With Starbucks introducing their famed pumpkin spice lattes this week, which I have happily sipped down, I found myself missing something with my Fall treat: their pumpkin scone.  I went to three (yes, three, and no, I’m not ashamed to admit I’ve been to Starbucks three times in 8 days) and could NOT find a pumpkin scone.

The new looking Starbucks “La Boulange” pumpkin scone pic source – Starbucks

…but there it was, front and center on the menu! All three times I had asked, I was met with a similar response: “we are currently out.” Finally, on the third try, I thought this was too much of a coincidence and I mentioned something to the barista. With shifty eyes, she looked around and finally whispered, “they have been recalled”.

the “old looking” pumpkin scone pic source -Starbucks

Recalled.  There ya have it! I KNEW something was up… because why else would a company put something front and center and then not have any product in the store? After switching to a new looking scone and likely a new recipe based on the pictures in their ads, I guess something went awry.  This scone was likely produced by their (in)famous collaboration with La Boulange Bakery.

Alas, now I must sip my pumpkin spice latte with my cereal at home.  Or, since I have been craving the scone, I will try to bake my own copycat recipe.  And hey, it will likely taste better than a new recipe produced by the Boulange bakery, if their old vs new cranberry orange scone is any indication. (Old cranberry scone = much better!).  You can spot differences in the pictures above.

I found a few recipes for copycat Starbucks pumpkin scones. I’ve rounded them up below. Likely one will hit the spot!

Copycat Pumpkin Scone Recipe #1 

Copycat Pumpkin Scone recipe #2

Copycat Pumpkin Scone Recipe #3

An internet search as of 9/7/14 only brought up one anonymous person mentioning that there were pieces of glass or plastic in the scones and that was the reason they’ve been recalled.  I don’t know whether to believe it or not, but what I do know is that Starbucks is being silent on the manner as no official press releases are out.  I would have assumed they are recalled due to the scones causing turkey squirts or something of the like.

Either way, I will be trying one of these yummy looking copycat recipes (which are also likely healthier) to go with my morning #PSL.

And I may just have to start making my own pumpkin spice lattes like I did last year.  Check out my recipe for DIY copycat pumpkin spice lattes. 

***UPDATE*** 9/14/14
Still no official word from Starbucks.  Several people have reported here and on another message board that there has been glass/plastic as I noted previously before.  Someone else noted that when they received the scones in their store and reheated them, they were super soggy and all of the frosting melted off.  I find it hard to believe that all batches of these scones had plastic or glass in them… maybe a few, but all of them??  Usually when foods are mass produced they go through an xray to look for metal/glass but plastic would be missed on xray. While some batches of scones may have some glass or plastic in them, I think more likely when the scones were reheated they were soggy and gross.  A poor recipe would affect every single scone in the country… while a few pieces of glass or plastic would only affect a few batches.  If it were really glass or plastic, then they should have thrown those out by now and have distributed new scones…. but they haven’t.  Which makes me think it’s also a recipe problem.  My 2 cents.  Also, can’t believe I’m the only blogger that has written about this!  We wants ze scones!

These opinions are my own. Recipes and their respective pictures are from the sources in the links.
Search terms:
#PSL
Pumpkin scone recall by Starbucks
Copycat Starbucks pumpkin scone recipe
copycat Starbucks pumpkin spice latte recipe

Written at http://peoniesandorangeblossoms.blogspot.com

I’m sure now that Summer is almost over, you’ve had time to reflect over what you WISH you had built in your backyard. Yeah, me too!

On my recent trip to the Northwest, I had the opportunity to visit some home shows and look at the newest and greatest trends in housing design.  

What I really had my eye on was the outdoor kitchens and entertaining spaces!  I thought I’d share them with you. (I apologize for the picture quality, these were taken with my cellphone!)

I liked this whole covered area along with the fireplace and the overhead fan.  Great for warmer Summer nights and cooler Fall nights!   

This next house had a nana door that opened up to a large covered area.  In the picture below, this was the grill and food prep area.

…which then if you turned around from the grill you were facing this seating area with a fire place and tv.  You can see on the right the big open wall which can be enclosed with the nana door.  The ceiling had ceiling fans which help keep the flies away!

Another house had this pizza oven.  Love it!  

What I liked about this next house below is the outdoor brick fireplace.  You don’t see brick fireplaces too frequently nowadays, so I’m kind of hoping it may make a comeback.  The area was also enclosed and had overhead heaters behind the seating area.

Okay, so this next picture isn’t an outdoor kitchen OR an entertaining space, but it was just too cute not to include!  How cute is this garden? Love the raised flowerbeds, hanging flower baskets on the gate, and the fence to keep pests away.

Another variation of an outdoor kitchen. Fireplace is natural gas.  This covered outdoor area actually had skylights so it felt more outdoorsy then just sitting outside with a roof over your head!

Onto our next house… it had a large covered outdoor area.  One wall had a chain-link curtain to keep bugs away.  It was really nice and large.

