1.8.12

Rosemary Biscuits with Plum Compote


This past weekend I bought my backpack for my trip. It could probably hold all three of my fat cats plus a pair of shoes. I mean, that's all I'll really need in Europe, right?

I have the itinerary for this year basically planned, but I left some wiggle room for spontaneity's sake. Here's how it will go:

September-November: 3 month internship in London
Paris in December
January- all over Spain
February- Morocco (to get outside of Europe for a bit)
In March: Italy, visiting the several friends I have studying abroad there
and April and May will consist of traveling to Cyprus for a bit, then back to the UK area until I fly out of London in late May.

Gah.

Can you even believe this is real? I can't.


It will be nice to begin by settling in a place where everyone still speaks English. Whenever I picture people in London, I picture them eating biscuits and jam during tea time- yes I realize it's probably a silly stereotype, but the more I thought about biscuits and jam the more I felt the burning need to make some of my own. 

These biscuits are amazingly flakey, especially for vegan biscuits, and the sweet & savory thing that happens with the rosemary and plums is truly delicious. 


Rosemary Biscuits with Plum Compote

Biscuits (adapted form Holy Cow! Vegan Recipes):

1 cup almond or soy milk
1 tsp white vinegar
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp crushed dried rosemary
1 tbsp sugar
5 tbsp cold vegan margarine

Compote:

3-4 plums, cored and sliced
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

1. Make the compote by mixing together all of the ingredients in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and then turn the heat down low and continue to cook until the plums are very mushy and the compote begins to thicken. Remove from heat and store in the fridge until use.
2. To make the biscuits, combine the milk and vinegar in a measuring cup and let sit for a few minutes or until it curdles. Meanwhile, mix together all of the remaining ingredients except for the margarine in a large bowl. 
3. Add the margarine by cutting it into the dry ingredients with a fork until it becomes coarse and crumbly. Quickly stir in the milk and form the dough into a ball. Wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 15-20 minutes.
4. Preheat your oven to 450ยบ and line a 9x13" pan with parchment paper. Place the dough in the pan and press it into a large rectangle, not quite touching the sides of the pan. Cut it into 12 pieces and slightly separate them, so that once they are baked they can be easily pulled apart. 
5. Bake for about 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Let the biscuits cool, then pull apart and serve with plum compote and a cup of tea. Pinkies up!


18 comments:

  1. Rosemary biscuits, so creative! Have a wonderful time in Europe, I will look forward to hearing about your eating adventures.

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    1. Thanks, Sarina! I can't wait!

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  2. Yum! I love both rosemary and plums, so this has to be a winning combination for me. Biscuits are so comforting.

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    1. Mm yes they are. Perfect comfort food!

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  3. Those biscuits look so good, especially with that generous amount of compote over the top. Now I wish I had some plums around. I love baking with rosemary too.
    And the plans for your Europe trip sound wonderful!

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    1. Thank you, Bonnie! Baking with rosemary always makes the whole house smell amazing.

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  4. Your itinerary is incredible!!! A month in Morocco--how crazy-different will that be?!

    Loving the biscuits too--never thought to make rosemary ones :)

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    1. Thanks Jes! And yeah, Morocco will definitely be an experience. I think I'm going to be doing a volunteer program with kids there!

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  5. That trip sounds amazing--you're going to have the time of your life, clearly! I also love the idea of savory rosemary with plums--hooray!

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  6. Great program...really!!
    at the end of august I leave Italy to stay 6 months in France ( Lille, to be precise )...I'll study there for 1 semester...I'm so excited and scared!!!
    Have a wonderful year Ruby ^^

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    1. Thanks, valina! That sounds like a lot of fun- it'll be great to get to know France for a whole semester! I'm feeling the same way about my trip- excited and extremely scared!

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  7. Oh, Ruby! I am so excited for you! I spent 8 months in Europe, traveling around, and it was the best thing ever. You are going to have so much fun and so many great adventures- I can't wait to hear about them!

    P.S. These biscuits are pretty killer!

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    1. Aaw thanks, Kristy! It's so great to hear that other people have done what I'm doing and loved it :)

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  8. Anonymous2.8.12

    I live in London and we call them scones here! Not biscuits! (biscuits are cookies here, just to be confusing). These look amazing though.... Can I give you some recommendations for Vegan places in London? Manna restaurant in Primrose Hill is a high-end Vegan place, but also does nice brunch! Mildred's in Soho is such a laid back hipster place, really good burgers! There's a huge Whole Foods at Piccadilly Circus if you need to pick up vegan snacks and groceries. 222 in West Kensington is nice. And Ms. Cupcake makes great vegan cupcakes and cookies, it's located in Brixton. There's also a great chain of shops called Vital Ingredient that do takeaway salads and beans, etc. Everything I listed has its own website. Don't forget to visit Edinburgh while you're here, it's so amazing and they have great vegan places there too. Sarah Xx

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    1. Thank you soooo much, Sarah! You have no idea how helpful that is going to be. I've been worried about trying to find vegan food wherever I go and now it sounds like London won't be too difficult!

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  9. That compote looks delicious! Great job.

    http://honeynectarblog.blogspot.com/

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