Cook on a Whim: Mother’s Day Recipes
By • May 7, 2020 0 803
Mother’s Day is right around the corner, and while it may be celebrated a bit differently this year, it can still be special. If you are close enough to do a drive-by, front-porch delivery, these recipes are quick and easy to whip up and will make the mom(s) in your life feel so loved.
First up, my three-ingredient scones. I’ll leave some links below the recipe to others that would be perfect for Mother’s Day.
Happy Mother’s Day to all!
Photo by Anita Parris Soule. Courtesy Cook on a Whim.
The Easiest Scone Recipe
I’m not sure how it happened, but I’ve kind of become known for scones. And muffins. But scones especially.
Scones are one of those baked goods that many of you have said you’ve had bad luck making in the past. I guess I’ve sort of taken it upon myself to change that. Think of this easiest scone recipe as a beginner scone. Or a lazy scone. And definitely think of it as the easiest scone recipe you will ever make.
I took my cream scone recipe, simplified it down to three main ingredients and made it drop style — meaning you just scoop it right out of the bowl and drop it onto a baking tray.
If you want to add in flavorings, those will obviously up the ingredient count. But the basic three-ingredient scone will give you a soft, slightly sweet blank canvas perfect for butter, clotted cream, lemon curd, crème fraîche, jams and jellies.
What you’ll need for the easiest scone recipe:
- 3 cups self-rising flour
- 4 tablespoons sugar
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
Optional add-ins (the sky is the limit here — these are just a few of my favorites):
- Vanilla or Almond Extract
- Berries
- Chocolate Chips or Chunks
- Dried Fruits
- Citrus Zest
- Poppy Seeds
Topping possibilities:
- Caramel
- Dulce de Leche
- Melted White or Dark Chocolate
- Melted Peanut Butter
- Sprinkles
Instructions
You can find step-by-step photos on the original post: The Easiest Scone Recipe
In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour and sugar. Slowly drizzle in cream while stirring gently with a fork. Continue drizzling and stirring until you have a damp, clumpy mixture that is easily pressed together. You don’t want to see any more dry patches of flour, but you don’t want a very wet mixture.
Scoop dough either with a large cookie scoop or a 1/4 cup measure onto a parchment-lined baking tray. These will spread ever so slightly, but not much, so you can put them pretty close together. I fit all 12 onto my baking sheet.
Brush tops with cream and sprinkle with coarse sugar if desired. Bake in a preheated 400-degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Cover loosely with foil after 20 minutes if they are browning too quickly.
Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly. At this point, they can be glazed or drizzled with caramel, dulce de leche, melted white or dark chocolate, melted peanut butter, sprinkles … let your imagination run wild!
Here is the formula for the most basic glaze: Place 2 cups powdered sugar in a spouted measuring cup, add extract or flavoring of your choice and enough milk, cream or juice to thin to a pourable consistency. Start with 2 tablespoons and work up very slowly if you need it thinner. If you make it too thin, add a bit more powdered sugar.
If adding extracts, add them to the cream mixture before adding to flour. If adding fruits, chocolate chips, etc., add them just as the dough is coming together, when you still have a few dry patches of flour. Once you add the extra ingredients, continue to gently stir, adding a bit more cream as needed until you have a damp, clumpy mixture that holds together. See photos for reference.
Notes
- My weapon of choice for stirring together scone dough is and always has been a fork. It really allows you to bring the dough together without overworking it. I just toss and stir as I’m drizzling in the cream and it works like a charm.
- I’ve used half-and-half in place of cream and it works just fine. These would also be very good with buttermilk, I imagine.
- And if you want to slather them with the most delicious lemon curd, you can find the recipe here: Lemon Curd Recipe – Cook on a Whim
Here are a few more recipes I think would be perfect for Mother’s Day (or any special brunch):
Easy Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins
Vanilla Bean Scones with a Vanilla Bean Glaze
Afghan Scrambled Eggs with Afghan Naan (Khagina with Noni Afghani)
Dark Chocolate Olive Oil Muffins with Chocolate Streusel
Cinnamon Sugar Cream Cheese Muffins
Triple Berry Crème Fraîche Scones
Frosted Brown Butter & Vanilla Bean Cinnamon Rolls
Easy chocolate chip banana muffins. Photo by Anita Parris Soule. Courtesy Cook on a Whim.
