Vanilla Scones with Strawberry Cream

Forget the steam engine, the industrial revolution, or heck even the English language. I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest Great Britain's greatest contribution to the world will always be their afternoon tea ritual and subsequently all the delicious nibbles associated with it. Okay, so I probably exaggerated a teensy tiny bit but the fact of the matter is, I really really like afternoon tea (and morning tea). There's nothing better than taking some time out in the middle of a busy day to just sit and enjoy a quiet spot of tea with homemade scones.  It's one of my greatest indulgences and a daily ritual I uphold with the utmost importance. It's right up there alongside wearing underwear and brushing my teeth (yes I have a problem).

Now when it comes to the world of scones, they exist in every form imaginable. Savory, sweet, citrus, cheese, raisins, pumpkin, potato, bacon, onion, the list goes on. But my favourite way to have them is the traditional way- plain with clotted cream and jam (strawberry jam that is). This recipe is a slight variation on the basic scone. The use of cream rather than butter results in a scone that still remains soft even when cold (fellow scone aficionados will understand the importance of this statement). I also find by adding fresh strawberries to the usual cream and jam mixture to give the scones a little tartness and a better bite. Try it out next time, you'll see what I mean.

 

Vanilla Scones

1 cup cream

1 cup milk

4 cups plain flour

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp caster sugar

1. Preheat oven to 200C degrees and line tray with baking paper. 

2. Sift flour, sugar and a pinch of salt into large bowl.

3. Combine cream, milk and vanilla extract and add to dry ingredients.

4. Using a flat-bladded knife, slowly 'cut' the mixture together. The key is to combine but not over mix.

5. Roll out the dough onto a clean surface, knead until smooth and flatten to approximately 25mm thickness. Note, kneading too much will result in a tough texture. 

6. Use cookie cutters to cut each scone out and transfer to prepared baking tray. Lightly sprinkle flour over each scone.  

7. Bake for 10 minutes or until scones have risen and are slightly coloured. Cover with a tea towel and leave the scones on the tray for 10 minutes.

* Recipe yields roughly 20 scones 5cm in size. 

Strawberry Cream 

1 handful of fresh strawberries sliced

2 tbsp strawberry jam

2/3 cup of double cream 

1. Spoon strawberry jam into bowl and stir till softened.

2. Add cream to jam mixture and lightly swirl to combine. Do not over mix. 

3. Add sliced strawberries to mixture.

4. Pile onto warm scones, prepare to scoff down the lot. 

* You can substitute fresh whipped cream for double cream. 

And I'm back!

It's so good to be back. This past week has been the longest break I've taken away from the blog ever since I first started {camo meets couture} some 6 months ago. As entitled as it sounds, living without internet has been excruciating (3g on tiny iPhone screens don't count right?). It's amazing how seamlessly integrated technology is with everyday life. Meanwhile, I've been eagerly counting down these past few days till I get to watch my favourite shows, read my favourite blogs and browse my favourite (online) stores again.As disoriented as I've been, some good has actually come out of being "disconnected". For instance, I've found myself a lot more productive and inspired in the kitchen. I've even finalised a few mock-ups for {camo meets couture} business cards. Although why a blog would need business cards is still beyond me, but hey all the cool kids are doing it. I'm also proud to announce that I've finally made my very first ebay purchase. I may still be an ebay rookie since my sister did all of my bidding but that's not the point. The important thing is that I now have a new pair of Karen Walker sunnies to add to my collection!Here's a peek at some of the new content I've been busy working on during my little involuntary break.   

{ wearing: j.crew denim jacket . witchery oversized stripe dress . target scarf . j.crew chunky gold bracelet . michael kors pave bangle . nordstrom bangles }

Wardrobe Diaries: The Colour Of Love

When I first put this outfit on I received quite a few stares from my husband and my sister. But I ignored them because I just loved how romantic this outfit looked. I feel like I escaped from a modern day Romeo & Juliet. Perhaps it's the billowy sleeves or the luxurious fabrics or the red and cream paired together. Whatever it is, I just feel like I should be sitting in a quaint cafe furiously scribbling in my sketchbook... or silently strolling by the Seine hand in hand with the love of my life stopping now and then for a stolen kiss... or waltzing my way home to the dim glow of street lamps and clickity-click of my heels... or... or perhaps I've just been watching Midnight In Paris one too many times (curse you Woody Allen!). 

