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 <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/marcia-s/370264712/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/165/370264712_8dabfeca94_m.jpg" alt=""/></a>
</div>Yesterday I violated my "I don't bake" rule yet again. I had such a craving for scones that I felt I must make a batch. What made me think scones were within my ability? Merely the fact that some girls at a nearby coffee shop bake them fresh there. Only the scones they make aren't what I expect from scones&mdash;they are far too fluffy and soft. The scones I made yesterday were more to my liking&mdash;closer to shortbread, perfect for dipping in coffee or tea (and probably harder than they ought to be). It was fairly easy work, this scone production. I used <a href="http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/233130" target="_blank">this recipe</a>. 

Since yesterday was an anglophile day, I dipped my scones in tea. And in keeping with the English theme, I made shepherds pie for dinner. Shepherds pie can be a contentious dish at my house, as I tend to prefer a vegetarian version while J. wants meat. I don't think I've ever included meat, but I also have never hit upon quite the right seasoning for the (lentil-based) veggie filling. For yesterday's pie, I bought a single lamb chop which I cut from the bone and sliced into small pieces. Then I cooked it with my usual vegetable filling, using about half the amount of lentils that I have in the past. What really pushed this pie over the top, though, was the blend of spices (lifted in part from a Madhur Jaffrey recipe for chickpeas): ground coriander, cumin, cayenne pepper, garam masala and Madras curry powder (plus the obligatory salt and pepper). I put about a half teaspoon of each of those in a prep bowl (with the exception of the garam masala and curry powder, which got a teaspoon each) and tossed some in when everything had cooked for a while. It looked like this:<br><center> <img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/136/370286063_3dd04902b4.jpg"></center><br>I ended up only using about half the spice mixture. I wish you could photograph (aromagraph?) a smell&mdash;the aroma was heavenly. The flavor ended up being almost exactly what I was going for. My downfall in preparing shepherds pie is that I always seem to over do the potatoes, getting the proportion of potatoes to filling almost exactly opposite what it should be. Fortunately, I like mashed potatoes. A lot. The shepherds pie was judged tasty by all present (both of us).
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