APRICOT EARL GREY SCONES

One of the things I truly love about blogging is your questions and comments. It's still a little mind-blowing for me that anyone even reads what I'm writing, and seeing people use my recipes is undoubtedly the most rewarding part of it all. While a lot of you get in touch with baking related questions, there are still two questions which come up more that any others.

The first is - how do I find the time? Well, it's a good question and one that I definitely have not cracked yet. The fact that this post is coming over two weeks after the last is evidence enough of that.

The second is - how are you not very overweight eating all that cake? Again, it's a constant struggle and, I fear, one that I will inevitably lose eventually. I have become pretty good at forcing cake and biscuits onto friends, families and work colleagues, but I'm trying to bake a little healthier too. After all, we all love cake but we're also painfully aware of the fact that sugar is not our friend. I want the people I care about to enjoy my baking without feeling bad about it.

While this recipe is not strictly {dairy free}, you could easily use soya butter and yoghurt if you wanted to cut out the lactose. I'm not doing well on my personal effort to do just that, but that's another story for another day. Scones are low in sugar and fat, and can be whipped up in 30 minutes flat. Perfect for guilt-riddled cake-lovers.

My obsession with earl grey continues (earl grey lemon cake and lady grey white chocolate biscotti recipes here), but you could easily leave this out if you're not a tea lover.

 THE INGREDIENTS

250g plain flour

1 tbsp baking powder

50g caster sugar

2 earl grey tea bags

1/2 tsp salt

75g butter

200ml yoghurt

6-8 apricots

THE RECIPE

Preheat your oven to 220C, and line a large baking tray with parchment. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Tear open the tea bags and add the contents into the bowl.

Cube the butter into small pieces, then add to the bowl and rub into the flour using your fingertips. Continue until the mixture is sandy and looks like breadcrumbs. Add the yoghurt and use your hands to bring into a soft dough. Separately, stone and chop the apricots into small pieces, then add to the dough and mix through.

Trying to handle the dough as little as possible, transfer it to a floured work surface. Work into a rough square, of around an inch in thickness. Using a heavy knife, cut the dough into 4 quarters, and then divide each quarter into two triangles. 

Transfer these to your prepared tray and bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, until golden and risen. Scones are best eaten on the day of baking, although the yoghurt keeps these fresh overnight. 

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EARL GREY AND LEMON CAKE

I am of the belief that there are few trials or tribulations in this life that cannot be medicated (or at the very least, placated) with a steaming mug of tea. It's true that I'm one for home comforts - long baths, feline snuggles and thick feathered duvets are often the best remedies for even the most distressing afflictions. 

I'm sure that the tea sommeliers of this world could wax lyrical about our ancient brew's chemical qualities, so I'll leave that to the experts. For me, the soothing power of tea is as much about the cathartic ritual that a cup of the good stuff entails - the kitchen table, loved ones, biscuits, inevitable tears and, in most cases, resolution. 

It's little wonder that we Brits take tea so seriously. If ancient practice is to be believed, the dregs of any good teacup can foretell the future and, faced as we are with the insoluble national debate over what makes the perfect cup, I'd wager that our infatuation with tea is here to stay. 

Tea is on my (long, and ever lengthening) list of things I would like to learn more about one day but, for the moment, I'm happy as the tea-heathen I am, often found clutching a large mug of builders. When it came to translating my favourite brew into cake form however, the situation called for something with a touch more class, and smoky fresh Earl Grey works perfectly. 

Sandwiched with sweet honey and a tang of lemon buttercream, this cake packs the punch of a mug with every slice. Perhaps adding the contents of two teabags is a little unconventional, but nobody wants a tea cake which doesn't taste of tea. If you like, you could strain the milk before you add it to the cake batter. 

 THE INGREDIENTS

cake

2 Earl Grey teabags

200ml full fat milk

50g butter

200g caster sugat

2 eggs

50ml sunflower oil 

180g plain flour

3 tsp baking power

1/2 tsp fine salt

buttercream

125g icing sugar

40g butter

1 tsp honey

1 tbsp lemon juice 

THE RECIPE

Preheat the oven to 180C, and line x2 5" cake tins with parchment. In a small pan, heat the milk until it is just boiling, then remove from the heat and empty the contents of the teabags into the hot milk. Stir and leave to cool.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs with a tablespoon of the flour, and beat until smooth. With the mixer running, add the oil, then the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the cooled milk, straining first if preferred, and beat until you have a smooth, runny batter. Pour into your prepared tins, and bake in the center of the oven for 15-25 minutes until risen, golden and the cakes pass the knife test.

Transfer the cakes to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely. Separately, make the buttercream icing. Beat the butter until pale, then gradually add the icing sugar a spoon at a time, until all has been added and you have a sandy mixture. Add the honey and the lemon juice one teaspoon at a time, and once the mixture is just wet enough beat it for 5-7 minutes, so that it is airy, pale and fluffy. 

Spoon the buttercream into a piping bag, and use to sandwich and decorate your cake. Serve with tea and good company. 

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