ginger

Cauliflower Coconut Curry

, , , , , , , , , , , , , 2 Comments

The Fine Cooking magazine from October/November has a nice feature on cauliflower.  It includes ways to prep and prepare it along with a few recipes.  This tart is one of those recipes.  This curry is another.  I have a thing for coconut and curry, and so I was drawn to this recipe immediately.  I also love to find satisfying vegetarian dishes that we can work in to our meal schedule.  My husband didn’t miss the meat at all.  This one is a keeper.

Cauliflower Coconut Curry | Hottie Biscotti

There is quite a bit of chopping to be done, but it can all be done in advance and refrigerated until you’re ready to cook.  Once that is taken care of, this dish comes together easily.  You’re looking at 45 minutes cooking time in all, but more than half of that is simply simmering time.  Thanks to that simmering time your house will smell amazing.  The only downside there is that it will smell that way for hours, and waking up to the smells of curry you ate the night before isn’t amazing.  But it is worth it!

Cauliflower Coconut Curry | Hottie Biscotti

This reheats really well, so it’s a good choice for those of you cooking for one or two.  This will feed you for a couple of meals, and that’s definitely something I look for in a recipe these days.  I love leftover night.

The spices are warm and subtle.  The first taste is sweet and then the heat hits you at the end but is still more warm than spicy.  I didn’t have black mustard seed, so I didn’t use them and I thought this was still wonderful.  The coconut milk tones down the heat and adds sweetness as well as welcomed creaminess.  I used a whole jalapeno with a few seeds and it wasn’t overwhelming at all.  If you want it spicy make sure to use more of the seeds and membrane or even add a second jalapeno.

Cauliflower Coconut Curry | Hottie Biscotti Cauliflower Coconut Curry | Hottie Biscotti

The garnishes are necessary, in my opinion.  The yogurt is a nice cool contrast to the warm curry, the cilantro is the perfect herb to compliment the spices and the cashews add richness and crunch.  We ate this with warm naan which is perfect for soaking up the sauce.  Serving this on top of rice would also be delicious (and stretch it a bit).  I hope you try this dish!  My mouth is watering right now as I think about it and I’m considering getting some out of the fridge…and it’s 8 in the morning.  So you know it’s good.

Cauliflower Coconut Curry | Hottie Biscotti

Cauliflower Coconut Curry

From Fine Cooking

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons of butter + 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (use ghee if you have it)
  • 1 onion, cut into large dice
  • 2 red bell peppers (you could also use orange or yellow)
  • 1 jalapeno, chopped fine (as many or as few seeds as you’d like)
  • 1 2-inch piece of ginger, chopped fine (about 2 tablespoons)
  • 1 tablespoon curry powder
  • 2 teaspoons cumin seed
  • 1 cinnamon stick (2 inches)
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/4 cup raisins
  • 2 cloves garlic, smashed
  • 1 can coconut milk
  • juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 1 head cauliflower, cut into 1-2 inch florets
  • plain yogurt
  • chopped cashews
  • fresh chopped cilantro
  • naan or rice for serving

Directions

  1. Heat butter and oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the onions, peppers, jalapeno, ginger, curry, cumin, cinnamon stick and salt.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables begin to soften and brown a bit.
  2. Add in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, then add the tomatoes, water and raisins.  Bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes.
  3. Stir in the coconut milk and 2 teaspoons of lemon juice.  Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat and cook until thickened, 10-15 minutes.
  4. Add in the cauliflower and mix together.  Cover. keep the heat on low and cook until cauliflower is tender, about 15 minutes.
  5. Remove the cinnamon stick.  Season with salt and lemon juice.  Serve with yogurt, cashews and cilantro.

Ham And Vegetable Fried Rice

, , , , , , , , 0 Comments

At the end of this week I was working on the last of our Easter ham and originally thought that the idea of putting it in a fried rice was a little odd.  But this wound up being a really tasty dinner and one that comes together pretty quickly.

