Wales and mini scones
Autumn is here! My favorite season of the year.
I love the fresh and crisp air, the change of colors in the trees and the fact that when opening my door, I don’t feel like I am stepping into a sauna!
This weather brought back some great memories from a visit I took a few years ago, to the UK - to Wales.
A few years ago, my mother and I took a long mother-daughter trip, visiting several countries in Europe. We spent a couple of months in the UK visiting the pastors we had known during my childhood in Venezuela (they were missionaries to the area at the time). During that trip, we visited the country of Wales, where pastor Peter is originally from.
Wales is such a beautiful country, full of green pastures, valleys, rivers and mountains surrounding the area. Welsh people are very proud of their history, their heritage and of carrying their own language for generations. In one of our walks around a small town, I saw a sign that said:
"Cenedl heb iaith, cenedl heb galon"
(A nation without a language is a nation without a heart)
That made me think about the sense of identity that language gives us and how often it is taken for granted. Language is one of the things that expresses our uniqueness as society.
I remember driving through the country seeing shepherds herding their sheep and other livestock. I saw castles and stunning pastures, cute towns with old buildings and stone streets. Most of the landscape was like an old story about dragons and princesses; like going through a fairy tale whose opening line is, “Once upon a time, in a kingdom far, far away…”
During our visit, we were able to enjoy nice weather, as the seasons were transitioning to springtime. The crisp, fresh air was something special.
Sometimes, life passes so quickly that we forget to enjoy those little pleasures that life gives us, like the ability to breath fresh air and enjoy good weather, even if just for a short time.
I would love to go back there in the future and enjoy more of the country. I appreciate getting to know the cultural differences in the nations that make up the United Kingdom, and I enjoyed learning about it from Pastor Peter and his family.
It was in Wales where I tried the traditional English breakfast for the first time, along with Welsh scones. What I had known of scones were that they were a dry pastry by themselves, but I had some during “tea time” and it was perfection! It was a beautiful balance with a hot drink during the cool of the evening.
So, as the current coolness of weather caused me to remember that trip, this morning I decided to make scones and share the recipe with you! This is an adapted recipe, not the original Welsh scones recipe, and they ended up being delicious. You can substitute the orange and cranberries for other fruits or even make bigger scones.
Make these delicious scones and enjoy them as a snack with a hot drink during this beautiful weather!
Cranberry orange mini scones
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups of flour
1 Tablespoon of sugar
2 teaspoons of baking powder
½ teaspoon of salt
¼ cup of cold butter in small pieces
½ cup of heavy cream
1 egg
1 cup of dried cranberries
½ cup of nuts (optional)
Orange zest of three oranges
A pinch of brown sugar
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add butter and mix using a fork, slowly add the rest of the ingredients until well combined.
3. In a clean lightly floured surface, pour the dough and divide in two parts. Shape both as a ball. Flatten the dough and cut in pizza fashion. You should get about 16 miniature triangular shaped scones.
4. Place them on a pre-greased cookie sheet, sprinkle with brown sugar and bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
5. Once baked, remove and allow time to cool.
Enjoy with your favorite hot drink!
Check also my Almond Fruity banana bread. You will love it!
