Onion and Feta Scone Schooling

I have to admit that if all financial and other obstacles were removed from my educational goals, I would love to earn a certificate from the culinary arts professional baking program at VIU.  My interest in the science of cooking comes quite naturally to me, and as I stated in my original blog entry, I have won several awards for my baking.  Perhaps this education would only fuel my unrealistic fantasy of having a commercial-grade kitchen--complete with Hobart appliances--in my own home, but for now I will have to settle for a little bit of imagination now and then.  Perhaps this imagination is why I like to sample the wares of the current baking students and decide what I would do if I were in their chef whites.  Take, for example, the onion and feta scone that I ate a few weeks ago.

After having a few moments of discussion with my classmates over the differences between a tea biscuit and a scone, and what is the most efficient shape of a tea biscuit or scone (this is where an education in pastry would have come in handy), I finally was able to bite into the flaky creation.  The texture was layered perfectly and neither under-baked nor over-baked.  As for the flavour, I was certain that I had purchased an onion and feta scone, so why did I not taste either?  A few more bites eventually revealed a mild taste of onion.  As for the feta, I only had one bite of the whole scone that contained a small piece of what appeared to be grated feta.  I am sorry to say that the flavour was disappointing. 

As stated above, I like to sample the wares of the current baking students and mentally tweak the recipes.  If I were to revamp this recipe I would add some onion powder to the dry ingredients, just to give it that extra flavour without adding the moisture or acid that one would get from fresh onion.  Additionally, I would use more feta and I would make it cubed so that there are larger pieces to bring out the briny flavour that should be complementing the onion.  Of course, this is my own recipe tweak. As for the one at VIU, we shouldn’t expect that to change, since it is common knowledge that institutional chefs don’t like to alter their recipes.  It’s still a well-made scone, but I can’t recommend it due to its understated flavors.

Speaking of the professional baking program, I would like to mention that if any readers of this blog are interested in encouraging the professional baking students to further their education, feel free to donate a few dollars to their Paris trip.  Yes, the baking students hope to go to France and learn more about chocolate and pastries.  Can you blame them?  I even asked one of them about the instructive part of the itinerary for this trip, and it was worth it just to see her smile from ear-to-ear as she spoke about what she hoped to learn in France.  I have to agree that this is a fabulous opportunity for them.  After all, what is more educational to a baking student than discovering how a real French pastry chef makes a real croissant?  

Sadly, I will not be joining the baking students in France, but at least I will still have my fantasy of someday owning commercial grade kitchen appliances in my home.  On that note, I would like to remind the baking instructors that there is a superfluous industrial sheeter resting in the lower cafeteria that would look even more beautiful if it had a tag on it with my name and a big red bow…

How Will We Ever Get Off This Island Now? Cranberry Coconut Squares

Sadly, Russell Johnson, better known as The Professor, passed away this week. While he may not have been a professor at VIU—or a professor anywhere for that matter—he was loved by many for his vast knowledge of anything scientific, and what he could create with coconuts.

For those of you who still do not know who The Professor is and what he has to do with coconuts, allow me to travel back in time to 1964 when the TV show Gilligan's Island first aired.  The plot was formed around seven characters, one of whom was The Professor (played by Russell Johnson), who took a three-hour cruise and wound up permanently shipwrecked on an uncharted isle.  No, this was not a story of how some people took the BC Ferries Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay sailing and found out that they couldn't get back to the mainland, but rather this was a comedy (OK, so maybe there are a lot of similarities). While The Professor and the other castaways had their extended vacation on Gilligan's Island, the characters discovered that they could do almost anything with coconuts: Sweet and innocent Mary-Anne could make a coconut cream pie like nobody's business, and The Professor could make a radio that was powered by coconuts.  For some odd reason, however, they were incapable of repairing their boat with coconuts.  Nevertheless the characters on the SS Minnow managed to survive and they still live in syndication to this very day. Fortunately for us at VIU, the bakery students are also helping us to survive with their coconut creations, and in honor of the belated professor I tested a coconut cranberry square this week.

I had a craving for something sweet after lunch and decided to try a coconut cranberry square.  Mary-Anne and The Professor would have been pleased with the one that I tried.  The sweet coconut flakes on top contrasted wonderfully with the sour bite of the cranberries that had embedded themselves perfectly into the treat, just like the SS Minnow did on the beach of that uncharted isle. This flavour made me wish that I could join the castaways on Gilligan's Isle just so I would have an excuse to sample a little bit more coconut with them.

I definitely recommend the coconut cranberry squares at VIU, especially when they are freshly made.  Why freshly made? Alas, like most squares, the crust becomes soggy after a few hours in plastic wrap.  Perhaps The Professor could have invented something to prevent that…