Don't Be Scared.

Every home cook has a number of recipes under their belt - they are cool, calm and confident when in the kitchen dolling these dishes out. But.....there are also a few recipes where we've scratched our heads or perhaps shied away from making them because there's fear or uncertainty.

When I pick up a latte at a coffee shop, sometimes I pick up a scone. And let's face it, most of us have experienced what certain retailers define as a "scone" but when in actuality it should be marketed as a "dry, flavorless piece of cardboard". Hmmmm....I wonder how the marketing gurus at Starbucks would come up with a smart marketing campaign for those?!?

Anyhow, I've been on a scone rant lately (an internal rant) and I realized that I've avoided baking scones for a while. Back in the day, I made them every so often, but never was overly thrilled with the results. No matter how many articles I digested, there wasn't a recipe that turned out exactly how it should. One could argue there are a variety of reasons for that - badly written recipe, oven temperature issues, over-handling of the dough, butter wasn't chilled enough, etc. Really and truly, I hope one doesn't go into therapy over this, but as you can tell a failed batch of scones can send someone into a deep depression.

Alas, this wasn't the case on Sunday. In between recuperating from helping out with a fundraiser on Saturday and cleaning my kitchen, I got the energy to make a batch of scones and I do have to say I was a happy girl. I didn't spend too much time pining over recipes, I relied on my trusty copy of The Art & Soul of Baking. The recipe is for Cream Scones and I added a scant 1/2 cup of dried cranberries.

Cream Scones with Dried Cranberries (adapted from The Art & Soul of Baking)

2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 c. sugar
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 stuck unsalted butter, cut into cubes and chilled
1 c. chilled heavy whipping cream
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tbs. sugar
1/2 c. dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and position an oven rack in the center. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Place the flour, 1/2 c. sugar, salt and baking powder in a food processor and process for 10 seconds to blend well. Add the cold butter and pulse 5 times at 1-second intervals, or until the butter is cut into medium pieces. Add the cream and cranberries and pulse another 20 times, or until the dough holds together in small, thick clumps. Use a spatula to scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently squeeze together until they form a cohesive dough.

Pat the dough into a circle about 7 inches in diameter and about an inch thick. Use a chef's knife to cut the dough into 8 equal wedges and transfer to the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart.

Brush the tops with a thin coasting of the lightly beat egg. Sprinkle evenly with the sugar and bake for 14-16 minutes, until firm to the touch and golden brown. Transfer to a rack and let cool for 5 minutes.