Social Media Etiquette
This week has been hectic. Aside from working in town every
day, writing, and trying to keep my house tidy with three kids and a husband
home all week (in anticipation of visitors this weekend) I felt like something
was about to give. Not wanting to neglect my Farmer’s Wife Facebook page, I
threw together a quick ‘scone recipe’ post to keep things ticking over until I
could come back and spend real time on the page. I’m sure many of you will have
seen it.
I checked in on it the next morning to realise it had gone a
little ‘viral’. (For those not in the know, ‘viral’ is what happens when
suddenly every man and his dog is interested in whatever you have put online).
Apparently the whole world was hungry and wanted scones last week.
I didn’t realise at the time, that with great audience
engagement comes great responsibility. I had people throwing their questions at
me left, right and centre in the hope that I am some Western Queensland Martha
Stewart who might be able to resolve a multitude of scone related concerns.
“Hi Farmer’s Wife, could you substitute the cream for quark
or fat free fromage frais?”
“Just wondering if my son is anaphylactic to dairy, could I
use anything other than cream?”
“What is self-raising flour called in America?”
“Could you please translate the recipe into Dutch?”
There were literally thousands of requests, many of which I
was unable to answer personally. Instead, I have compiled a list of ways that
you can be useful when responding to a recipe doing the social media rounds.
1.
Take it or leave it. If you like the recipe and
can use it then that’s great. However if you have allergies, don’t like one of
the ingredients or aren’t an experimenter in the kitchen, then back away from
the recipe and please leave quietly. I was called the worst names under the sun
on this post. The internet can be a cruel and nasty place at times, so try to
be nice.
2.
Use Google before you ask anything. Google can
tell you pretty much anything you need to know. If that fails, feel free to ask,
but be aware that unless you tag the writer in the post, it may get caught up
and lost amongst thousands of other comments. Read through all the questions
before you ask in case someone else has already asked. If you do have to ask a
random ‘help’ question, there is every conceivable chance that someone on that
page will have the answer, even if Google doesn’t. In my case, if Google can’t
help then I probably can’t either… however…
3.
If you are commenting in a positive way, eg: ‘I
like to add a cup of sultanas to my scone mixture’ or ‘My mother used to make
these but she used to add a pinch of baking soda’ etc. that’s wonderful. And
sometimes a big help. Because while I don’t know what ‘quark’ is (I could
Google it!) someone else may be able to help. Which leads me to…
4.
Feel free to answer any questions you see other
people post, especially if you know you can help. It’s a big help to me, and
that’s what makes the internet wonderful; other people sharing and caring.
5.
Be kind. Enough said.
On the whole, the ‘scone recipe’
was the best thing to happen to my page. Most people have been supportive and
positive. I have so many new visitors there as well. Also, thanks to everyone
who has stopped by to say hello. I am so incredibly grateful.
If you want to see the scone
recipe for yourself, you can find me on Facebook.
THE EDITED VERSION OF MY NEVER FAIL SCONES (and by never fail, I mean, depending on where you're from, what ingredients you use, how heavy handed you are or how hot your oven is - they STILL may fail scones). Also these are called Biscuits in the USA.
Note: Originally intended for Australian audiences, these have taken the world by storm. And after reading through thousands upon thousands of comments, here is the amended version.
INGREDIENTS
4 cups self raising flour. Also known as all purpose flour in some parts, as long as you add a dash of baking soda per cup. No need to sift, but do it if it makes you happy. I have no idea if it works with gluten free flour, or you can substitute flour with chia seeds or whatever else you want to substitute it with. Also, some people have said 3 cups. And aside from telling you that a cup =250ml I can't really help you. So do what pleases you. Beyond that I really can't help you.
300ml of thickened cream. Again, in some parts of the world this is single cream. A simple google search told me that. I have no idea if it's exactly the same as thickened cream though. Also, I have posted a 600ml bottle in the picture. I measured out 300ml. I'm clever like that. Other people don't use cream. They use milk and butter - the traditional way - and have no troubles, unlike me. I don't know what you would substitute it for if you were allergic to dairy. And I don't know what quark is sorry, but I'm sure fromage frais would be fine. Maybe.
1 can lemonade. In Australia a can is 375ml. Again, I measured it out of a bigger bottle (that's all I had at home). To be honest, I probably used closer to 300ml, but it really doesn't matter. In the USA, lemonade is more like 7UP. It's a fizzy drink. I think the fizz helps keep it airy and light, but as I'm a home cook and not a food technologist, I can't be certain. Some people use coca cola, creaming soda or soda water. Add whatever you like. I just showed you what I use.
You can also add sultanas, dates or anything else. Play with the recipe, and read through the comments to see if anyone else has some good suggestions.
METHOD
Preheat oven to a moderate temp. I set my fan forced gas oven to 180 degrees c. Not sure what that is in America.
1. Place flour into a bowl and make a well.
2. Add cream and lemonade to the well. Mix until combined. Don't mix too much as a heavy hand will make your scones rock hard. Don't knead. The less handling the better. Just look at it and will it to mix if you can. That hasn't worked out for me yet though.
3. Press dough out with your hands. If it's too sticky, add a little more flour. Keep it thick enough that it's about the height of a scone cutter. If you don't have a scone cutter, a champagne glass is fine. Or cut into squares.
4. Place into a baking tray. Place close but not too close to other scones. Perhaps the sides on the tray will help it rise higher. I don't know. Get a food brush and dip it in milk and brush the tops of the scones. This helps it brown nicely. Other people use eggs, so do what makes you happy.
5. Bake in an oven that is already hot (apparently this is super important) until slightly browned on top. It could be between 10-30 minutes. Apparently.
6. When you remove from oven you could rub some butter over the top for extra shine, but they are yummiest warm.
Also... I have no idea how this became a post on Baloney or Devon. I won't be translating it to Dutch (google translate can do that). This is a recipe I use. Take it or leave it. Play with it at home. Do what you want to do. This is just one way to do it.
Finally serve with whatever pleases you. Apparently there are variations on traditional serving options. I like mine with jam then cream. But since no one has ever been arrested for doing it the other way around, knock your socks off!
Some of you will love this. Others (even though your mother recommended it) still won't like it. That's okay. It's really not for everyone.
ENJOY! (Or don't, whatever).
