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Thursday, March 9, 2017

It Happens Every Spring!

Hello dear friends!  Something about March makes me crave maple.  Maybe it's seeing the clouds of steam coming from the local sugar house or maybe it's the memories of field trips to the maple sugaring shed when I was in grade school.  Whatever the reason, I cast away all the thoughts of calories and dieting and bake something maple.  This year it was maple-oatmeal scones, which I adapted from several different recipes.  I know that scones have a reputation as being dry, but these are nice and moist, perfect with some Maple Sleigh coffee, as long as you are going to go overboard, might as well go all the way!
Maple-Oatmeal Scones

2 C. flour
1/2 C. oatmeal
1 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tbsp. baking powder
sprinkle of salt
1 C. (2 sticks) butter
1/4 C. buttermilk
1/4 C. maple syrup
1 egg

Combine dry ingredients.  Cut in butter until fine crumbs form.  Stir in the buttermilk, maple syrup and egg until just combined. ( it's the layers of butter and flour that make pastries flaky).  Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and pat into a round, 3/4 inch thick.  Cut into eight wedges.  Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.  While still warm, frost scone with this glaze and sprinkle with  some additional oatmeal, if desired.

Maple Glaze

Combine:
3/4 C. Confectioners' sugar
 2 tbsp. maple syrup
enough milk or cream to make a thin glaze

 Well that's it for today.  Just wanted to share in case you were having a maple craving too.  Hope that you all have a wonderful weekend!

Hugs
Jane


38 comments:

  1. Yummy to the point where my mouth is watering and I want some too!!! Wish the real deal maple syrup was not so expensive down here. Many years ago a young lady called in, about dinner time, she was looking for a person at an odd address, certainly not in our town, but one spelt similar, about 30 minutes of trying to help, she was on her way, but returned with a beautiful bottle, with those dinky little handles each side, of deep real Maple Syrup. Seems she had worked for the Canadian Government for some time, left her card, and this bottle as a thank you!!! This was my first taste of anything so delicious, and since then, no other has come close to that taste!!! Enjoy your scones.

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    1. Wish I could send one, Jean! Maple syrup is never cheap, just too much labor involved. I sure miss tapping my own this time of year. You can substitute pancake syrup or cane or corn syrup and a teaspoon of maple extract for the maple syrup, if it's too cost prohibitive. But as you said, nothing comes close to the real thing!

      Hugs
      Jane

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  2. Lost three comments when my computer died just as I hit "publish".
    Andrea wrote:
    Hi Jane! I don't know which caught my eye the quickest....seeing that you posted (and it isn't Sunday) or seeing your delicious-looking scones! I know if you say a recipe is good....it for sure is! Hugs, Andrea

    Thanks Andrea! I can guarantee that you'll like these scones!

    Rainey wrote:
    This looks and sounds delicious!

    Thanks for sharing ~ FlowerLady

    Thank you, Rainey!

    And Rhonda left a funny comment about using two sticks of butter which I couldn't retrieve.

    Well, when I fall off the dieting wagon Rhonda, I do it big time! Ha!

    Hugs
    Jane

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  3. Lovely scones. Aren't you happy to be in your pantry again after your $20 challenge week? Much better way to eat oatmeal! Bet there were no complaints.
    Have a good weekend.

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    1. Very happy, Sheila! Although I wasn't all that thrilled to step on the scale the next day. Ha!

      Hugs
      Jane

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  4. Sounds delish! Maple syrup is a real treat here due to the price. But oh-so-good!

    Scones are a favorite go too usually. Plain, sweet, herb and cheese. But since moving I have completely fallen out of the habit.

    I will have to get back into it, this variation might just be the motivator!

    Xx

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    1. Scones are so easy aren't they, Emma? Usually I make plain ones but when maple calls, I've got to have some! So far this has been one of the best uses for it, that I've found.

      Hugs
      Jane

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  5. Oh my Jane, now I'm drooling. Those scones look delicious. I've been saving my last jar of maple syrup from two years ago when I last collected sap from our trees and made syrup. Of course, I'll have to make them on the sly and eat them all myself though. I'm weighing it all in my mind...seriously. Thank you for the recipe.
    Have a great weekend!
    Toni

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    1. They are worth hiding, Toni! You can always freeze them and take one out a week for a special treat. I'm a firm believer in special treats! Ha!

      Hugs
      Jane

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  6. Sounds delicious! I shall file it away for when I recover my sweet tooth! :)

    By the way, I am reading your blog from the beginning! Just finished 2011. So many good posts!

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  7. Thank you! I'm glad someone is reading the older posts, I kinds feel bad for them. Ha! Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

    Hugs
    Jane

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  8. Looks and sounds delicious! Maple Syrup time is so nice!

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    1. Thanks Vickie! Maple sugaring time gives us something to look forward to up here, when everyone else is talking of daffodils and green grass.

      Hugs
      Jane

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  9. I'm so going to try these! Thank you for sharing the recipe. : )

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    1. You're welcome Mary! Hope you enjoy them.

      Hugs
      Jane

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  10. What a great surprise to find an early post and a delicious one at that!! Thanks, I will be trying this recipe for sure. I luv reading your older posts and the comments.

