Traditional Scottish Food for the Month of June

If you want to get a 'taste' of what we enjoy try the Buttery Shortbread recipe.

Buttery Shortbread

Ingredients:

1 lb (450g) butter
8 oz (225g) castor sugar (superfine sugar)
1 lb (450g) sifted plain flour (all-purpose flour)
8 oz (225g) rice flour
pinch of salt - if using unsalted butter

Directions/Method:
Set oven to 375F - 190C - Gas Mark 5

Cover an ungreased baking sheet (cookie tray) with grease-proof paper (wax paper).

Mix flour and rice flour, then add salt (if you're using unsalted butter), and sift these dry ingredients at least twice, preferably three times.

Cream butter and sugar together with a wooden spoon (be warned - this takes serious 'elbow grease' but produces a better end result!). Add the sifted ingredients and mix together by hand until you have a soft dough.

* The shorter the time it takes to mix the ingredients, and the less 'handling' is involved, the shorter, crumblier and more delicate the texture of the shortbread will be.

DON'T be tempted to 'knead' at the dough, as this will make the it 'tough' - and the finished result won't be what you are hoping for.

Form dough into a ball, and then (depending on what shape you want to make your shortbread)

On a lightly floured surface, press (or use a rolling pin - sparingly!) dough out until it's about 1/2 inch thick, and rectangular in shape and cut into bars that are approx. 3" x 1" (called 'fingers').

Prick the top with a fork.

Small circular Scottish shortbread cookies (known as 'rounds') can be made by cutting shapes from the dough using a round cookie cutter that is about 1 1/2 inches in diameter.

These little cookies can be decorated the same way as the larger circle above.

Of course you can cut the dough into any shape you want, and holiday shortbread santas, bells, snowmen etc. are popular and this Nordic Ware Snowflake Shortbread Pan makes beautifully decorated shortbread to snack on with a hot drink on cold winter days!

Bake for 1 hour in pre-heated 375F oven, then after 20 mins reduce to 350F (180C/Gas Mark 4) and continue to bake until shortbread is pale golden.

Allow to cool in pan, then remove to wire cooling rack. When thoroughly cooled these can be stored in an air-tight cookie tin or container.

THE 12 SUBS OF MACMAS

A '69 Styles of Tartan' E-book by A.B. McKINLEY

This fly-on-the-wall book-u-mentary follows a year in the life of New York City based Playboy/Dom Craig MacMasters, and the women that use his services. Born in Scotland and a former member of the British military, MacMasters, or 'MacMas' as he's known to his friends is an intimidating man. Standing 6ft. 5in. tall and weighing around 240 lbs, the ruggedly handsome dark-haired, blue-eyed Scot is extremely popular with the lonely and submissive ladies of the 'Big Apple'.

In this book, you'll see how his 'service' works, along with some of the information from the questionnaires that his potential 'subs' fill in before they meet him. The detailed descriptions of the actual meetings come mainly from MacMasters himself, although some of the women involved did willingly share information with us about their experiences.

Buy THE 12 SUBS OF MACMAS

The McKinley's Lasses page and the Scott McKinley unofficial fan page will still have things going on, so keep visiting. A generic ringtone was made for $10.00 if interested. I will try tae keep in touch while I'm overseas and email is probably the best way. The job is supposed tae be a mainly surveillance and intelligence type gig, just like the last one was. Let's hope this one stays that way and does nae involve too much excitement. So nae need tae worry, even if yer dinnae hear fae me fer a while. It does nae mean there's anything wrong. I'll be back in the Fall, so until then I hope yer all have a guid summer.