Spring has sprung!  If I had to chose a favorite season I think I would choose Spring, everything is waking up in vibrant green sheets, invigorated by the spring rain, stretching out on bough and bramble to take advantage of our first peeks of sun.

Delicate baby lettuces and radishes are some early risers in the garden, but there is a world out there beyond the garden.  A delicious world filled with things like Nettles, Ramps, Fiddleheads, Mushrooms and more.  While I sincerely love our local harvest, I also adore the wild flavors of the other regions of our country.  Obviously, as much as I would love to, I can not always go travelling half way across the country for say… a taste of Ramps – but I know a guy who knows a guy and that’s where I turn to get my fix of these gorgeous Wild Leeks.  The season is nearing it’s end for my beloved Ramps, but if you get over to Earthy Delights you can get a taste for yourself before the season is over… otherwise you’ll have to wait until next year.

The cool thing about the folks over at Earthy Delights is that they also carry other wild and exotic foods.  So while I was placing an order for some Ramps I spied that they also carried Fiddleheads and Baby White Asparagus. I would love to be out in the wild RIGHT NOW picking my own fiddles, but our family has gone through a pretty tough and painful ordeal recently with a significant loss.  It is hard to have my heart in the wild when it is needed at home.  This is where the incredible folks over at Earthy have come to my rescue, providing me with the tastes I crave when I can’t get out to get them myself.

Because of everything that has been going on, we have been eating at odd hours and not eating the best food that we can.  There are times when we have gone most of the day without eating, just simply forgetting or the large intake of grab and go food.. and not the healthiest kind either.  I really wanted to slow things down and take a little time to create something that not only satiated our hunger but comforted the soul as well.

I had a plethora of local ingredients on hand: bacon, eggs, herbs from my garden and Beecher’s Cheese Curds.  I had a look at my Earthy delivery and what I had on hand and set to work making this Frittata.  It tastes of Springtime.  Herbaceous, hearty, sustaining and most of all comforting.  It was a beautiful mix of ingredients both local and beyond and I really wanted to share it with you.  So here we go!

Sometimes I like to add a teeny little pinch of nutmeg to my egg dishes, I also topped this one off with some shaved black truffle before baking and finished it with a light drizzle of White Truffle Oil (that I picked up from the folks at Earthy Delights as well) for a little something extra special.
This recipe is so delicious served up for Brunch, but also is hearty enough for a dinner.  It keeps well overnight and makes great leftovers the next day.  It really does taste like Springtime on a plate and celebrates all the deliciousness that the season has to offer.  I hope you enjoy!

Full disclosure: I have received no compensation from any business or organization mentioned for this article. However, an odd sample of some new exciting ingredient sometimes tends to find it’s way in to my order on occasion.

That chill air of Fall creeping in and edging out the warmth of Summer was a call to my inner baker to get in the kitchen and fire up the oven.  One thing I love to make is scones.  They are quick, easy and there is nothing more delicious than a piping hot scone fresh from the oven.

Over the years there are a few lessons I have learned when making scones.  The first one is to never overwork the dough.  Overworking the dough gets rid of the all important pockets of fat that are essential for creating that fluffy texture, if you mix the ingredients too much you end up with edible doorstops.

The next lesson of importance is to not over-bake your scones.  This leads to the scone drying out, because as it sits on the breakfast or brunch table cooling off… it is still baking.   I tend to pull my scones out of the oven 2 or 3 minutes before the actual time stated, keeping an eye on the browning on the top and bottom.  Once it get a light brown color it is time to pull them out.  I also remove the scones from the baking sheet while they are warm.  Keeping them on the baking sheet to cool will cause them to continue baking and you will end up with tough bottoms to your scones.

Batter should be mixed with your hands and a wooden spoon for the perfect texture.  Using a food processor or electric mixer will overwork your ingredients.  If you think you can manage a light hand with the electric gadgets then go for it, otherwise get old fashioned and work with those hands.

So with all these scone tips, I’m going to pass along my favorite recipe for making scones that has the addition of hazelnuts and currants, they give a nice little crunch and fruity chew to your scone.  If you don’t have them, this recipe works beautifully without for a classic scone that is perfect with a little clotted cream and jam.

Hazelnut Currant Scones

• 2 cups Flour
• 1/4 cup White Sugar
• 2 teaspoons Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 1/3 cup Cold Butter (cut into chunks)
• 1 large Egg, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup Whole Milk
• 1/4 cup dried Zante Currants
• 1/4 cup crushed Hazelnuts

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, or lightly grease it if you do not have parchment paper handy.
Combine the dry ingredients into one bowl.  Add in the butter and with your hands sort of “pinch” the butter into the flour mix.  You are not looking to fully incorporate the butter into the flour and you will want small to medium size chunks of butter between the size of a pea and shelled almond.

Combine the milk and egg in a small bowl and whisk it together.  Drizzle it over the flour and butter mixture.  Using a wooden spoon, stir the milk and egg into the flour mixtures.  Do not over mix, the dough will be lumpy and it will be sticky, you are mixing just enough for the flour mixture to get moist.

Divide the dough into 3 equal portion.  Take one portion out and put it onto a well floured board.  You are going to knead it about 5 or 6 times.  The trick is when you press your dough flat, flip it over then fold, then press flat again.  Repeat that procedure 4 or 5 times.  What you are doing is folding the floured side together, this along with those butter chunks is what makes those lovely flakey layers you are after.

Now make that kneaded dough into a little mound about 5 inches in diameter.  The center of your little mound should be slightly higher than the outside rim, so it’s kind of like a dome.  Now take a big knife and cut it into half and then half again so you have 4 equal pieces.

I like to  brush the tops of my scones with milk then sprinkle a pinch of turbinado sugar onto them. You don’t have to do this, you can leave them plain if you want.

Stick them on your cookie sheet and bake them for about 10-12 minutes until they are golden brown.  Top them with butter, clotted cream or marscapone cheese with fruit preserves.  NOM!

Full disclosure: I have received no compensation from any business or organization mentioned in this article.

Images by Kelly Cline ©2010 All Rights Reserved
All content, text and images are  ©2010 All Rights Reserved and may not be used or reposted without express written consent.