Now, if you turned left you would see this pass-through from the kitchen with a bar.  I would’ve moved the chairs and made it a buffet area.

This is looking in the other direction.  A nice fireplace with a cough.  you can see the chain link curtain still.

The next house had this built-in dining area… but what’s cool about it is the firepit right in the middle of the table! Perfect for those chilly nights!!  I thought of roasting marshmallow’s over it… but then thought of the mess I’d make trying to clean melted marshmallow off those glass beads!

This last house had a covered kitchen/entertaining area between their garage and house.  What was interesting about this area was this sliding barn-type door that you could slide in front of the grill, refridgerator, and prep area and lock up!  Great if you are storing things you don’t want to get stolen!  

Touring these homes certainly gave me ideas for my dream outdoor kitchen/entertaining area.  What did you wish you had outside this Summer?

What did you like?  

http://peoniesandorangeblossoms.blogspot.com

Linking up with these fabulous link parties: The Scoop!,  Metamorphosis Monday’s, Inspire Me Tuesday,Wow us Wednesdays! What’s it Wednesdays, Creative Ways, Treasure Hunt Thursday, Home Sweet Home , Feathered Nest Fridays,G’day Saturdays,

You’re invited to… My 1st Blogiversary party! 

Party invite from papernosh.com

Now, Put on your party mask…

image source

And wear a fancy dress..

from the movie Marie Antoinette

So we can dine outside in a tent…

image source

In front of a pretty building…

the Petit Trianon

And perhaps dine on a few French fine desserts…

these are from my wedding! seriously!

And maybe eat a few macarons too…

Okay, and maybe these cute little bit size cupcakes…

cupcake toppers source

 Enjoy some pretty decorations…

little cake topper source

Go for a little stroll…

Marie Antoinette’s Hamlet

Versailles

Then call it a night and take home a few party favors…

Laduree

I started writing this blog as a form of stress-relief.  I can’t believe it’s already been 1 year!  I would like to give a big THANK YOU to all of my readers! I really appreciate all of the comments you all leave me! I have long followed many blogs but had been internet-shy – hardly leaving a comment anywhere.  So, in honor of my blogivesary, stop lurking today and please leave a comment! Otherwise, you may continue to lurk… I know you’re there!

I have always wanted to throw a Marie Antoinette themed party but have never been able to!  So I had a little fun today and pretended I were throwing one!  Maybe for my big 3-0 birthday next year?

For my blog’s present, I would choose… an official Versailles candle! Yes, you can buy a candle that smells like *the* l’orangerie!  Here’s the link!  How nice would it be to blog and smell of orange blossoms? Quite nice, I daresay.

cake image source

Now if you’re not already aware, don’t forget to follow me on other social media apps:
Visit Angelina’s profile on Pinterest.

Linking up with these fabulous link parties: The Scoop!,  Inspire Me Tuesday,Wow us Wednesdays! What’s it Wednesdays,, Home Sweet Home , Feathered Nest Fridays, G’day Saturdays,
Written at http://peoniesandorangeblossoms.blogspot.com/

Have you ever heard of a Zoku slushie maker?  I hadn’t either… until one day I found one at Williams-Sonoma!  I was hesitant about the product, but decided to get two and play with them at home.

Zoku slush and shake maker

the verdict: I love it!

So, how does it work?

You take the inner cup and put in the freezer. It needs about 8 hours to cool down.

When you are ready to make a slushie, take it out!

Now what? Start to make your smoothe in the blender as usual. But do not add the ice!  Blend the ingredients, then pour them into the slushie cold part.  Now you wait.  Let it start to freeze, then you use the little spoon and scrape down the sides of the cup.  What happens is that the smoothies freeze, but you don’t have to add any ice to it!  It takes about 5 minutes to have everything frozen to slush consistency!

What you end up with is a much richer tasting smoothing. No ice melt to dilute it down!

best root beer float ever

I’ve used it to make:

• Copycat Dole Whip pineapple smoothies recipe is here
• root beer floats (the BEST root beer float I’ve ever had!)
• iced lattes (fantastic, no ice to water down your coffee!)
• all sorts of fruit smoothies
• frozen yogurt
• frozen lemonade
• frozen orange crush vanilla floats

orange crush vanilla ice cream shake

I’ve read some of the reviews about it.  Here are some negative things that people say:

• “The size is too small” – to which I say, you probably shouldn’t really be eating more than 8 ounces of ice cream anyway, so it’s excellent portion control.
• “It takes too long to freeze” – to which I say, keep it in the freezer at all times. Then it’s always ready for use.
• “This thing is pointless. You have to use a blender anyway, so why not just blend the smoothie per usual?”- to which I say, this makes more concentrated smoothies… no need for ice to water things down! The smoothies are also smoother. No ice crystals. 

Copycat Dolewhip pineapple smoothies

Now, do I NEED this product? No. But now that I have it… I absolutely love using it.  Maybe you would too.

You can purchase it at Williams-Sonoma.

Note: I did not receive any compensation in anyway for this product review. I did it all on my own.