Ham and Vegetable Fried Rice | Hottie Biscotti

This recipe from The Food Network was the one I followed, changing up a few things here and there.  I used less vegetable oil and added some sesame oil, added more vegetables and added some plain soy sauce and Soyaki sauce from Trader Joes.  Since no two people like their stir fries exactly the same, you can change up the vegetables and the amount and type of extra sauce you use.  When I served this I put a bottle of soy sauce on the table and Ben added a little more to his while I was happy without it.  Serving this with a bottle of sriracha as well wouldn’t be a bad idea if you want some heat.

Ham and Vegetable Fried Rice | Hottie Biscotti

A wok is ideal for cooking a stir fry, but you can use a large skillet.  This wok is a cheap one from IKEA and has served me well for the last couple of years.  Make sure to prep everything ahead of time.  Cut all the vegetables and meat, whisk the eggs, and have the rice ready to add the pan.  Once you start cooking a stir fry it comes together fast, and you don’t want to get flustered or burn something while you grab something you’ve forgotten.

Ham and Vegetable Fried Rice | Hottie Biscotti

This is a little bit of a cheater stir fry since you’re using a bag of frozen veggies instead of fresh, but it sure does help shave off some prep time!  And it’s still better for you than ordering take-out.  Enjoy.

Ham and Vegetable Stir Fry

Adapted from Food Network

Ingredients

  • 2-3 tablespoons vegetable or peanut oil, divided
  • 5 teaspoons sesame oil, divided
  • 3 cups cooked, chopped ham
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 2 tablespoons minced ginger
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 4 green onions, sliced, white and green parts separated
  • salt
  • 1 16-ounce bag frozen stir fry vegetables
  • 3 eggs, beaten
  • 3-4 cups cooked Jasmine rice
  • soy sauce to taste
  • Soyaki sauce to taste

Directions

  1. Heat wok or skillet over high heat, add in 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil and 2 teaspoon of sesame oil.  Add in ham and cook, stirring or shaking pan occasionally, until ham is lightly browned.
  2. Add in the chopped onion and cook until it starts to become translucent.  Then add in the garlic, ginger, and the whites of the scallions and a pinch or two of salt.  Stir fry for about 1 minute.
  3. Add in the frozen vegetables and stir everything together, then cover for 1-2 minutes.  Stir again until vegetables are just about defrosted.  Transfer everything to a large bowl.
  4. Wipe the pan clean, then return to medium-high heat and add 1 teaspoon each vegetable and sesame oil to the pan.  Add in the eggs and scramble until almost set.  Remove from the pan to the bowl with the vegetables and ham.
  5. Wipe the pan clean and return to high heat.  Add 2 teaspoons vegetable oil and 2 teaspoons sesame oil.  Add the rice and break up any large pieces.  Let cook without stirring for 2 minutes, then add in the vegetables, ham and eggs.  Cook everything together and add some of the soy and/or Soyaki sauce to taste.  I added almost a tablespoon of each.  Serve.

 

Cilantro Peanut Pesto Pasta

, , , , , , 0 Comments

When it comes to pesto, I tend to think only of the basil and pine nut variety.  This one is my favorite.  But there are so many combinations of herbs and nuts that you can use to make pesto!  I find basil and pine nuts to be on the pricier end of the spectrum, so using cheap ingredients like cilantro and peanuts make this a wallet friendly pesto as well as a delicious one.  The pesto is tossed with some linguine and shredded chicken to make for a complete meal.

My Everyday Food magazine on the iPad is proving to be quite the handy resource.  I can put the iPad in my cookbook holder.  I don’t have to print out the recipe, and I don’t have to have my big laptop next to the stove and sink.  In addition to being convenient, there are a lot of quick and simple recipes, like this one.

I didn’t change much about the recipe.  I used less pasta than the recipe calls for.  I did this for a couple reasons.  I’d rather have more stuff in my pasta dishes and less pasta.  Also, my pasta was a 1 pound package.  I’d rather use half and have enough to use later for another recipe instead of using 3/4 and trying to incorporate 1/4 into a meal.  I had some pesto left over, so I should have just used the 3/4 pound.

The recipe calls for 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, but spice hasn’t been my friend lately.  So I left that out.  I used a little more ginger, added shredded rotisserie chicken for some protein, and used 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and found that to be plenty.  But start with 1 tablespoon, taste and adjust as you see fit.

