Free An Unexpected Cookbook: The Unofficial Book of Hobbit Cookery by Chris-Rachael Oseland Page A

helping the pieces stick in place.
     
    Bake your plum heavies at 350F / 180C for 15-18 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and crunchy. They’ll turn into a tough mess if refrigerated, so store them in a closed container (like a cookie jar) at room temperature for up to a week.



Hot Buttered Scones
    Forget those crunchy triangles you find at Starbucks. The Victorian scones of Tolkien's day were far more like southern style American biscuits.
     
    Like American biscuits, these are best served fresh, hot, and buttered. Unlike their modern counterparts, they’re served at teatime, around 4 p.m., with clotted cream or home made raspberry jam instead of at breakfast, smothered in gravy.
     
    The creamy interior bears little resemblance to the brick-like pastries masquerading under their name in coffee shops. You can throw together a batch in about half an hour. Try some for yourself and see if you don’t prefer your scones Shire-style.
     
    2 ½ c / 500 g flour
    1 tsp baking powder
    1 tsp cream of tartar
    1/2 tsp sea salt
    2 ½ tbsp sugar
    ¼ c / 60 g cold butter
    1 c / 250 ml whole milk
     
    Whisk together the flour, baking powder, cream of tartar, sugar, and salt. Once they’re well mixed, add the butter. Use your fingers to work it into the flour in order to create crumbly edible gravel. The colder the butter, the better your scones.
     
    Once the butter and flour are deliciously crumbly, moisten them up with the milk. Mix the dough until everything is barely combined, then lightly knead the dough a handful of times. You don’t want to overwork it.
     
    Spread some flour on a clean work surface. While you’re at it, dust your hands. Use them to press the dough so it’s about 2 inches / 5 cm thick. Use a round or fluted round cookie cutter to punch out discs of tasty goodness. You usually see them about 3 inches / 7.5 cm across, but you can use whatever size cutters you own.
     
    Arrange the scones 2 inches / 5 cm apart on a well greased baking sheet. Don’t be shy about the butter. This isn’t health food.
     
    While you’re at it, melt a little extra butter and paint it on top of your scones. Now that the scones are sitting on a buttery surface and topped with buttery goodness, let them rest for about 5 minutes before baking.
     
    Bake at 425F / 220C for 15-20 minutes, or until the tops are a delicious golden brown.
     
    These are best served piping hot, straight from the oven, with a dab of clotted cream or fresh raspberry jam.
     
    If you decide to take some along on an adventure, remember they won’t last more than a day without going horribly stale. Make sure to slather the exterior in butter before toasting day old scones for a light breakfast.



Shortbread
    It’s hard to believe something so delicious only has four ingredients. The key to this simple recipe is to embrace your inner love of butter. If you use enough natural dairy goodness, the shortbreads will practically leap off the pan instead of clinging to it like a desperate lover. Save yourself some heartbreak by being generous with the fat.
     
    1 c / 225 g butter
    2 c / 260 g flour
    ½ c /100 g sugar
    ½ tsp salt
     
    Cream your butter and sugar together until they’re completely smooth.
     
    Shortbread is excellent on its own, but if you want to add in some extra flavoring agents, now is the time. Lavender and rosemary are perfectly Shire-appropriate additions. At most, add ½ tbsp of either.
     
    Once you’ve stirred any extra flavors into your buttery goodness, whisk your salt into your flour. Dump the salty flour into your butter mixture. Keep mixing until the flour is completely integrated into the butter. The best method is to give up on the spoon and just reach in there with your hands. Once you have a nice, uniform dough, knead it a few times for good measure.
     
    If you’ve added any flavoring agents, form the dough into a log, wrap it in plastic, and let it sit in the fridge for a couple of hours so the flavors can mingle. If