By Erin Robertson

Fickle spring always tricks me with its false sunshine and flighty warmth. March is the worst of it all, and April has thus far started with more trickery than its successor.

As the weather has come up lacking in recent days, I have turned to the kitchen to create my own spring-y dish; although on Saturday, when I decided to do the baking, the sun was out and the birds were just going crazy with song.

I made a quick stop by the very busy first farmer’s market to pick up some rosemary plant for the herbal addition to this recipe, and was pleased with the tasty, albeit unusual, outcome.

A moist, sponge cake with pockets of bright lemon and nibbles of savory herb, this Lemon-Rosemary Olive Oil cake would make a great afternoon tea snack, or a decadent breakfast made complete with a pot of yogurt or a farm-fresh egg on the side.

Lemon Rosemary + Olive Oil Cake

• 3 c. flour
• 1 Tbsp. fresh rosemary
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. baking soda
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 ½ c. sugar
• ½ c. olive oil
• ¾ c. milk
• 1 tsp. lemon zest
• ¼ c. lemon juice
• ¼ c. canola oil

Combine dry ingredients, including finely chopped rosemary. In a separate bowl, pour together olive oil and milk and beat until combined – then add other oil. Stir in lemon juice and zest, and combine dry ingredients with the wet.

Grease cake pan and preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake for about 25 minutes. While cake is baking create icing – needs to be runny for the perfect drizzly consistency.

Icing:

1 c. confectioner’s sugar

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

Whisk together and drizzle over cake before serving.

Organic chicken feed is now available at Ozark Natural Foods.

Erin Robertson

March has always reminded me of Ireland, even before I had ever taken a step on the Emerald Isle. All of the rain, the verdant Arkansas fields, St. Patrick’s Day, and the promise of woodland fairies lurking in the woods compelled me to dream about someday visiting.

This summer I was able to make that dream a reality, and spent five glorious weeks in the land of my ancestors: visiting historic sites, driving through winding roads, between rock walls and herds of sheep, drinking Guinness and soaking up the traditional pub music and, of course, enjoying tea and scones.

The Irish purist would refuse to even classify the frilly pastries we sell in American coffee shops as scones. Dripping with icing, filled with fruit and sugar and – heaven forbid – chocolate chips, these are more of a scone-shaped cookie or muffin top than anything resembling the European tea treat.

Traditional scones, on the other hand, are characterized by their texture: they are light, tender, but with enough substance to hold you over until dinnertime. They are not filled up with sugary bits, but may have a subtle sweetness from a dab of honey or sugar and, most importantly, cream.

The cream is what makes a good scone, my friends. Our American palates are too often overwhelmed with flavor to sense the intricacies of a light pastry such as the traditional scone. These lemon-almond scones are not the most subtle or the most traditional, but strike a nice balance between the bland and the overpowering.

The delicate lemon zest adds fragrance, while the toasted almond chunks and the almond extract lend a silvery warmth to the scone. The cream – Ah, the cream! – gives the scone a texture like liquid velvet and, if you concentrate, the silkiest and most subtle sweetness.

Enjoy these on the next rainy day, curled up with a pot of tea and a window with a view. If the view has sheep, then all the better.

Lemon-Almond Scones

• 2 c. flour (I used 1 c. all-purpose and 1 c. whole wheat pastry flour)
• 1 Tbsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 1/3 c. heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 tsp. almond extract
• juice + zest of one large lemon
• 1/4 c. granulated sugar
• Large handful of toasted, chopped almonds.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients – flours, soda, salt, sugar and zest. In a smaller bowl, whisk the lemon juice and almond extract into the whipping cream. Slowly drizzle the cream into the dry ingredients and stir until combined, and the dough is a shaggy mass. Fold in almonds and, if the dough is particularly dry, add a splash or two more cream. On a floured surface, turn the dough out a few times and knead into a disk the size of a small plate. Cut the disk in half, in quarters, and so on to form the scone shapes.

Stack two baking sheets on top of one another – this keeps the bottoms of the scones from burning while evenly cooking the rest. Place the scone shapes on the baking sheets, and bake from 18-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool and enjoy!

Information provided in this article is compiled from the Arkansas Department of Health’s “Food Establishment Assessment Report”.  Investigators completed the inspections of Fayetteville food establishments between January 1 and January 31, 2011.

Inspectors found critical violations of health standards in the following Fayetteville food establishments:

Jim’s Razorback Pizza, 2584 N. Gregg

January 19, 2011

Critical violations:  Outside food cooler not protected – unlocked, mice droppings and dead bugs in outside cooler chemical spray bottle not labeled.

Acambaro Mexican Restaurant, 2605 N College

January 25, 2011

Critical violations: Sewage on ground side of building, non-approved pesticide must be approved for service and raw meat stored above vegetables.

Braums Ice Cream, 1894 W. 6th

January 25, 2011

Critical violation: No sanitizer in sanitizer wipe down bucket.

J D China, 1740 W Martin Luther King Blvd,

January 25, 2011

Critical violations: No sanitizer in food prep for wipe down, dishwasher not sanitizing, potentially hazardous foods not kept at 41ºF or below and chemical spray bottle not labeled.

The following Fayetteville food establishments were inspected and found to have non-critical violations of health standards:

• January 12, 2011 – Cable Car Pizza, 2630 E. Citizens Suite 7
• January 18, 2011 – Emelia’s Kitchen, 309 W. Dickson
• January 18, 2011 – Stonemill Bread, 2600 N. Gregg
• January 19, 2011 – White Oak, 2584 N. Gregg
• January 25, 2011 -Mourdours, 955 N. Shilo Dr.

Rachel Birdsell, a contributer to the Fayetteville Free Weekly (or TFW), gives a review of Rick’s Iron Skillet in south Fayetteville.