Martha says you can use the entire bunch of cilantro, including the stems.  I’m not sure if the same is true for basil and parsley.  I would think parsley would be since the two are so similar (I’ve bought one instead of the other at the store on more than one occasion).  Basil, I don’t know.  But since basil leaves are so big it isn’t a difficult task to remove them from the stem.

This cilantro peanut pesto has inspired me to search out some other interesting pestos.  Here is a kale and walnut pesto from Lauren of Healthy Foods for Living.  And Cookie + Kate’s arugula and walnut pesto sounds amazing.

Cilantro Peanut Pesto Pasta

From Everyday Food

Ingredients

  • 1 bunch cilantro, 1/4 cup leaves reserved for serving
  • 1 clove garlic, smashed and peeled
  • 1 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon grated lime zest plus 2 tablespoons juice
  • 1 teaspoon light-brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup roasted peanuts, divided
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
  • 1/2 to 3/4 pound spaghetti or linguine, cooked according to package instructions
  • 2 cups shredded chicken (optional)

Directions

  1. In a food processor, combine cilantro, garlic, ginger, vegetable and sesame oils, lime zest and juice, brown sugar, and 1/4 cup peanuts. Pulse until a coarse paste forms. Season with soy sauce and pulse to combine.
  2. In a large bowl, toss pesto with pasta.  Stir in shredded chicken.
  3. Roughly chop remaining peanuts and sprinkle over pasta along with cilantro leaves.

Peanut Noodles with Chicken and Vegetables

, , , , , , , 0 Comments

One of the great things about having a pantry that’s on the small side is that it is next to impossible to lose track of food, only to find it years later.  I don’t have to get elbow-deep in my canned goods to find a can of tomatoes.  My small food storage also keeps me from stocking up on things I don’t need…I do have a snack bowl on top of the cabinet for my assortment of gummy candies and what remains of Carson’s Easter goodies.  But candy is a need, right?

Anyway, when I came across this recipe on Eatingwell.com I knew that I had about 3/4 of a box of thin spaghetti because I see it every time I get something from the pantry, so I added this to my meals for the week.  I was already planning to buy chicken for chicken parmesan, so I was able to buy a 4 pack of chicken breasts and know that they would all get used that week.  That makes me happy.

The recipe calls for a bag of vegetable medley, but I just used veggies that we like; broccoli, red bell pepper, snap peas, frozen edamame and carrots.  Since I was using more like 11-12 ounces of spaghetti, I increased the amount of vegetables I used to about 20 ounces.  I really like there to be a lot of vegetables in pasta dishes, so you may not want to use as much as I did.  I used 1 medium sized broccoli crown, 1 red bell pepper, 5 small carrots, 1 small bag of snap peas, and 8 ounces of frozen edamame.  I kept the sauce pretty much the same, but did end up adding more soy and a drizzle of sesame oil at the end.  The sriracha is spicy.  I like spice, so I used 2 teaspoons of the stuff and definitely felt the heat.  If you are not a fan of spicy foods, use 1/2 a teaspoon in the sauce, taste it and add more if you’d like.

A mistake I made with this was adding all of my vegetables at once.  The carrots were a little under cooked, so if you’re using carrot slices, don’t slice them too thick and make sure to give them a head start in the boiling water.  The broccoli, bell pepper, snap peas and edamame cooked easily in the 3-4 minutes of cooking time.

To make this meal even faster to fix, use shredded rotisserie chicken.  Buy bagged vegetables that are ready to go, or chop your veggies the morning of or the night before.  You can even make the sauce ahead of time and refrigerate it.  The heat from the cooked pasta and hot water will loosen it up as it will be stiff coming out of the fridge.  You can serve this warm or cold.  We ate it both ways and it was delicious.