{ katie may wide leg trousers . elie tahari silk blouse . tory burch mini robinson tote similar here and here . target heels }

Life thus far...

I am so overwhelmed by the wonderful response I received from my last post. Thank you so much for all your kind words, they mean more than you can imagine. After all that party planning craziness, this week I took a much needed break away from blogging (and pretty much everything else) to just unwind and relax. Sometimes all you need is a little break from your usual routine to appreciate how wonderful life is.

Having been in Melbourne, Australia for a month now, it's about time I got around to posting photos of my trip. The truth is, having grown up here I sometimes forget that I am on vacation. Before I left I had all sorts of plans for places to visit and things to eat. But in reality, once I had settled the girls into their new home away from home, a routine began to emerge and pretty soon life became mundane and I forgot I was on vacation. It's been almost five weeks since I first got here and I have yet to skim the surface of my vacation to-do list. Luckily for me there's still plenty of time. For now, here's some snippets from life here thus far.

A Very Glittery First Birthday

It's monday and I have the post-party blues. This past weekend my baby girl had her very first birthday party. There was an abundance of pink, glitter, and red balloons. It was everything that a first birthday should be.

When it comes to throwing parties for the girls, I try to play super-mum and make everything myself. After all, hand-made is always better than store-bought, no? Everything that you see in the following pictures were either made by myself or my sister. I must also mention my mum who cooked two tables full of main dishes that I forgot to photograph (oops).

Seeing my two girls eyes light up that morning when they were greeted with hundreds of balloons and all the pretty food and decorations just made my day. It may have been my daughter's birthday but their giant grins were the best present I could ever receive. For anyone keen on planning their own party, full details at the bottom of the page.

 

 

DECORATIONS

- The gold fish scale feature wall was made from circles cut out of tissue paper then layered onto foam board. It may look impressive but it really took no more than three hours to make. 

- Tissue paper pom poms are my go-to party decor. They're inexpensive, easy to make and looks great. Here's a great tutorial.

- The glitter bunting was made with scrapbook paper and ribbons. I lined each flag with doubled sided tape and then applied glitter. The tape ensures a neat and uniform edge.

- For the Happy Birthday garland, I first printed the words on the computer then traced and cut them out of thick stock paper. The rest is pretty straight forward, glue, glitter and string up.

FOOD

- My wonderful sister (baker extraordinaire) kindly offered to bake the birthday cake. The bottom tier is a classic chiffon and cream cake. The chiffon was baked in three layers of different shades creating an ombre effect. The top tier was intended to be a smash cake for the birthday girl. The ruffles along with the cake toppers were all made from fondant. 

- My sister also made the gorgeous macaron cupcakes. Funny story, we actually started off with 150 macarons but after consuming almost the entire batch we had to use the remaining 15 as cupcake toppers. 

- One of my favourite ways to serve strawberries is with a little drizzle of balsamic reduction. You can find the recipe here in a previous blog post. 

- These donut brownies were inspired by a similar milk and cookies display I saw on Pinterest. I used mini donut pans to bake my brownies in but you could easily use a bit of foil for the same effect. 

- Luckily for me, pavlovas are readily available at the supermarket in all shapes and sizes here in Australia. All I needed to do was add a spoonful of double cream and a drizzle of passionfruit syrup. But if you're interested in making your own pav, I have a great recipe here. 

- No-bake cheesecakes are a fast and easy alternative to your regular baked cheesecake. Plus with this method you can go crazy with presentation. The white chocolate shards on the cheesecake have edible glitter and crushed macarons set in them. 

- Store bought shortbread is a lot less fragile than homemade which makes them much better as party food. Here I paired it with David Lebovitz chocolate fudge sauce. See here for a homemade version.

- The quintessential party food, fairy bread. No further explanation necessary.