Family Tales

It’s been a few weeks but I keep thinking back to this NPR story that really made me laugh. So very clever!

The Scottish Biscuit. For our American viewers, a biscuit is what you call a cookie. Example: Oreos, Chips Ahoys (a fav of mine), Girl Scout cookies. A biscuit in Scotland is a Digestive, Rich Tea, or if you’re a good boy, a Chocolate Digestive, Kit Kat, or a Jaffa Cake.

Do you know it costs about 10 bob (50pence, 96cents at today exchange rate) in Scotland for a 200 pack of Digestive biscuits (or it did back in September 2002), and about $10 for a 20 pack in NYC. Which I have been known to pay from time to time, as nothing goes better with that cheddar cheese than a good old fashioned BGB!!

Saturday and Sunday mornings are my favorite times to be in the kitchen, and it’s even more enjoyable now that we’ve actually got some space to move around in (not to mention some counter space). This morning we were short on eggs — a breakfast staple — and Michael mentioned just having toast (but of course we have no bread, either). As an alternative, I pulled out a Cooks Illustrated Recipe that I’d tried once before — Mile High Biscuits.

When we go to visit my dad in Groveton, biscuits are always on the breakfast menu. They usually come out one of those cans you find in the supermarket’s refrigerated section. Through those breakfasts (and trips to Chick-fil-A) Michael has grown to love what we Americans call biscuits, and the Brits call scones (they’re somewhat close, anyway). This morning, I thought I could try to feed this love of biscuits and my love of cooking all at the same time. The result? Super tasty homemade biscuits, created with ingredients we happened to have around the house. Of course, other things we had around the house — butter, fruit spread and (in Michael’s case) Cheddar cheese — also added to the breakfast experience.

Now, to the cooking nitty-gritty…
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