Peanut Noodles with Chicken and Vegetables

Adapted from Eatingwell.com

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

  • 2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 10-12 ounces thin spaghetti
  • 16-18 ounces of vegetables (broccoli, snap peas, bell pepper, carrots, edamame) carrots, broccoli and bell pepper cut into pieces
  • fresh chopped cilantro, optional

Sauce

  • 1/2 cup chunky, natural peanut butter
  • 2-3 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 1-2 teaspoons chile-garlic sauce (Sriracha), or to taste
  • 2-3 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
  • 1/2-1 teaspoon sesame oil

Directions

  1. Cook the chicken.  In a medium saucepan, bring water to a boil, salt water, then add chicken, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.  Remove chicken from water and let cool slightly before shredding into bite size pieces.
  2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add pasta and cook for 4 minutes, add carrots if using and cook for a minute, add the rest of the vegetables and cook for another 3-4 minutes.  Reserve about 1 cup of pasta water then drain and rinse with cool water.
  3. Make sauce by whisking peanut butter, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, sriracha and sesame oil in a large bowl.  Stir 1/2 cup of pasta water into the sauce.  Toss in pasta, vegetables and chicken.  Add in more pasta water to moisten pasta to your liking.  Mix thoroughly so that all the veggies, pasta and chicken are coated with sauce.  Garnish with cilantro if desired.

Baked Asian Turkey Meatballs with Soy Ginger Sauce

, , , , , 1 Comment

The lovely aroma of fresh ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil, scallions and cilantro filled my kitchen when I made these for dinner a few nights ago.  Those ingredients alone make my mouth water.  I am almost always up for Chinese or Thai food, but thinking about how a lot of that stuff is prepared makes me have second thoughts a lot of the time.  It’s usually too oily and greasy and even if I opt for a dish with lots of veggies, it is often soaked in overly salty sauce.  And then I somehow find myself ordering egg rolls, fried spring rolls, or maybe an order of crab rangoon…oh, the deep fried goodness of it all.  These meatballs don’t quite measure up to the pleasures of pad thai and sesame chicken, but the flavors are there, and all without the guilt.

My dinner plans were to make these meatballs from this recent Smitten Kitchen post, Scallion Meatballs with Soy Ginger Glaze.  But after reading through the recipe I decided to look for a baked meatball recipe (instead of pan fried) with more substance that would serve as a meal and not a glorified appetizer.  That search led me to this recipe from Skinny Taste, Asian Turkey Meatballs with Sesame Lime Dipping Sauce.  So I combined the two, and with a little tweaking here and there I wound up with these.

Serve these meatballs with some rice to soak up the delicious sauce.  We ate them with white rice, but brown would be a great choice, and a healthier one.  Simple steamed broccoli is a perfect side dish.  There is so much flavor in the meatballs that you don’t really need anything else.  I used a mixture of turkey and beef because I had an extra 1/2 pound of lean ground beef from another recipe I wanted to use, but use all turkey if you like.  Enjoy!

Baked Asian Turkey Meatballs with Soy Ginger Sauce

Meatballs

Ingredients

  • 1/3 cup panko crumbs
  • 1 lb 93% lean ground turkey
  • 1/2 lb lean ground beef
  • 1 egg
  • 1 1/2 tbsp peeled ginger, minced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • 4 scallions, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
  • 3 tsp sesame oil

Directions

  1. Combine ground turkey, beef, panko, egg, salt, scallions, ginger, cilantro, and soy sauce.  Mix with your hands until combined well.
  2. Shape 1/4 cup meat mixture into a ball and transfer to a baking dish. Repeat with remaining mixture.
  3. Bake at 400°F until cooked through, about 20-25 minutes.

Sauce

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce, reduced sodium
  • 1/2 cup white wine (or mirin)
  • 1/4 cup peeled ginger, chopped

Directions

  1. Bring sugar and water to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar melts completely.
  2. Reduce heat to a medium-low and add soy sauce, wine and ginger.
  3. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced, 20-30 minutes.  You can simmer it longer to get a thicker sauce.
  4. Serve sauce on top of meatballs and rice.  You can strain the sauce to get rid of the ginger pieces, but I left mine in the sauce.

