Thank Heavens for the Weekend!!

Welcome to Friday everyone!!! We finally made it through another week and I have no doubt that I am not the only one completely exhausted!  I thought and thought about what I wanted to bring to everyone today, but I felt after such a long week and feeling my brain just cramp from all work it's done, I would just keep it to KISS. Keep It Simple for Saturday!

Who feels like cooking on a Saturday morning after the hustle and bustle of a long week.....well I do! Cooking has always been a great source of stress relief for me.  Much like running 12 miles is to an active runner, I could cook for 12 hours and feel the same satisfaction.

So here it goes for my Saturday morning simple luxury food that is cheap to make but feels so glamorous on the palate.

Hot Ham and Cheddar Scones with Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice! What is great about this recipe is you can buy the ham already chunked up at the store and the cheese already shredded.

2 c all purpose flour
1 tbsp sugar (I like to use about 2 tsp raw sugar when I can instead, adds more flavor)
1 tbsp baking powder
1 1/4 tsp kosher salt (but 1/2 tsp regular salt will do)
1 stick unsalted butter, chilled and diced into small pieces, plus 2 tbsp butter melted for brushing the tops after they come out of the oven
2/3 c heavy cream, plus some for brushing before putting in the oven
1 cup grated cheddar cheese (tastes amazing if you can find white cheddar)
1 cup cubed ham (cubes or pieces should be small)
fresh ground pepper to taste

The trick to a tender scone is not to over mix your batter.  Heat your oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowel combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt using a pastry blender or two knives (use scissor method), cut mix until it is crumbly. Stir in 2/3 cup heavy cream. Add ham, cheese and pepper.  Gently knead with your hands to mix cheese and ham through forming a ball.  Then flatten on a foil covered baking sheet until about 1 inch thick disk.  Cut into quarters.  Brush with leftover heavy cream to coat and pop in the oven for about 30mins or until golden.  Brush with melted butter when they come out and they will be ready to serve!

Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice

How many oranges will depend on how many people you are serving.  So you can either go the easy way and go to your local Whole Foods Store and buy it already squeezed or get that juicer out that you never thought you would use!  About 5lbs of oranges will serve about 2-3 people depending on how much they will drink.  Me, I am a cheater....I buy it already juiced at the local organic store!

ENJOY!!!