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    1. Well, thank you Kim! I always say the commenters are the best part of this blog. There's a great community of kind and smart bloggers.

      Hugs
      Jane

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  11. We're on the same page. I bought a maple hot chocolate earlier this week. I've made scones a few times this winter, and will have to try this one. In this neck of the woods, I've seen molasses made, but never maple syrup. Wonderful stuff!

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    1. When I was growing up we had a yearly field trip to the sugar bush, Laurie. The boiled the syrup in huge vats over open fires. I always think how nerve-wracking that must have been for the teachers and chaperones. I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be allowed in this day and age!

      Hugs
      Jane

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  12. Those look delicious! I just made another batch of syrup a few days ago so Jeff made us pancakes for dinner. Yum!

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    1. Yum is right, Debbie! Hope you had a wonderful anniversary!

      HUgs
      Jane

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  13. Oh that does sounds good!!! My mother used to make a devil's food cake that was on the back of the crisco can. It used buttermilk. Then she topped it with burnt brown sugar icing. Oh that was too good!! The first time I made it I made the icing early and by the time I had the cake out to ice it was as hard a a rock!! :-)
    Jane you mentioned hemp a while back. Was it hemp hearts you said was the best or another type of hemp? You said I believe, it was even better than chia. We put chia and other things in our daily breakfast oatmeal. I want to try the hemp. :) J/Jody

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    1. Ha! I did that once too, Jody. That's a pretty tricky frosting to master.

      Yes, hemp hearts. I don't know if it is better than chia, but I like to add both to my oatmeal and to bread dough. Every little thing helps!

      Hugs
      Jane

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    2. I love to sprinkle the hemp hearts over our salads too. I've got flax seeds in a pepper grinder, and grind them over oatmeal, and any bread or pizza dough. I agree that every little thing helps!

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    3. Yes, flax seed is good too. Only don't cook your flax seed with your oatmeal or it will have a gluey texture. But as Laurie said, sprinkling it over top once cooked is great.

      Jane

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  14. Thanks for sharing this recipe. We will try them over the next week or so.

    I think something I crave periodically is a plain yellow cake with this simple chocolate frosting. My grandmama made this as a treat when I was a child. As a kid I thought it was magical, but as an adult I'm delighted that it isn't as difficult to make as my childhood mind imagined.

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    1. Isn't it funny how memories are all mixed up with our cravings. I wish I had wonderful memories of salads! Ha!

      Hugs
      Jane

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  15. Joan of Crystalview CottageMarch 10, 2017 at 6:20 AM

    One of the wonderful signs of spring!! Thank you for the recipe. Another sign of spring-March winds!! We lost power on Wednesday with the incredible wind. Fortunately it was only for nine hours. Did you have power outages over in the thumb?

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    1. The lights flickered off and on several times, Joan, but the power stayed on. Kind of looking forward to a nice power outage. I think they are romantic, as long as they don't last for days! Looks like anther cold (very cold) and windy day here.

      Hugs
      Jane

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  16. Dear Jane,
    One of the things I love about living in New England is the access to and price of real maple syrup. The last weekend in March is always Maple Weekend here in NH and you can go from sugar shack to sugar shack sampling and getting great deals on fresh syrup and maple sugar. Those maple scones you made look delicious! I think I may have to make some this weekend...
    Dana

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    1. Now that's my idea of a good time, Dana! One day I have to take a trip out your way in March. Of all the states I've traveled I think NH is the prettiest.

      Hugs
      Jane

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  17. They look lovely Jane! I have never tasted maple syrup, I have seen it but the price is extremely high, There is imitation maple syrup, but everyone says it not a patch on the real thing. Maybe it is just as well as I am trying to stay away from sweet stuff!

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    1. Hi Sharon! I actually like the imitation maple syrup, it's thicker and stays on the pancakes better. Guess I don't have the sophisticated palate of others. Trying to stay away from sweets here, too. Unfortunately, the guys have other ideas. Dieting with men in the house is difficult! Hope you are having a wonderful weekend!

      Hugs
      Jane

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  18. Looks delicious, Jane! I love the idea of maple sugaring, and have read about it a lot, but we don't do it here in my area. I do enjoy eating it occasionally, though.

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    1. You need just the right conditions for maple sugaring, Becky. Days just above freezing and cold nights to make the sap flow. We've had such odd weather this year, I don't know how the maple tappers are fairing. The weather has been all over the map, some days in the 50s then days like today when we had snow.

      Hugs
      Jane

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  19. Dear Jane,

    That looks so good! Our local nature center had a special day where they demonstrated maple-syrup making, as well as black walnut syrup. I actually preferred the black walnut, as it had more body to it. Have you ever heard of using trees besides maples before?

    Love,

    Marqueta

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    1. I've never heard of black walnut syrup, but I have heard of tapping birch trees. I guess any tree that has sap could be tapped. Interesting. I'd like to try some different trees. We have mostly pine in our yard, I'm guessing that wouldn't be too good.

      Hugs
      Jane

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    2. Hah! No, pine wouldn't be too tasty, I don't think! But it does make good turpentine!

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