TOP PICK OF THE WEEK: Mason Dixie Biscuits, Scones & Sweet Rolls
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We were grumpy because there was no decent bakery in our neighborhood. Then fate intervened and brought us… Premium biscuits, scones and sweet rolls from Mason Dixie Foods. The line, which is sold frozen, is simply wonderful. No bakery could do a better job. Quality and freshness are key to good baked goods, and freezine helps to keep them that way. “That’s why our bakers handpick the freshest, natural pantry ingredients and why we freeze our products, locking in all the goodness without any additives or preservatives,” says Mason Dixie The line, which is sold frozen, is simply wonderful.No bakery could do a better job. “We’re about good, clean baking: for the people, by the people. Because when we eat good, we feel good. When we feel good, we live good. And when we live good, it’s all good.” “So go ahead!” she says. “Butter that biscuit, crack into that scone, and lick those sticky bun fingers clean!” Thank you Ayeshah: We will! The products add something special to breakfast, lunch and dinner. They’re terrific for a coffee or tea break. And they also make one heck of a brunch or tea party. We loved everything we tried; and damn the carbs. We’ll be a frequent customer. (Online orders have free shipping!) “What makes a perfect biscuit?” asks Mason Dixie. “Ice-cold butter, fresh buttermilk, clean, simple ingredients, and a lot of practice!” If you’ve made biscuits from scratch, you know the challenge of getting that perfect texture. “Ours took years to perfect, multiple broken machines, and lots of visits back to the drawing board. We went out of our way to unravel mass manufacturing processes to make our biscuits the right way,” notes Ayeshah. “They even have the bumps, the nooks and crannies and bumps,” she continues. Imperfections make for biscuit perfection. The biscuits are as close to handmade as you can buy (photos #1, #2 and #3). We’re a biscuit-aholic, and now that we’ve tasted Mason-Dixie’s, we’ll never again be without an assortment in the freezer. The tough part is decided among: Scones are some of the hardest pastries* to make. They can be moist and crumbly, or they can be unpleasantly dry. Mason Dixie got them just right (photo #4), using the biscuit dough and the best fruits, chocolates, and spices. Even the Queen would be proud, says Mason Dixie. Have them all: The sweet rolls started out as a post-lunch treat for the staff, made by the team from biscuit dough scraps. They were so popular that they became a new product line (photo #5). The fillings and icings are made with only the simplest, cleanest ingredients—unlike those chemically-enhanced “rolls” you get at the mall, says Mason Dixie. Like the other Mason Dixie products, they contain no oils, no stabilizers, no artificial enhancements, only the real stuff . How can you resist: Or shop online: There’s free shipping! *Scones are classified as small pastries or quick breads. The originals were baked on a griddle. A quick bread is any bread leavened with a chemical leavening agent, rather than a natural one like yeast or sourdough starter. Quick breads include many cakes, brownies and some cookies, as well as banana bread, beer bread, biscuits, cornbread, muffins, pancakes, scones and soda bread. |
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The main difference between a pastry and a cake is that a cake has a bread-like consistency (called the crumb in both breads and cakes). A scone is not a biscuit. A biscuit should have a soft, light, flaky crumb (interior). A scone does not flake—it crumbles—and is slightly dryer than a biscuit. It should not be dried out, disintegrating into crumbs when a piece is broken off. In the U.K., the correct pronunciation of scone is skon, to rhyme with gone; not the American pronunciation skone, that rhymes with bone.
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