sconed

On Tuesday, on my way back from the pool, I dropped by the supermarket to pick up some bread.

I left with two cans of tomatoes, two cans of tomato paste, some celery and lemons and no bread.

Well we weren't in desperate need for bread yet, and I had been hoping to get my hands on some multigrain bread, which unfortunately seems to have once again disappeared from the supermarket shelves. First Bonjour then Gardenia. Is it because people don't like multigrain bread? Or is it just at this crappy neighbourhood supermarket that it does not exist?

I like multigrain bread cos it tastes good and at least has an interesting texture and it might possibly be healthier than the other types of bread. I still do eat white bread but its shiny brightness somehow makes me feel uncomfortable. It just looks like it's been bleached, and in a way it has. I don't mind wholemeal bread but it's just kinda cardboard-ish, especially if eaten untoasted. Then again that's because toast is just one of the best things in the world to eat, especially when its topped with butter or grilled cheese or peanut butter or strawberry jam. Or some combination of the above, except I suppose cheese with peanut butter/jam...

Anyway, I left the supermarket with all those items, not really knowing what I was up to. But I'd remember reading someone's blog about tomato soup with rice. So I thought, I'd throw some things into a pot and hope for the best.

In went two cloves of garlic, about a quarter of an onion, two cans of whole tomatoes (chopped up roughly), chopped celery, sliced mushrooms, some cabbage leaves as an afterthought and some rice. Of course I fried the garlic, onions and the rice first, threw in the tomatoes and later the rest of the vegetables, also adding in various spices like oregano and chili flakes and of course salt and pepper.

While the pot was simmering away, I sliced some fresh button mushrooms, tossed them with salt and pepper and garlic olive oil as an appetiser. And then later discovered I'd made tomato porridge. Wasn't too bad I suppose, although would've tasted better if I'd thought of making some stock first. But it was already close to 1pm when I reached home and after that swim, I was pretty damn hungry.

And today, after checking out food blogs as usual in the morning, I googled 'lemon scone recipe' and out popped one that looked simple enough.

Basic Scone Recipe

Although I realised a bit late that because I was doing the lemon variation, adding the juice of 1 lemon to the recipe really meant that I should reduce the amount of milk. By then I had already poured some milk into the mixture and could only put about 1/2 the lemon juice, which resulted in a less-than-lemony scone.

So in an attempt to make up for that mistake, I made a lemony icing, essentially the remainder juice with icing sugar, which helped to gloss up the scone a bit I guess.

Result
However, the scones didnt turn out to have that nice crunchy crust that I love in scones. Maybe more butter was needed? The recipe called for 3 tablespoons, which to me sounded a bit little. I'll have to try it again and figure out what went wrong, or maybe try another recipe! I'm so envious of all those people who put up such beautiful pictures of their treats on their blogs, then again, I'm sure they've had their disasters...

I think one reason I've been doing this baking is that besides being interested in food, and having a sweet tooth and just being a glutton, I like to know what goes into my food.

I realise I don't really like manufactured cookies that much - and I've always hated famous amos cookies that come in a packet, those bought from the stores are still ok - they leave a bit of an unpleasant taste and really, cookies aren't meant to last that long, so all kinds of preservatives must lurk in them.

Yes I know that plenty of things have chemicals and all other nasties, from shampoos to soaps to pesticides in vegetables and all that. I'm not about to go make my own soap or anything, but I guess when it comes to eating, I figure that why not make some stuff I'd like to eat, rather than just buy them? So what if my scones don't turn out perfect and my cake not as fudgey as expected! It's all part of a learning process, which happens to be a pretty fun one at that.

The measuring of the flour, sifting it, beating the eggs, melting chocolate, mixing things together, watching it take shape and popping it into the oven. Watching it rise, just like magic.

Then the best part, the smells that waft through the kitchen when you open the oven door, oven mitts at the ready, and that first bite when it's still warm.

Heaven!

Made while listening to songs from bands that start with the letter A: Arcade Fire, Ambulance Ltd, American Analog Set