Sage & lemon chocolate shots

    Hyderabad is sensing an chilly climate of late.  And, due to ramzan fasting, one could find lots of mirchi bhajji & samosa stalls in evening.  I tasted few and they were awesome :) an real treat with respect to weather, isn't it?  Yet, chilly treats need not be savoury everytime, afterall, what are hot chocolate drinks for?   :)

And this time, hot chocolate shots,  is infused with sage and lemon rind for an additional herbal treat.  Sage added the pungent-ness and stood as an bittersome company with dark chocolate.  Lemon rind, beautifully attributed to flavour, and I must say that this holy combination left me completely speechless.

It is quite an surprise, as my daughter loved it, I was taken back, because though these shots were rich & creamy , their nil-sweet component would make her to resist them.  Fortunately, she liked the bitterness and rich chocolate flavour and gulped down the shots.  :)  Personally, I feel that this is an better way to introduce herbal content in her diet.  So, guys ready for shots?  :)

Cheddar and sage scones

       Scones are quick-bread, usually leavened by Baking powder.  They are tea-time snacks, and had preferably with butter/cream and sometimes with Flavoured jam too.  As part of this month's Baking Partners challenge, Archana has suggested these scones.  Cheddar and sage scones, were highly aromatic, crumbly-cake like textured with an cheesy twist.  Topped with butter, these scones can be an absolute kid-pleaser and an hearty tea-time treat.

They were super-quick with an handy ingredients.  Once baked, they filled up my entire home with an strong aroma.  All this magical credit goes to sage, which imparted an light pungentness, when paired up with mustard.  Sage is better known to many, as, 'Karpooravalli' an medical plant at South India.  Since my childhood, these raw leaves were suggested to us, for an excellant cure of cold, cough etc.  Not only in scones/muffins, these scones can impart in various dishes like chicken, lamb, turkey etc.  Since, I didn't have fresh leaves, I went on to use dried sage.  All thanks to Archana and Swathi for introducing this exotic herbed scones to us.

For those, who would love to have spicier, don't hesitate to add an heavy pinch of chilly flakes.  

Next time, I am opting for those...  These scones, can be stored in an air-tight container over an week.