Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Edna Staebler’s Cape Breton Scones

There must be something about the fall weather that’s making me focus on food. I’m ready to put the fireplace on and cuddle up under a soft blanket with a cup of tea and some sweets. Well, actually I always think about food, but I felt I needed some kind of an excuse for writing about scones two times in a row. Today’s scones are from More Baking with Schmecks Appeal, by Edna Staebler. I came across this book, as well as another Edna Staebler book, Cakes and Frostings with Schmecks Appeal, over a decade ago in a discount department store. Boy am I glad I did.

I have since made many wonderful desserts from these two books, including a delicious frosted banana cake that I tend to produce for special occasions. What I love about these books, besides the recipes of course, are the introductions to each recipe, written by Staebler herself. Edna was a Canadian author who wrote cookbooks based on Mennonite home cooking in the Waterloo, Ontario region.
She died of a stroke in 2006, at the age of 100! I would say this bodes well for those of us with a sweet tooth. One of my favourite entries is Edna’s introduction to a recipe for  “Coffee Cake With Rolled Oats.” Here it is:

I made this tempting creation for a visiting male; he preferred three drinks of rye and ginger. I didn’t invite him again. The topping with coconut flakes was irresistible. I ate three pieces.
Finally, last month, I decided to make the recipe for “Cape Breton Scones.” Both of my parents are from Cape Breton, and, as I have mentioned before, my grandmother, who lived in Cape Breton her whole life, was a great baker. Staebler’s introduction to this recipe is: “And these are some good,” anyone in Neil’s Harbour will tell you.

These scones were so delicious, served warm with a little Earth Balance margarine and raspberry jam, that I decided to make them again today.

Cape Breton Scones

by Joann MacDonald
Cook Time: 10 to 12 minutes
Keywords: bake bread snack dessert vegetarian nut-free raisins tea party Canadian

Ingredients (12 scones)
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 Tbsp organic sugar
  • 1 Tbsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp baking soda
  • 1 cup raisins
  • ½ cup sour cream or vegan sour cream
  • ¼ cup oil
  • 1 egg
  • 3 Tbsp soymilk

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425 °F.

Sift the dry ingredients together in a large bowl and stir in the raisins.

Beat the wet ingredients together in a small bowl with a fork.

Add wet ingredients to the flour mix and stir together until dough forms.

Toss on a lightly floured surface until no longer sticky and knead a few times.

Cut the dough in half and form each half into a 6-inch circle with a slightly rounded top. Brush the tops with milk and sprinkle with sugar. Cut each circle into 6 wedges.

Place 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet (on parchment paper if you like).

Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden.

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1 comment:

  1. Those look really amazing and perfect to go with my afternoon coffee:)

    ReplyDelete