Umami Scones - Parmesan Cheddar scones take 2

I loved the scones I made last time, but thought it could use a little tweak. My wife said it could use less salt. Last time I only had pre-shredded Sargento cheddar. It's not bad, but aged cheddar has a better flavor. I also felt it didn't need as much sugar, so I reduced it to 1 tbsp from 2.

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup grated dry parmesan - use good stuff, not the pre-grated powder
1/2 cup aged cheddar
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk or lactaid
8 tbsp cold butter

Preheat oven at 425F

Start by combining flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Cut the cold butter into slices and combine with the flour. Mix it until it looks like bread crumbs, don't over work it. Add the milk and form a dough. Knead it for 1 min and then divide into 12-15 pieces. I like smaller scones, so I divided them into 4"x4" squares. If you like big scones, divide them into 10-12 pieces.

Bake for 14 min. Take it out and let it cool for 10min.

How does it compare to the first time? The aged cheddar is definitely richer with a deeper umami flavor.

Parmesan cheddar scones smell like Doritos

Since the cheddar scones worked out so well last time, I decided to experiment a bit. I looked at the ingredients for Doritos to see what kind of cheese they use and saw parmesan, cheddar and romano. In the list near the top was MSG.

I thought to myself, what if I added some dry aged parmesan to the scones, would it taste like Doritos? Now I know the answer, YES it smells like Doritos. Here is my recipe

2 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup grated dry parmesan - use good stuff, not the pre-grated powder
1/2 cup cheddar
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk or lactaid
8 tbsp cold butter

Preheat oven at 425F

Start by combining flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Cut the cold butter into slices and combine with the flour. Mix it until it looks like bread crumbs, don't over work it. Add the milk and form a dough. Knead it for 1 min and then divide into 12-15 pieces. I like smaller scones, so I divided them into 4"x4" squares. If you like big scones, divide them into 10-12 pieces.

Bake for 14 min. Take it out and let it cool for 10min. It also tastes like Doritos

Almond Cilantro Chicken aka it tastes like Tikka Masala

I had some left over onions from last week and half a can of tomato sauce from making pizza last night. I thought about what I could make and decided to throw something together. When I started, the intent wasn't to make Tikka Masala at all, but to my surprise, it tastes a lot like it.

1 pack of chicken breast - usually 3 half pieces cut into 1 inch cubes
1/2 can of tomato sauce - approximately 7-8 oz
1/2-3/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 cup milk or lactaid
1/3-1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup diced onions
12-16 basil leaves
3 cloves garlic
1/2 inch ginger
1 tsp salt
1 tsp brown sugar
2 tbsp rice wine or dry wine
2 tsp red curry powder
1 tsp turmeric powder

Start by browning the onions, garlic, ginger and salt. When they're slightly brown, add the rice wine and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the curry and turmeric and cook for 1 minute, then add the diced chicken. Brown for a 4-5 minutes, then add the almond and cook for another 3-5 minutes. At this point all of the chicken should be browned and there's shouldn't be any raw meat visible.

Add the tomato sauce and bring to a boil and add the milk and brown sugar. Turn the fire down to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, then add the cilantro. Simmer for 15 minutes and it's ready.

I like to eat it with jasmine rice, but any kind of rice will work. Bread also goes great with it.

Cheddar Cheese Scones

This morning I decided to make savory scones instead of the usual sweet scones. I did a quick search and found a couple of recipes for inspiration. I settled on this recipe.

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
3 tsp baking powder
8 tbsp butter
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/2-1 cup shredded aged cheddar

Preheat the oven at 425F

Combine flour, salt, sugar, baking powder and give it a quick mix. Take cold butter from the frig, cut into pieces and cream with the flour. It should look like coarse crumbs. Add the cheddar and mix.

In a separate bowl mix the egg and milk. Combine the wet and dry. Knead for a minute and cut into 12 pieces and bake for 14 min.