Bake up Herbal Breads for the Smell of Home

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Turn dough onto floured pastry marble or board; knead gently with a few turns, until it just comes together. Roll dough out into a circular shape, about 3/4-inch thick. Brush top of dough with remaining maple syrup. Cut dough into 8 or 12 wedges with sharp knife or pizza cutter and place on ungreased baking sheet.

Bake scones for 18 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to baking rack to cool slightly before serving. The scones are best served warm and right after baking. If you want to prepare them in advance, cool them completely and store them in an airtight container. Wrap them in foil and gently reheat at 325° for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Marion’s Steamed Bread

Makes one Bundt-sized cake

Marion Spear is a woman I met while giving a presentation in the Arkansas Ozarks. We became great friends, and I admire her for her down-home cooking. She cooks year-round on an old-fashioned wood stove, and she often makes bread by steaming it in a big pan on top. This is an age-old way of cooking bread without an oven, and Marion has perfected the process and come up with many variations over the years. Once the bread is a few days old, it works well for toast. Marion also will slice and dry the bread in a warm oven, then crumble it and eat it with milk, like cereal. Traditionally, this bread often was baked in cans, but a ring mold works well.

The basic recipe is below. You can add other chopped nuts like walnuts or almonds. Often raisins are added, but if you prefer, try dried cherries or other dried finely chopped fruits such as dates, prunes, apples, pears or apricots. When using dried fruits, dust lightly with flour to keep them from sinking to the bottom. Experiment with different herbs; this version uses thyme, but lemon thyme, cinnamon basil and marjoram all work very well. To make a savory loaf, try sage with onions. To clabber the milk, add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar to it and stir.

1 cup unbleached flour or 1/2 cup unbleached flour with 1/2 cup bran
1 cup rye flour
1 cup cornmeal
3 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sorghum molasses
About 2 cups clabbered milk
1 tablespoon fresh minced thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
1/2 cup currants dusted with flour
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Bring water to boil and pour into pan or kettle large enough to hold ring mold or coffee cans. Use enough water to fill pan halfway. Oil inside of ring mold or coffee cans.

In bowl, combine flours, cornmeal, baking soda and salt, and stir. In another bowl, combine molasses and clabbered milk and stir to combine. Pour liquid ingredients into dry, along with thyme, and blend together. Stir in currants and nuts just to mix them in. Pour batter into oiled pan.

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