Ham and Cheddar Scones

My family can never seem to decide what to make for family gatherings, especially around the holidays. My grandpa loves ham but hates seafood, my grandma loves seafood but hates ham, 1 uncle is lactose intolerant, 1 uncle is on a diet, yada yada yada. Being the gracious hosts, my parents try to work around everyone's dietary preferences. This means that for Easter, we had: ham, leg of lamb, potato salad, mashed potatoes, coleslaw, horseradish sauce, prepared horseradish, etc...

This also leads to an abundance of leftovers. The leg of lamb got turned into what I called Greek Tacos, but what to do with the ham? I had already eaten it with eggs, as a sandwich, and I knew the bone was destined for soup.

 (Anemic scones- what happens when you forget to brush the top with milk)

Long story short, I made scones (at least that is what I am calling them). At the risk of sounding like a broken record, these are easy to make and a perfect choice for people who are nervous about their baking skills. They don't have to be rolled out and with some scrambled eggs would be a fantastic addition to a brunch buffet (although if you still had some hard boiled eggs leftover from Easter those work well too). They freeze well, and don't have to be rolled out. Anyways, sorry for yet another ham recipe (we're out now yay!) but after you try them I am sure you'll forgive me.

Ham and Cheddar Scones

These need to be served warm. When I ate them the next day, they got split in half, toasted and smeared with butter and dijon mustard.

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 2 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tsp pepper
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 6 green onions, chopped
• 8 oz extra-sharp Cheddar, grated
• 6 oz ham, cubed
• 2 cups buttermilk
• milk for brushing the top (optional. I forgot so mine are a little anemic) 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line cookie sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl whisk to combine flour, baking powder, mustard, sugar, pepper, and salt. Add the green onions, cheese, and ham and toss with flour until evenly coated. With a fork, stir in the buttermilk until just incorporated. Spoon 4 oz of dough onto the prepared cookie sheet placing the balls 1 inch apart. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown (unlike mine which are very much blonde).

Monkey Danish

Success! I have wanted this danish for almost four years. It was my favorite breakfast (along with the ham and cheese croissant) when I was in culinary school. Technically, I was supposed to eat breakfast in one of the school's kitchens, but I was never hungry at 6:30 (aka 30 minutes before my butt was supposed to be sitting in Food Safety). So in between class, my roommate and I would run to the Apple Pie Bakery and grab a danish and an Italian soda for consumption during Gastronomy. 

 

In the years since I left, I have often thought of this danish. I mentally planned many trips to New York just for the danish. And last summer when I was in NYC I was ready to hop on a train to get it when I discovered the school was closed for the month.