Blueberry Muffins
Authentic Scone Recipe from Devon England
Pumpkin Bread
Ginger Cookies
Lemon Bars
Banana Muffins
Cranberry Muffins
Cranberry Orange Muffins
Lemon Sugar Cutout Cookies
Triple-Layer Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies

Blueberry Muffins Makes
1 dozen large or 24 mini muffins

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw)
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon or orange peel

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400F. Grease bottoms of 12 muffin cups or line with baking cups. In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, grated lemon or orange peel and salt; mix well. In another bowl, combine milk, oil and egg; blend well. Add dry ingredients all at once; stir just until dry ingredients are moistened (batter should be a bit lumpy) Fold in blueberries gently. Fill cups about 2/3 full. Sprinkle with white sugar before placing in oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool one minute before removing from pan. You may also make mini muffins with this recipe but cooking time should be cut in half, about 10-12 minutes).


Authentic Scone Recipe from Devon England
Yield: 10-12 scones

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup yellow raisins
• 1 cup hot water
• 2 cups flour
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 Teaspoon salt
• 5 tablespoons butter
• 2 eggs (one separated and one egg white)
• 1 cup sour cream

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 F. Place the raisins in a small bowl and stir in the water. Set aside to cool. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt and mix well. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Drain the reserved, cooled raisons and add to the flour mixture. Stir together well. In a small bowl, mix together one egg and sour cream, and then add to the flour mixture. The mixture will now form a sticky dough. Mix just until it holds together. DO NOT KNEAD. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and pat out to about 3/4 inch thick. Do not overwork the dough. Cut out the scones with a biscuit cutter. Place the scones on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 11 minutes. (Do not overbake; bottoms should be tan; sides will still be light.) Cool on a wire rack. Serve with Preserves, Devon cream or Lemon Curd. They are the best you'll ever try!


Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients:

• 4 cups flour
• 3 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoons ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 Teaspoon ground ginger
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 15-ounce can pumpkin
• 2/3 cup water
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Beat all ingredients (except pecans) at medium speed with electric mixer until ingredients are moistened. Fold in pecans. Spoon evenly into 2 greased/floured loaf pans. Bake for 1 hour or until wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool on wire rack 10 minutes; remove and cool completely.

Serve with cream cheese - delicious.


Ginger Cookies
Makes approximately 6 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups shortening
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 4 1/4 cups flour
• 4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves

Directions:
Melt butter. Add the molasses, sugar and eggs. Beat well. Sift together the spices, flour and soda. Add the dry ingredients to the molasses mixture. Mix well. Refrigerate overnight. Preheat oven to 350 F. When thoroughly chilled, form into small balls about 1 inch in width. Roll these balls in sugar. Place on greased or parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes.


Lemon Bars Makes
24 bars

Ingredients:

Crust
• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup butter
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
  
  Topping
• 4 eggs
• 1/3 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons ginger
• 1/4 cup flour

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Sift together four and confectioners' sugar. Cut in butter until mixture clings together. Press into 9 x 13 inch pan and bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned. While crust is baking, prepare topping by beating eggs together with the sugar and lemon juice. Sift flour and baking powder together and stir into egg mixture. Pour topping over baked crust and bake for an additional 25 minutes. Cool completely - sprinkle with confectioners' sugar and cut into squares.


Banana Muffins

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 3 ripe bananas, cut up
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 F. In a large bowl, with fork, mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. With pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in butter or margarine until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside. In covered blender, blend bananas, eggs, milk, and vanilla only a few seconds until the bananas are chopped. Stir banana mixture into flour until moistened. Spoon batter into cups. Sprinkle sugar on tops before placing in oven. Bake 20-25 minutes.


Cranberry Muffins
Makes 48 mini muffins

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour
• 3/4 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2/3 cup buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups cranberries
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  
  Topping:
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 F. Place all ingredients, except cranberries, in food processor with steel blade. Pulse 5 times, fold in berries until mixed. Fill greased miniature muffin tins 2/3 full. Sprinkle on toppings. Bake in oven for 15 minutes.


