Lake life

We bought the Lake House completely furnished. We did bring, in addition to clothing, towels, bed linens, things like that. The dishes were all white, which is something mouse was never a fan of, but has honestly grown to love.

 

Found this image while surfing the web, we have a blue table cloth, but who could resist the gorgeous yellow? This is more the coffee mug crowd but there is something a bit more elegant about a cup and saucer, added bonus to that it seems if you use a smaller cup, people tend to drink less coffee! While mouse hadn't mastered making a croissant (really not interested except for the technique), she does make some nice scones.

 

They're easy, or fairly so to make. Just remember like making buiscuts -- don't over work the dough. You can anything to them and honestly they're nearly impossible to screw up.

Dough

2 3/4 cups flour

1/3 cup sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 cup cold butter

1 cup to 2 cups chopped dried fruit, chocolate or other flavored chips, nuts, or a combination, optional

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract or the flavoring of your choice

1/2 cup to 2/3 cup half and half or milk

Instructions:

1) In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder.

2) Work in the butter just until the mixture is unevenly crumbly; it's OK for some larger chunks of butter to remain unincorporated.

3) Stir in the fruit, chips, and/or nuts, if you're using them.

4) In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla or other flavor, and half and half or milk.

5) Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until all is moistened and holds together.

6) Line a baking sheet with parchment; if you don't have parchment, just use it without greasing it. Sprinkle a bit of flour atop the parchment or pan.

7) Scrape the dough onto the floured parchment or pan, and divide it in half. Round each half into a 5" circle (if you haven't incorporated any add-ins); or a 6" circle (if you've added fruit, nuts, etc.). The circles should be about 3/4" thick.

8) Brush each circle with milk, and sprinkle with coarse white sparkling sugar or cinnamon sugar, if desired.

9) Using a knife or bench knife that you've run under cold water, slice each circle into 6 wedges.

10) Carefully pull the wedges away from the center to separate them just a bit; there should be about 1/2" space between them, at their outer edges.

11) For best texture and highest rise, place the pan of scones in the freezer for 30 minutes, uncovered. While the scones are chilling, preheat the oven to 425°F.

Or chill in refrigerator overnight. You can also defrost them in the fridge.

12) Bake the scones for 20 to 25 minutes, or until they're golden brown. When you pull one away from the others, it should look baked all the say through; the edge shouldn't look wet or unbaked.

13) Remove the scones from the oven, and cool briefly on the pan. Serve warm. When they're completely cool, wrap in plastic and store at room temperature for up to several days.