By Amy Story

Viv’s Boss Biscuits

INGREDIENTS

2 sticks butter, melted

1 1/3 c. confectioners’ sugar

3 Tbsp. light brown sugar

3 large egg yolks

1 3/4 c. flour

1/3 tsp. kosher salt

3 Tbsp. lemon extract

Coarse sugar and salt for sprinkling on top

PREPARATION

> Preheat oven to 315 degrees Fahrenheit.

> Combine butter and sugars with an electric mixer. Add in egg yolks and extract.

> Put aside mixer and use a wooden spoon for this next part.

> Add in flour, salt.

> Stir just until combined, not too much. You want the dough to be lumpy.

> Place dough into a greased 8”x8”-square glass baking dish. Wet the hands and pat the dough so it’s even.

> Bake for 45 minutes or until golden brown.

> After taking dough out of the oven, spray the top with a layer of baking spray, and generously sprinkle coarse sugar onto the biscuits, with an extra, very light sprinkling of salt.

> Let it cool completely before cutting down the middle and then apportion biscuits into thinner,
ladyfinger-sized strips. 

Note: Wild River Bill and I became enthralled and intrigued by the English biscuits when we saw a TV character bring them to his boss on a daily basis. We were delighted to see that the character baked them fresh for her each morning, presenting them as a treat and an opportunity to report to her and to connect. In short, we learned from the program that the biscuits were a sign of caring.

When I mentioned my biscuit interest to my sister, Vivian Conner, she had the perfect recipe, which included the all-important lemon extract and the coarse sugar topping. My personal addition was that second pinch of coarse salt. Fewer than twenty-four hours later, the two of us inhaled the first batch. Many batches later, I brought them to a meeting and left with only crumbs at the bottom of my biscuit box. They’re irresistible. Viv and I curse every time we reach for another, then laugh, and eat them anyway.

Old-Fashioned Lemonade

INGREDIENTS

1 c. sugar

1 c. water

1 c. lemon juice

6 c. water

Ice

OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS

1 tsp. vanilla or almond extract

2 Tbsp. edible dried lavender

1/2 c. fresh chopped basil

1 peeled and sliced cucumber

2 c. fresh raspberries

2 Tbsp. chopped mint

5 c. club soda instead of water

PREPARATION

> Bring sugar and one cup water to a boil, stirring to help dissolve the sugar. Let cool for 15 minutes.

> Add this to the other ingredients in a pitcher with ice, stir.

Serve with a sunshiny smile!

Note:  The other day, the sweet kids at the end of our cul-de-sac politely asked if we’d like to purchase a drink from their so-called lemonade stand. It was a perfectly timed ask, as we’d just finished yard work, and we said sure. They delivered the refreshment in plastic cups that had to be returned, but they offered curbside pickup, so, okay. What we actually got was not lemonade but two types of blended sports drink. The combined colors formed an ominous shade and to me the drink was a little bit bitter. “I put some mint in it,” one little girl told me. She added that she loved to mix drinks, and was very good at it.

I couldn’t help but smirk, and even more so when I noticed that the leaf floating in my drink was not mint. I suspected it came from phlox growing in someone’s garden. Well played, I thought. Even more well played when we got the bill: a dollar per customer. The lemonade recipe I offer here is in response to inflation.

If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting us with a SUBSCRIPTION to our print edition, delivered monthly to your doorstep.