Holiday Baking: Chewy Ginger Cookies

, , , 1 Comment

I’ve always called these gingersnaps, but they cannot accurately have that name since there is very little “snap” to them in texture.  If you’re looking for a crispy gingersnap, this is not the cookie for you.  These cookies are incredibly delicious and something that always makes me think of this time of year.  After I got them in the oven my house finally smelled like it should a week before Christmas. I can’t really say anything else about them.  They are just so very good.

Since this makes a lot of sturdy dough, make sure to use a stand mixer.  Or make half the recipe so that a hand mixer won’t give up on you.  Or, if you’re looking for an arm workout, mix them up with a big wooden spoon.  Enjoy, and Merry Christmas!

Chewy Ginger Cookies

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups shortening
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup molasses
  • 4 cups flour
  • 4 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon cloves
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ginger
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Directions

  1. Beat shortening and sugar until light and fluffy, beat in molasses, and then eggs. Mix until combined.
  2. Whisk together flour, soda, cloves, ginger, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl.
  3. Add flour mixture to wet ingredients in 2-3 additions, beat until well combined.
  4. Roll into golf ball sized balls, roll in sugar, and place on a baking sheet with about 2 inches in between.
  5. Bake at 350°F for 10-12 minutes.
I made these cookies for a cookie exchange I hosted a couple years ago and just realized that I’ve already posted this recipe, so I’ve officially re-blogged on my own blog.  Oh, well.  I think these are worthy of that honor/mistake.

Spicy Asian Roasted Broccoli & Snap Peas

, , , , , , 0 Comments

My plan for dinner was a ginger sesame marinated pork tenderloin, basmati rice and steamed broccoli.  Isn’t that awfully easy…and awfully boring?  I found this recipe for roasted broccoli and snap peas made extra delicious with a light sauce of sesame oil, orange zest, cilantro, honey, fresh ginger, garlic and sambal oelek.  So glad I took the extra time to make this side dish.

Living where we do there are limitations on the ingredients I can get my hands on.  I couldn’t find bird chiles, so I didn’t use them and as a result this wasn’t too spicy even with the sambal oelek.  If you really have a problem with spice, then you can leave that out as well.  I also didn’t use the miso, mostly because I was too lazy to look for it!  Since it’s just Ben and I eating dinner, I also like to make just enough for the two of us unless it’s something I know is wonderful left over.  So I changed parts of this recipe to better suit our lifestyle.  Here is the link to the original recipe.

There is something so very special about roasted veggies, and this recipe is no exception.  This is a perfect side for an Asian flavored meal.  Enjoy!

Spicy Asian Roasted Broccoli & Snap Peas

Adapted from finecooking.com

Ingredients

  • 2 heads of broccoli, cut into florets
  • 8 ounces snap peas (1 bag)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil, divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 teaspoon sambal oelek
  • 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
  • 1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F
  2. Combine broccoli and snap peas in a 9×13 glass dish and drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon sesame oil over vegetables, toss together to coat and sprinkle with salt.
  3. Roast for 20 minutes, checking and stirring about half way through.  Vegetable are done when slightly browned.
  4. While vegetable are cooking whisk the rest of the ingredients together.
  5. When vegetables are done pour sauce over and toss to coat.

 

Asian Vegetable Slaw

, , , , , , , , 1 Comment

To go with Pioneer Woman’s flank steak, I was in search of a side dish.  Rice would have been fine, and then maybe a salad or some steamed asparagus.  But that just seemed kinda boring and not the perfect summer side.

Thankfully, I came across a perfect summer side dish recipe from Erin at vittles for the voracious.  This salad would a great accompaniment to the grilled steak and the Asian flavors.

The salad has tons of yummy, crisp vegetables.  It tastes fresh but still has a great rich flavor thanks to the dressing.  You can change this recipe to fit your likes and needs.  Add any other vegetables that you like.  Erin suggests water chestnuts, broccoli florets, snow peas, and asparagus pieces.  Along with the recipe required broccoli slaw and edamame, I added extra purple cabbage and snow peas.

For the dressing I used Brianna’s Ginger Mandarin dressing, 1 tablespoon of peanut butter and 1 teaspoon hot chili sauce.  I don’t like a dressing-drenched salad, so this was just enough to get the flavor without losing the vegetables.

