Scones: my other favorite baked good (and updates, too)

I have a confession to make. Cupcakes aren’t the only baked good that occupies the top of my mind. I’m in love with scones.

Yes, scones. If cupcakes are quintessentially American in my mind (ebullient, expressive, verging on over-the-top, sweet), scones are so English. They’re understated, but have a biting wit, and takes some maturity to appreciate.

I would get really frustrated because it’s so hard to find good scones in Manila. French Baker used to have halfway decent ones (with walnuts!) when I was still in high school. The now-defunct Struan and Tang (the place that taught me to love tea just as much as coffee) had passable ones. The scones at Starbucks are too fricking dry. Scones, as Nigella Lawson so rightly puts it, are supposed to be solid-looking but light. (She should know–she is the British Domestic Goddess after all.)

Well, if you can’t find them, why not make them?

Oddly enough, I’ve never tried making scones myself–I found myself intimidated by all the recipes I found for scones. Even Nigella Lawson’s. I just felt like I wasn’t worthy–nor nowhere near English enough–to try making such a quintessentially British quickbread.

It was serendipity that led me to Jenny Wallum (who has letters after her name! She’s really Jennifer Wallum, MBE), who encouraged me by sharing her very simple basic scone recipe–simple enough for me to remember without writing it down!

And here is the fruit of that meeting–spiced scones that hit the spot for me. They’re still not the “perfect scone,” but I finally got a glimpse of what Nigella Lawson meant: these are solid-looking (almost peasant-like), but heavenly. To Jenny’s recipe, I added a few dashes of ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmed, and cloves.

It was also Jenny who suggested trying scones with kesong puti. Though scones are traditionally served in the UK with clotted cream and blackberry jam, some Brits have their own idiosyncratic preferences when it comes to their scones. Jenny, who has lived in the Philippines for more than a decade, suggested the kesong puti-scone combination to me. And I must agree–it’s wonderful. With the spiced scones I made, the light tartness of the kesong puti was the perfect foil to the sweet, fragrant spices. I washed everything down with a robust English Breakfast tea, with some milk and sugar mixed in.

Some Updates:

I have yet to adjust to my new teaching schedule, though I’m really happy to be back teaching again. Oh, and balancing teaching and this is challenging as well, but I enjoy both teaching and baking, so it’s not really a pain, and the stress is definitely worth it.

Some photos of recent orders:

cupcakes as wedding favors–I love the rust-orange theme of this wedding, sunset colors.

Happy Fathers’ Day!

A Happy Fathers’ Day to all (Super)Dads, from Chipper Cupcakes!

(above, a dozen classic chocolate cupcakes; a half-dozen frosted with salted chocolate buttercream, the other half frosted with vanilla buttercream and decorated with fondant cutouts. Ordered by Aila Y.)

Updates:Please watch UsGirls tonight on Studio 23! I received a text message from Kaye C., who first contacted me about the episode, UsGirls will air either at 7:30, 8:30, or 9 pm–I think there are some special stuff airing on Studio 23 tonight, thus the vagueness of the schedule.

Lastly, here are photos of some orders I did recently:

Classic chocolate and vanilla cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting–with the Starfleet Insignia (also the design of the commicator badges from the original Star Trek series)–made for Cid’s Baptism. Many thanks to Beth L. and her husband for letting me do this. This really took me back to my childhood! Live long and prosper!

mango rum birthday cupcake with a frangipani flower (and birthday candle). It was a part of this tower for a 19th birthday (ordered by Marie V. for her neice):

The tower is an assortment of classic chocolate with vanilla buttercream, mango rum, and red velvet.

The UsGirls episode…

…will be airing 15 June, not yesterday as I originally posted. Hehehe. Excited!
Also, check out photos of my cupcakes in the June issue of Baby Magazine!

my long-overdue update!

It’s been a busy two weeks for me, not only in terms of the cupcakes. ^___^ School’s starting again on Tuesday, so I spent a good part of the last two weeks working on my syllabus and getting together my readings for the coming semester. I beg your indulgence–I’ll “geek out” a bit–but I really love teaching and I love philosophy. I love thinking of the overall schema that my course will follow, what themes to highlight, and how these themes all fit together. After that, I begin picking what readings to include (and which to exclude). I also find myself thinking of how I’d discuss each theme, and if I can think of any everyday examples or instances that relate to the theme and help make it clearer for my students. I also love challenging myself–and my students, too, hehe.

Aside from preparing for the coming semester, I was also busy with a lot of media-related things–the ANC stint I did for JVP, and the two media features of Chipper Cupcakes filled up the rest of my free time. The first feature was the Bulletin article that came out the day before yesterday (see my previous post for the link!).

The second feature will be on television! Please tune in to UsGirls on Studio 23 tomorrow night for their episode on internet shopping–Chipper Cupcakes is one of the featured online food “stores.”

Of course, I also had some orders to make and deliver as well. It was a busy–but really fruitful–two weeks.

Some photos! Many are long overdue.

 At the UsGirls Shoot (more to come!)

Dora the Explorer Cupcakes!

Bridal Shower Cupcakes (classic chocolate with vanilla buttercream) 

Bridal Shower Cupcakes (classic chocolate with vanilla buttercream)

Bridal Shower Cupcakes (the new and impoved masala chai cupcakes, with chocolate-chocolate and chocolate-vanilla in the background)

Birthday Cuppies 

And more still to come!  

Chipper Cupcakes in the Manila Bulletin!

A feature on Chipper Cupcakes (and myself) came out today in the Manila Bulletin. Check it out!

http://www.mb.com.ph/issues/2008/06/05/20080605126530.html

 Many thanks to Ms. Anna and Sir Pingot!

(In the meantime, PJ is still waiting for her mom’s cellphone, since all the pictures she needs are in her mom’s phone-cam…)