So You're Dating a Brit - Sugary Treats Galore!

Last night, I was dead tired from a long day at work and just couldn't blog. This is a combination of activities and culinary adventures that happened yesterday and today. I may have been too tired to write, but not at all too tired to make scones! Now, the scones were a bit of a cheat and I'm coming clean. I didn't make them from scratch and they were from a mix that was not imported from the UK. The red raspberry scone mix was from Spokane, Washington. Cost Plus just didn't have any other choice of scone mix and I wanted scones to go with my Somerdale Double Devon Cream that was imported from England.

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The scone mix is even a bigger cheat, because all I had to do was add water and form balls of dough on the cookie sheet. It couldn't have been easier.

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They didn't turn out as pretty as when I have had them at local tea parlors, but they did taste yummy. I spread the cream right on it, rather than also adding a jam. The Double Devon Cream was good, but not nearly as good as when I have had it out. I think that might be the difference between a jar and making it fresh?

The best cream that I have ever eaten came from a place in Pasadenawww.rosetreecottage.com. The Rose Tea Cottage has great scones, tea and cream. They also have an entire section of their store dedicated to General Norman Schwarzkopf, whose apparently a big fan of afternoon tea. Weird, but true.

I enjoyed the scones so much, that I ate them for breakfast. As stated on the jar, I put the cream in the fridge. This didn't work out so well. In my sleepy stupor, I didn't notice that the cream had separated and needed to be mixed up again. This morning, I took a scoop of cream from the top and it was rock hard, barely spreadable.

Last night, I watched another episode of Downton Abbey. Speaking of which, here is a photo that 007 Dan took of a road sign near his home.

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Awesome!

And also speaking of Downton Abbey...This afternoon, I went to see The Best Exotic Marigold Hotelthat starred (among other, definitely a major ensemble movie) Maggie Smith and Penelope Wilton. In the movie, Smith's character loves McVitie's  HobNob cookies, which I happened to have in my Cost Plus bag!

Really yummy! I'm not going to delude myself into thinking these are a healthy snack, but they did seem more so than similar American types of cookies. Not at all greasy, HobNobs are kind of oatmealy and really crunchy. I would definitely go out of my way to buy these again. I understand why Smith's character filled her suitcase with them when she moved to India!

Movie Review- The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

I took myself to the early showing of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel this morning and was pretty much the only person under the age of seventy in a packed theater. Most of the other theater goers were on a outing from a nearby retirement home. I eavesdropped on their conversations while have post movie coffee next door, most of them did not seem to be embracing their golden years like the characters in the movie. I heard a group of them talking about hating "the home" and generally being pissed off that their children didn't visit them, not just more often, but never. Admittedly, this put a bit of a damper on the high I was riding exiting the movie.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotelwas nothing short of charming. It's witty and has an amazing ensemble cast. I was laughing the entire way though. It's just a feel good movie and in my opinion, we don't have enough of those. This isn't to say that it lacks depth or shies from serious topics, it has plenty of weight and manages to balance out the humor. It has a great message of embracing change and challenge at every stage in life. I left the theater smiling. There is never such as thing as too much Maggie Smith, love her!