Here is Vittles link, and here is my variation.  This is a great salad.  Thanks, Erin!

Asian Vegetable Slaw

Ingredients

Salad:

  • 1 package (10 oz) broccoli slaw mix
  • 1 cup red cabbage, chopped
  • 1 can mandarin oranges, drained
  • 2 cups shelled edamame
  • 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
  • 1 cup blanched snap peas

Dressing:

  • 1/3 cup Asian dressing (I used Brianna’s Ginger Mandarin)
  • 1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter
  • 1 teaspoon hot chili sauce

Directions

  1. Combine all vegetables (and mandarins) in a large bowl and toss together.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk dressing, peanut butter and chili sauce.
  3. Pour sauce over the vegetables and toss well.
  4. Chill until ready to serve.

Daring Bakers: Steamed Caramel Apple Pudding

, , , , , , , , , 3 Comments

The moment I saw this challenge I had a sinking feeling in my stomach.  Steamed pudding.  As in British steamed pudding.  Really?  And get this.  I was supposed to use SUET!  Where would I find suet?  A better question is, what exactly is suet?

The April 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Esther of The Lilac Kitchen. She challenged everyone to make a traditional British pudding using, if possible, a very traditional British ingredient: suet.

Esther explained on the Daring Bakers site that suet “is the hard but flaky fat found on the inside of a cow or sheep around the kidneys and that area of the body. Suet in its raw form crumbles easily into small chunks so much so that my butcher says it covers his floor in bits if he doesn’t have it taken out as soon as possible. In fact unless he knows he has a customer for it he has the abattoir take it out and throw it away and when I want some he gives it to me for free! It also melts at quite a low temperature, which has an effect on how it works in cooking. In some places such as the UK it is sold processed which basically means it is grated and combined with flour to keep the individual pieces from clumping together, and it becomes a sort of dried out short strands, almost granular in texture.”

I’m pretty sure that I didn’t follow all the rules of this challenge.  I didn’t use suet.  I used butter.  My pudding did not have a crust with filling.  It was more like a cake with fruit topping.  I did not use a traditional pudding mold.  I just used a bowl.  I did, however, steam my pudding just as instructed.  So, if I failed in all other categories, at least I did one thing right.

(more…)

Candied Ginger Scones

, , , , 0 Comments

These are lovely and delicious.  Fresh flavors with just enough sweetness.  Fall apart goodness with pieces of spicy, sweet ginger.

I found the recipe on Epicurious.  It is a basic scone recipe consisting of simple and pure ingredients: chilled butter, flour, cream, salt, sugar and baking powder.  They stray from the basic scone with the addition of lemon zest and chopped candied ginger.  The only problem I had with these was that the dough seemed a little too crumbly, so I added a bit more cream.  Be careful not to over-mix the dough, or the scones will end up a little tough.  Other than that, this is an easy recipe that produces great results.

scone3

Candied Ginger Scones

(courtesy of epicurious.com)

Ingredients
  • 2 1/4 cups unbleached pastry flour or unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon finely chopped lemon zest (about 1/2 lemon)
  • 1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen
  • 4 1/2 ounces candied ginger, finely chopped into 1/4-inch pieces to equal 2/3 cup
  • ¾ – 1 cup heavy cream, plus extra for brushing the tops of the scones
Directions
  1. Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 400°F.
  2. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade or in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, and baking powder, and pulse or mix on low to incorporate. Add the lemon zest and butter, and pulse on and off, or mix on low, until the mixture is pale yellow and the consistency of fine meal.
  3. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and stir in the ginger. Make a well in the center and pour in the cream. Using one hand, draw in the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined.
  4. Wash and dry your hands and dust them with flour. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and gently knead a few times to gather it into a ball. Roll or pat the dough into a circle about 3/4 inch thick. Cut out the circles, cutting as closely together as possible and keeping the trimmings intact.
  5. Gather the scraps, pat and press the pieces back together, and cut out the remaining dough. Place the scones 1 inch apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
  6. Brush the tops with the remaining cream.
  7. Bake for 12 to 16 minutes, until the surface cracks and they are slightly browned.