What’s the definition of Spring Fever? Mine is when you can let go of all the wariness associated with Winter weather and plunge into Spring with total abandon! It’s when you know in your heart that the cold and nastiness is really over. I’ve held off my Spring Fever for a long while, having been punished for my undue optimism of a few weeks back – until I was really sure it was going to be “better”. After the pansies I so optimistically planted about a month ago got frostbite, I became quite overcome with a good dose of cold feet – no pun intended. Now, I’m a little better, in spite of a case of poison ivy which I got when I was certain everything was still dormant. (It IS NOT dormant so look carefully and wear gloves!) To celebrate what I did decide was finally the real Spring beginning, I spent yesterday planting Ranunculus in my window boxes and pots. I LOVE Ranunculus. They come in a wide array of beautiful hues and, while they don’t last too long in the season, they are a very cheery addition to your early garden.
“the pink girls!”
Yesterday, I received my long-awaited copy of David Lebovitz’s new book, My Paris Kitchen. He has an obsession, as many French bakers do, with the wonderful Apricots they get in Europe. This got my juices flowing, even though we are a loonnnggg way away from any fresh Apricots here (and truly they are never as good as European (http://www.kitchen-inspirational.com/2012/06/10/ramps-scapes-and-wachauer-marille/) or fresh-picked California varieties, which you have to be in California to enjoy). But, any friend of Apricots, is a friend of mine! I have all of David’s books and I enjoy his writing and recipes totally. I also love to daydream about living in Paris, as he does, along with a few other lucky people I have “met”. I am so excited to really meet him at the 92nd Street Y in a few weeks!
I am going to have lunch with two friends today and thought I wanted to contribute something. Drooling over David’s amazing-looking Apricot Crumble Tart with Apricot Kernal Ice Cream (and MANY other great recipes I can not wait to try), I went to work on a nice Savory option for today’s lunch. This is what I came up with – it’s not fresh apricots, but they sure smelled good when they came out of the oven! This is sort of a variation of my very favorite Fonita-Chive Scones with Pancetta and Apricot Jam recipe – one I concocted many years ago for a Teacher’s Appreciation breakfast when my son was in middle school.
I think Luncheon Scones should be savory and tart, with bright but not overpowering flavors. They should complement the lunch offerings, as they are not a stand alone item, as in the breakfast or tea scone. Today, I brought out the Goat Cheese as I’ve been wanting to make something with this for a few days. These came out just right.
APRICOT/GOAT CHEESE SCONES WITH THYME
3 cups all purpose flour,
2 tblsp sugar
1 tblsp baking powder
1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground,
1/2 tsp salt,
zest of 3/4 lemon
2 tblsp fresh thyme leaves
4 oz goat cheese, crumbled,
6 tlbsp unsalted butter, cut into cubes,
1 cup chopped dried apricots
1/2 cup pignoli nuts
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs
egg wash course
sea salt for sprinkling
Preheat oven to 400F. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a sheet tray.
In bowl of food processor, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, lemon zest and black pepper. Add the cubed butter and pulse about 8 times or until the mixture has small, but still-observable pieces of butter. Remove dry ingredients to a low, wide bowl. Make a well in the center. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs and buttermilk. Add the crumbled goat cheese and stir gently. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix with a dough scraper, gently for a few turns until the dough begins to come together. Add the apricots and pignoli nuts and continue to mix, just until the dough holds roughly in a ball. Drop by large tablespoonfuls onto a parchment lined baking sheet and brush with egg wash. Sprinkle a scant amount of the coarse sea salt on top. Bake at 400F for 20 minutes or until the scones are browned, crusty and firm.
They smell really great – hope they are! 🙂
all ready to go!