I've talked about this mix before but this time I'm making it with almond milk. After debating with myself, I don't think I will add cider vinegar to the almond milk -- we're not making buttermilk, we would just make a mess, I fear.

I'm chopping up the dried cranberries, to have more sweet/sourness spread evenly, and a bit of added moisture. Working hard to get every bit of butter coated into a micro-ball of flour and fat goodness.

And here's a good place for a public service announcement.

Cooking is an art. Baking is a science.

So -- now is NOT the time to change brands of butter, or use less or more butter, because where it might not make a difference, it also might make a big difference. Baking is very finicky. Don't play games unless you can screw up and shrug it off, and feed the leftovers to growing children who will eat anything. The season has enough stress without adding extra.

I'll report back on the scones later. (I plan to eat mine before the party, and work it off today.) Want to launch them, get sheets on the table for my one client, and back to copy editing Jen Stevenson's fun romantic comedy IT'S RAINING MEN.

CODA: I did go with almond milk (I toyed briefly with the idea of light coconut milk) with tangerine zest and dried cranberries. They turned out smashing. A British guest to the party loved them. His only comment was that they were a tad crumblier than usual, and was surprised when I said they were not wheat.

It occurs to me that I've tried a bunch of these products, although not as many as a lot of you, because these products all contain potato starch.

And I really try to lean macrobiotic in all my purchases. Plus, the Lyme arthritis thing. Nightshades and arthritis are NOT friends.

[So -- I've had a white potato once in the past six years. Mashed, at a classy restaurant, with cheese, and it was awesome -- perfectly cooked, a master's hand had touched it. It was at the Blu Moon in Ludington, Michigan. The chef there in late July-early August had a lovely touch with veggies. I was able to eat safely and with some flair, and for gluten-free that's always a struggle in a touristy area. They had not one but two awesome GF desserts, a pot au chocolate and a slightly warm creme brulee that sang. Overpriced, but my experiences were good, properly cooked food. The non-GF offerings included some nicely priced dishes like meatloaf, BBQ ribs with their own sauce, etc. My companion tried the BBQ ribs (they were already out of the meatloaf -- on a weeknight!) and said they were excellent.

But their web site is a terrible FAIL, with moving parts. Considering that the restaurant decor is modified loft with black and white photos, interesting and even attractive, the website is frightening. But then I'm a Jakob Nielsen acolyte; I hate cutesy web sites So that link is to Urban Spoon. You can find the restaurant from there.

But the food? I loved the food. I'll go back next year, if they survive the winter.]
( On to the Mix Review )
And now, some fiction before I start chopping up veggies and making soup. I am trusting that winter is coming, and a creamy butternut soup and a miso, carrot and daikon soup for the freezer are just the ticket! I'm going to try Pacific's vegetable broth if I need stock (it has tomatoes, but an occasional tomato or pepper doesn't cause the reaction of a potato or cigarette smoke.) I'd still like a flavorful, GF nightshade-free stock, though. Anybody know of one?