Javed Miandad ,Scottish Scones and Milaai

Isn't life great when you get good news in the morning?  I woke up today to find in the Dawn online newspaper that the PCB has asked Javed Miandad to be the Pakistan Cricket Team's batting and fielding consultant, ie: coach.  I certainly hope he accepts when he gets back from the Asian Games.  As things stand right now, the batting improved tremendously in the past month with the guidance of Younis Khan and Misbah ul-Haq ( I really like that guy), so can you imagine how awesome our lovely lads are going to be in New Zealand if Javed Miandad accepts the position? 

Great batsman, great mustache!

For those of you who don't know, Javed Miandad was one of the best batsmen Pakistan has produced.  I think we're going to be seeing some extraordinary cricket from the BESTEST TEAM IN THE WORLD!!! GO PAKISTAN!

And here's a quick Ashes update:  Australia's at 220/5 at the end of the second day, which got called early due to rain.   Michael Hussey's got 81 so far, and he's lookin' good.  As they're saying on cricinfo, so far this test is a close competition; both sides are going to have to fight as hard as they can.  Today's Saturday, so I'll be able to watch and if anything juicy happens, I'll let you know right away. 

And now for the cooking bit.  We're going to make Scottish Scones...and before you give me any flack about this being scottish food, I have something to tell you.
 

Sean Connery, great Scotsman, great mustache.

 I am French Canadian, but I'm half Scottish.  That's right.  My mum was born and raised in the Scottish Highlands, so I grew up eating and making delicious scones.   So do not panic, I'm an expert at this. 

Furthermore, we are making scones because they go so well with pakistani milaai, that beautiful, heavy, rich flavourful cream that you can only get in Pakistan.  Scones with milaai and jam are a match made in heaven, and are lovely to eat at afternoon tea with a good cup of dhudhpatti (milk tea).

North Americans also make something they call "scones" but they are a much drier version and are more like baking soda biscuits.  These are excellent straight out of the oven, but must be eaten immediately.  They go hard after they get cold.  So that is why we will make proper Scottish scones.  They are rich, and you can store them for a couple of days without any loss of flavour or texture.  So go get ready, and let's get all Scottish!

Scottish Scones
Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons white sugar

1/4 cup butter (use that lovely butter which comes from Punjab, if available!)
2 eggs
1/3 cup milk (skim milk can be used, but full-fat milk will make a richer scone)

topping: 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Pre-heat the oven to 450F or 235 C.
Stir the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together in a big bowl.
Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or two knives until the flour/butter mixture looks like coarse cornmeal.
Beat the two eggs in a separate container until they are light, and set aside a little bit to brush over the tops of the scones.
Stir the milk into the eggs.
Add the liquid slowly to the dry ingredients and stir it until the dough comes freely from the side of the bowl.
On a floured surface, pat down the dough to a 3/4 inch thickness or thicker, and cut into squares or triangles.
Brush over the tops with the beaten egg you put aside earlier.
Sprinkle a bit of sugar on top.
Bake on a greased cookie sheet or pan for 12 to 15 minutes.

If you want raisin scones, add a 1/2 cup of kishmish with the dry ingredients, and increase the sugar to 3 tablespoons.

If you want cheese scones, increase salt to 1 teaspoon, decrease sugar to 1 tablespoon, and cut in 1/2  cup of cheddar or other hard cheese with the butter.

To serve, cut the scones in half,  put on a spoonful of milaai and a spoonful of your favourite jam.  Eat straight away, and you'll be in food heaven!

Right.  So if everything goes well, I'll be in New Zealand in person to see how Javed Miandad is doing as a batting consultant.  I'll bring some scones to eat during the breaks, and I hope you'll be doing the same at home.   Have a good one today!
Pakistan Zindabad!  Scotland Zindabad! 

Happy eating, and Happy Cricket!