Cranberry Orange Muffins

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup dried cranberries, chopped
• 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 3 tablespoons boiling water
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon grated orange peel

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 F. In a small bowl, stir cranberries and 2-tablespoons sugar. Stir in boiling water; set aside for 15 minutes to soften cranberries. In a large bowl, mix flour, cornmeal, remaining sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, using a whisk beat eggs lightly. Add milk and melted butter, beat until smooth. Stir in cranberries, their liquid and orange peel. Stir liquid mixture into flour mixture. Divide batter evenly among buttered muffin cups, fill each 3/4 full. Bake until risen and tops are golden, 15-20 minutes. Let cool 2-3 minutes.


Lemon Sugar Cutout Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter or solid vegetable shortening (room temperature)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Using electric mixer, cream butter and sugar in a large bowl until light. Beat in egg, lemon juice, lemon peel and vanilla. Mix flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl. Add to butter mixture and stir well until combined. Divide dough into 3 pieces. Flatten each into a disk. Wrap each in plastic and chill 2 hours or overnight. Preheat oven to 350 F. Roll out 1 dough piece on lightly floured surface of 1/8 inch. Using cookie cutters dipped into flour, cut out the cookies. (For a cute touch, use baby themed cookie cutters, ie. rattle, baby carriage, bottle). Transfer to ungreased cookie sheets, spacing evenly. Gather scraps, reroll and cut out additional cookies, chilling the dough if necessary. Bake until cookie edges are golden, about 10 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks and cool. Repeat rolling, cutting and baking with remaining dough pieces in batches.


Triple-Layer Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Serves 10

Cake
Ingredients:

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 « cups vegetable oil
• 4 large eggs
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ? teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3 cups finely grated peeled carrots (about 1 pound)
• « cup chopped pecans (about « ounce)
• « cup raisins
  
  Frosting:
  
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
• « cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 4 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions for cake:
Preheat oven to 325 F. Lightly grease (3) nine-inch diameter cake pans with 1-« inch high sides. Line bottom of pans with waxed paper. Lightly grease waxed paper. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and vegetable oil in bowl until combined. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg into sugar and oil mixture. Stir in carrots, chopped pecans and raisins.

Pour batter into prepared pans, dividing equally. Bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean and cakes begin to pull away from sides of pans, about 45 minutes. Cool in pans on racks 15 minutes. Turn out cakes onto racks and cool completely. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap tightly in plastic and store at room temperature.)

Directions for frosting:
Using electric mixer, beat all ingredients in medium bowl until smooth and creamy.

Place 1 cake layer on platter. Spread with ? cup frosting. Top with another cake layer. Spread with ? cup frosting. Top with remaining cake layer. Using icing spatula, spread remaining frosting in decorative swirls over sides and top of cake. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead. Cover with cake dome and refrigerate) Serve cake cold or at room temperature.



Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies
Makes about 32 cookies

Lard makes a cookie with a texture crisp and sandy. For a cookie that is crisp but also chewy, vegetable shortening is best.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup lard or vegetable shortening, melted and cooled
• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 1 cup sugar plus additional for coating the cookies
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
In a large bowl stir together the lard or shortening, the butter, 1 cup of the sugar, the egg, and the vanilla. Into the bowl sift together the flour, the baking soda, and the salt and stir the mixture until it forms a dough. Chill the dough, covered, for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375øF. Roll rounded tablespoons of the dough into balls, roll the balls in the additional sugar, coating them completely, and arrange them 3 inches apart on lightly greased baking sheets. Flatten the balls with the bottom of a glass dipped in the sugar (the edges will crack slightly) and bake the cookies in batches in the middle of the oven for 8 to 12 minutes, or until they are pale golden. Transfer the cookies to racks and let them cool. The cookies keep in an airtight container for 1 week.

Top of Page