Snow falls outside as I type. As much as I dread this weather, I'm also grateful for it. We're forced to take a break from running around and slow things down a bit. On these days, Eric and I sit in front of our coffee table, reading the paper and nibbling on scones. I like to use this time to get some cleaning done, but after a few hours, we hunker down for a midday nap. These last few months (that is, since November) have been a bit hectic. Any open days have been packed with trips, parties, and family visits (which I love, but---you know---once in a while it's nice to have a little alone time). As miserable as it may be to trudge through three feet of snow, it's some much needed relaxation.

As you may have noticed, I'm a scone fan. Some folks are into brownies. Some are pie fanatics. Some folks deep-fry everything they see. Me? I'm into scones. Kind of strange, I know. So, if you're getting tired of seeing scone recipes on here... well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I'm not even close to being done with playing around with different kinds. You're going to have to put up with them for a while longer.

This is the first time I've branched outside of my typical butter/milk/heavy cream combo and have included Greek yogurt (we had a few large tubs of plain Chobani in the fridge). The tang it provides is something I should have expected, but for whatever reason it never occurred to me and I was pleasantly surprised when I bit into them. They're a little less flakey than my previous incarnations (most likely due to the moisture for the yogurt), but, nevertheless, I'm sold on these and I've already made them a number of times.

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Rosemary, Lemon and Greek Yogurt Scones

makes 8-10 scones

Ingredients

2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold and cut into small chunks

1/2 cup Greek yogurt

1/2 cup milk

5 tbsps chopped fresh rosemary leaves

Zest of 1 lemon

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tbsps honey

All-purpose flour, for the work surface

Directions

1. Place rack in middle of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, mix together the first five ingredients. Add the butter to the bowl and, using two knives or a pastry blender (you can even just give it a couple pulses in the food processor), cut into the dry ingredients until the butter has mixed in, but there should still be a few pea-sized pieces of butter still in there.

3. Stir in the yogurt and mix until it is fully incorporated.

4. Slowly add the milk to the mixture, stirring to make sure it is fully incorporated. If the dough looks like it is moist enough, you can leave out a little of the liquid.

5. Stir in the rosemary and lemon zest.

6. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead a couple of times. Flatten the dough out until it is about 1 1/2 inches thick (should be about 8 or so inches wide). Cut into 8 to 10 triangles and transfer the wedges to a baking sheet that has been lined with parchment paper.

7. In a bowl, whisk together the honey and lemon juice. Brush the top of each scone with the lemon-honey mixture.

8. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. If they don't brown, you can place them under the broiler for a minute, but be sure to keep an eye on them to make sure they don't burn.

9. Let cool on wire rack and enjoy!

Tags: Bake, Breakfast

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I used to be really big into Valentine's Day. Giving gifts, chocolates, flowers, cards (yeah... not just one but two, maybe three). I'd make dinner reservations at expensive restaurants and plan out a night of activities. Over the years, though, I've toned it down a bit. Eric and I don't exchange cards. We don't buy each other presents or flowers. There are no chocolate-covered strawberries. Instead we stay at home, eat lobster and drink champagne, followed by a decadent dessert (like these raspberry bars that we're obsessed with... which contain three sticks of butter). We spend the rest of the evening curled up on the couch with Maki, the three of us wrapped up in blankets. It may seem boring to some, but I want nothing more than a little quiet time with the man that I love.

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Raspberry Crumb Bars

(very minimally adapted from Joanne Chang's Flour)

makes 9 large bars, or 16 small bars

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

3 tablespoons confectioners' sugar

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 tsp baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla extract

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1 1/2 cups raspberry jam (with seeds)

1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions

1. Add the butter and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on high for 5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl periodically.

2. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

3. Add the egg yolks and vanilla extract to the butter mixture and beat at medium speed for another 2 minutes.

4. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture. Beat to incorporate.

5. Wrap 1/4 of the dough in parchment paper and the remaining dough in a separate piece of parchment paper. With the larger piece of dough, gently press it into an 8-inch round disk. Place the smaller piece of dough in the freezer for 2 hours (or until hard) and the larger one in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

6. Once the dough is ready, set a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

7. Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Cut two large pieces of parchment paper and lightly flour each side of the disk. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough between the two sheets of parchment paper until it is 13 by 9 inches.

8. Transfer the dough to a 13 by 9 inch baking dish. Even out the dough across the pan by pressing down gently with your fingers.

9. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until the shortbread is light brown. At this point, remove from the oven and let cool.

10. Once it has cooled, spread the raspberry jam evenly over the shortbread.

11. Remove the dough from the freezer and shred the dough using a grater. Sprinkle the grated dough over the raspberry jam. Bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned.

12. Remove the baking pan and let cool completely.

13. Once they have cooled, sift the confectioners' sugar over the top. Cut into 9 bars (or smaller if preferred).

Tags: Bake, Dessert