Maple Pecan Scones

Originally posted: April 30, 2011

Today while my husband busy working with our church, I decided to try out Ree's Maple Pecan Scone recipe (not listed on The Pioneer Woman, so I found it here instead).  If there's two things I haven't done much of around the kitchen, it's cooking breads/pastries and cooking plain cuts of meat.  Hopefully this book will help me develop both of those skills!

Although the two sticks of unsalted butter practically gave me chest pains just looking at them, this recipe was relatively easy to put together.  I still need to invest in a pastry cutter so I used my hands to initially blend the dry ingredients and chunks of butter.  I hunted and hunted around my grocery store but couldn't find any maple extract or flavoring.  Instead I used a couple tablespoons of maple syrup and I think the glaze turned out well.  I also invested in a plain old bag of all-purpose unbleached flour.  If you're eating two sticks of butter, might as well go all in and forget the whole wheat flour ;o)

The only modification I made to this recipe was with the glaze.  All I had in the house was expensive organic powdered sugar, so I cut the glaze recipe in half and used only 8 oz. of powdered sugar.  Believe me... I still had more than enough glaze!  Once they baked and set I enjoyed one with the remainder of my strongly-brewed coffee.  Delicious!  My only recommendation would be to cut these into 16 pieces rather than just 8.  They're so rich that you're better off to enjoy them a little at a time.

My grocery bill this week was semi-obscene due to a few sales on natural meat.  I picked up a 3# chuck roast in hopes of making Ree's roast with onions and carrots this week, but remembered that I haven't even invested in a dutch oven yet!  I have it narrowed down to two possibilities: one from Better Homes and Gardens in kiwi green, or a Lodge dutch oven in caribbean blue.  Lodge has a strong reputation for making a product rivaling Le Creuset for a small fraction of the price, so we'll see what I wind up with!

Marmalade Muffins

Originally posted: April 25, 2011

Last week I made a batch of Pioneer Woman's Marmalade Muffins, and they turned out pretty well!  As far as variations, I used all-organic ingredients including whole wheat flour.  I also only have a full-sized muffin tin so I made 16 bigger muffins opposed to Ree's suggestion for mini muffins.  If I had to do it again, I'd probably buy white all-purpose flour to keep the muffins a little fluffier and smoother.  But they were delicious regardless and stayed moist for as long as they lasted!

I'm hoping to find a decently priced cast iron dutch oven in the next couple weeks to try my hand at a pot roast with carrots and onions.  Walmart's Better Homes & Gardens line has cast iron ovens and skillets in "kiwi green", and the ratings were decent enough to where I might actually want a set of those.  We'll see if gas prices continue to spike ($50 to fill my tank today!) or if they'll settle down and leave me with some spare change for kitchenwares.  Enjoy!

New Pioneer Woman on the Block

Originally posted: April 17, 2011

After a late-winter hiatus from my other blog, I'm back again with renewed interest.  All that midwest snow was making me too lazy to really cook anything decent.  I decided to check out a large stack of cookbooks from our local library and one of them was The Pioneer Woman Cooks.  I hadn't done much reading of Ree Drummond's blog in the past but her recipes always look delicious and like something memorable for guests and family.  I wound up purchasing my own copy of the book to begin cooking my way through it over the months ahead.  I'll be writing the day I first cooked a recipe on its page as a way to remember.

Tonight I tried out Ree's recipe for Macaroni & Cheese.  I had most of the ingredients in the house and picked the rest up on a quick trip to Kroger.  A good recipe to me not only tastes good but is also made with ingredients that I can remember where to find in the grocery store before I even walk in.  Too stressful otherwise!  Husband and I walked around Target today also to look at dutch ovens and cast iron skillets.  I've always dreamed of owning both and might have a good reason to invest in the near future ;o)

The macaroni turned out beautifully and was generally easy to make.  For variations, I used cavatappi instead of macaroni, hand-shreaded extra sharp cheddar, and added crumbled bacon, fresh diced tomatoes, and an extra dash of seasoned salt.  Looking forward to leftovers tomorrow night -- I'll be eating with my cropped yoga pants on in anticipation of the hard workout required to balance out the meal!