Orange Glazed Blueberry Scones

If your house is anything like ours, we ALWAYS have fresh berries. This time of year it's blueberries and strawberries. Porter eats the blueberries faster than our four plants can produce them so I have been buying them. I made these scones with some berries I still had frozen from last summer. These are so delicious and amazingly EASY! Give them a try, you won't be sorry!

• 2 cups unbleached flour, plus more for rolling berries
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, chilled and cut in chunks
• 3/4 cup buttermilk or cream
• 1 egg
• 1 pint fresh blueberries

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar; mix thoroughly. Cut in butter using 2 forks or a pastry blender. The butter pieces should be coated with flour and resemble crumbs.

In another bowl, mix buttermilk and egg together, and then add to the flour mixture. Mix just to incorporate, do no overwork the dough.

Roll blueberries in flour to coat, this will help prevent the fruit from sinking to the bottom of the scone when baked. Fold the blueberries into batter, being careful not to bruise. Drop large tablespoons of batter on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until brown. Cool before applying orange glaze.

Orange Glaze:

nocoupons

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
• 2 oranges, juiced and zested

To prepare Orange Glaze: combine butter, sugar, orange zest, and juice over a double boiler. Cook until butter and sugar are melted and mixture has thickened. Remove from heat and beat until smooth and slightly cool. Drizzle or brush on top of scones and let glaze get hazy and hardened.

Cheddar and Herb Biscuits

I am pretty sure I should have been southern, or I was southern in a previous life. I love how they cook (pretty much the fat and spice is what I like). These biscuits are decadent; savory. We had them with salmon and chard one night. It was a great combination. I only made one batch as I know our household and we would have eaten them all in a day or so. I gave the rest to my neighbor. She loved them too (they ate them with salad).

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 tablespoons freshly chopped chives
• 1 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley leaves
• 3/4 cup grated sharp yellow Cheddar
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and cayenne together using a whisk. Add the herbs, cheese and buttermilk. Stir together until dough forms. Once dough has formed, using an ice cream scooper, scoop out dough onto baking tray. With a brush, lightly butter tops. Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Grilled Sweet Potatoes with Lime and Cilantro

We actually had these tonight with our chicken. They compliment each other so well. Jason usually doesn't dig sweet potatoes too much but with the flavors on them, he ate almost a potato and a half himself! He already asked for them again! I bet we have them this weekend for the 4th!

• 3 sweet potatoes, unpeeled
• Kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• Freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

Pre-cook the potatoes: Place in a pot of water and boil until fork-tender; let cool. Slice each potato lengthwise into eighths.

Preheat a grill to medium or place a cast-iron grill pan over medium heat. Mix 1 tablespoon salt, the lime zest and cayenne in a small bowl.

Brush the potato wedges with the oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill until golden brown on all sides (including the skin) and just cooked through, about 1 1/2 minutes per side. Transfer to a platter; immediately season with the salt mixture and sprinkle with cilantro.

Coconut-Banana Colada

We tried this the other night after a nice steak dinner. It was so wonderful and was the perfect "dessert" to follow our dinner. We sat out on the patio in the warm air, drinking our cold drinks. Amazing. I hope you enjoy this.

• 2 ripe bananas, peeled, quartered and frozen
• 1 cup canned crushed pineapple in juice
  
• 3 ounces coconut rum or dark rum
• 1 cup canned cream of coconut (available in the International aisle)
• 1 lime, halved
• 1/4 cup shredded coconut, toasted, for garnish (optional)

Place the bananas and pineapple in a blender; puree until smooth. Add the rum, cream of coconut, 2 cups ice cubes and the juice of half the lime; blend until smooth and frothy. Thinly slice the remaining lime half. Pour the colada into glasses; garnish with lime slices and toasted coconut, if desired.

Tortellini Argula Salad

I found this recipe on the Food Network website and just decided to make it for a family function. It quickly turned into a dish that gets requested often. I have even substituted mini-ravioli for the tortellini, it's a nice difference.

• 2 pounds packaged tortellini, I use frozen and fresh but frozen is cheaper
  
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 1 1/4 cups
• 3 cups of grape tomatoes or 4 cups chopped tomatoes
  
• 4 tablespoons chopped tarragon leaves
• 4 tablespoons chopped, on a bias, basil leaves
• 2 tablespoons minced parsley leaves
• 2 minced shallots
• 6 tablespoons lemon juice
  
• 1 1/2 pounds fresh mozzarella, sliced 1/4-inch thick into approximately 30 slices
• 4 cups fresh arugula
  
• Salt
  
• Freshly ground black pepper

Cook the tortellini according to the package instructions. When fully cooked, drain and toss with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and arugula allowing to wilt a little and to cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, combine the tomatoes, herbs, shallots, lemon juice, and remaining 1 1/4 cups olive oil. Mix to combine and season with salt and pepper to combine. When the tortellini have cooled to room temperature toss with the vinaigrette.

When ready to serve, line the perimeter of a large serving platter with overlapping slices of the mozzarella. Spoon tortellini mixture in the middle.

Serve chilled. Serves 6+

Blue Cheese, Walnut, and Apple Salad

This has to be one of my favorite salads. It's so easy and so amazingly delicious. You can use any blue cheese, that's up to your taste, but you'll LOVE the flavor combination of the apples and blue cheese, it's pretty amazing!

6-8 cups lettuce, spinach, baby greens, whatever you like :)
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, or whatever you prefer (candied is alright, but toasted tastes better)
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
2-3 medium apples, green and/or red (the tangy and sweet are great together)

Mix together lettuce, walnuts, and cheese. Cut apples into slices and lay on top of mixed salad for a nice presentation. Serve with Vinaigrette (recipe follows) or a store bought Pomegranate vinaigrette tastes really great too. You can find a really delicious Pom. Vin. at Trader Joes.
Chill Salad. Serves 6-8

Good 'Ol Vinaigrette
1 tbsp. shallot, minced
1/2 cup balsamic or red wine vinegar
1/2 olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Champagne Salad

This recipe my grandmother has been serving for a long time. It's so simple yet never ceases to amaze people with how yummy it is!

2 heads or 2 bags of butter lettuce
slivered almonds
1 can tangerines
Ghirard's Champagne dressing

Mix all ingredients adding more or less ingredients as you see fit to your personal preferences.
Serve chilled. Serves 4-6

Tangy Poppy Seed Fruit Salad

8 cups of fruit cut into bite size pieces. It can be canned but obviously fresh would be preferred.

In another bowl, combine 1/2 cup limeade (concentrate) and 1/3 cup honey. Pour over fruit; mix well. Sprinkle with poppy seeds and toasted slivered almonds.

Serve immediately. Serves 6-8. Enjoy!

I am SO excited!

I got this idea to start my own blog with recipes and cooking tips because I LOVE to cook! I have SO many ideas that sometimes get forgotten and recipes that never get written down. Everything I put on here will be tried and tested in our own kitchen. A lot of it already has been! I am excited to have somewhere to share with everyone and hope that everyone enjoys! I also hope that people feel free to share what they know! I LOVE new ideas! Thank you for looking! Sarah