Our first week back from Spring Break was spent studying Quick breads.
Quick breads are just that - breads that are quickly made. This is
because no yeast is used. Instead, they rely on either chemical leaveners (such
as baking soda or baking powder and the like) or air ( Irish Soda Bread, and
the other soda breads that I wrote about in a previous entry, are quick
breads.
There isn't much to write about quick bread, I, at least, don't find them overly exciting. But they are handy things to have in your repertoire.
There are two methods to make quick breads - the muffin method and the biscuit method. The muffin method is used to make muffins and, believe it or not, the biscuit method is used to make biscuits! It's the way the fat is incorporated into the flour that gives biscuits and muffins their distinctive characteristics.
I'm not a huge fan of muffins and biscuits, but if I had to choose, I prefer muffins. They're lighter and softer than biscuits. And what's great about muffins is that they can be baked in loaf form to they're like bread shaped cakes. A chocolate chip muffin can be turned into a chocolate chip loaf simply by pouring the batter into a loaf pan instead of muffin tins.
My favorite biscuit is a traditional British or Irish scone. I'm not a big fan of American scones. Yes, there is a difference between British and American scones! According to i heart britain,
There isn't much to write about quick bread, I, at least, don't find them overly exciting. But they are handy things to have in your repertoire.
There are two methods to make quick breads - the muffin method and the biscuit method. The muffin method is used to make muffins and, believe it or not, the biscuit method is used to make biscuits! It's the way the fat is incorporated into the flour that gives biscuits and muffins their distinctive characteristics.
I'm not a huge fan of muffins and biscuits, but if I had to choose, I prefer muffins. They're lighter and softer than biscuits. And what's great about muffins is that they can be baked in loaf form to they're like bread shaped cakes. A chocolate chip muffin can be turned into a chocolate chip loaf simply by pouring the batter into a loaf pan instead of muffin tins.
My favorite biscuit is a traditional British or Irish scone. I'm not a big fan of American scones. Yes, there is a difference between British and American scones! According to i heart britain,
In my world, there is nothing better than a British scone topped with clotted cream and jam! And yes, the clotted cream goes on FIRST followed by the jam. (The argument about this is nearly as fierce as the argument about Taylor Ham vs Pork RollBritish scones are simpler, with fewer ingredients. American scones come in a million different flavours, and they're much more likely to be fruit-stuffed. Though it's not unheard of for British scones to have fruit, it's mostly fruits like raisins, sultanas (golden raisins), or currants...American scones are usually designed to be eaten alone, though a light glaze on top is very common. They generally have a lot “going on” without any toppings added. British scones have a much plainer flavour profile and are designed to be topped with things like clotted cream, butter, lemon curd, and/or preserves. American scones are often dense wedges or triangles, while British scones are taller and usually round. British scones are reasonably dense, but not as dense as American scones.
My favorite scone recipe comes from Gemma Stafford's blog, Bigger Bolder Baking. She also has a recipe for making Clotted Cream.
My tip for the day is to make the clotted cream first and then use the
leftover whey in Gemma's scone recipe. And enjoy!
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| Double Chocolate Muffins with Peanut Butter Chips |
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| Traditional Irish Scones |
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| Scones & Muffins display |
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