when the leaves are just coming out, but you can still get some neat backgrounds in your Selfies.

I'm also planning to have Geocaching weekend.  I've always wanted to learn more about it and it's a great way to learn about your area, get some exercise and maybe even be the first person to find a cache!  This will be a weekend when the Watauga Lake Winery is having a dinner so after a day in the out-of-doors, you can follow it up with a wonderful event, delicious dinner and wine!

If you are interested, check our website: www.ironmountaininn.com, leave your name, phone number and an email so I can keep you posted on when these two events will occur.  Space will be limited to rooms at the Inn and the Creekside Chalet (www.creeksidechalet.net).  It'll be first come first reserved.

Snowing like crazy around the Inn, but at least the wind has stopped blowing.  However, think it's time to sweep off the covered deck as the cats are not happy about going out there to relieve themselves....