The Brave Life | Monica Switzer

This is a bit of a unique Try It Out Tuesday post, but I hope you will give it a read, hear my story from this morning and then make one, or both of these delicious scones!
For the heart…

Today I received a phone call completely out of the blue. I don’t know if I have ever really talked to this person before, but we are in the same denominational circle. I guess you could say the power of blogging and social media linked us together. So when I say out of the blue, that’s truly what I mean.

She called basically to encourage me as a mom and hear what I was struggling with since she had picked up that we were having some issues with Caleb screaming a lot.

She didn’t simply offer advice that worked for them, she affirmed me as a daughter of Christ first, then as a mom.

My tiredness was still with me, but my spirit was rejuvenated. God had spoken to someone to encourage me, let me know they were praying and to build me up. The power of her words and the influence of her obedience is indescribable.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 says

So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.

Being the recipient  of a random word of encouragement revealed to me again the power of my words. In my tongue I have the power of life and death.

Which will we choose? Why don’t we each finish off today by trying out what this lady did for me. Be that voice out of the blue in someone’s life, bringing hope and encouragement.

For the home…

I have been loving trying new scone recipes lately. Whether eating them warm with butter or cool and plain, scones are a comfort with tea or coffee.

Perhaps one of these recipes would make the perfect gift for a person you want to encourage?

White Chocolate Raspberry Scones (view original recipe here and see the cute blog I found it on!)

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp. baking powder
• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/3 cup non-fat vanilla yogurt (I used raspberry yogurt since that’s what I had on hand)
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
• 2 cups frozen raspberries
• 1 cup white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix dry ingredients together; add softened butter to dry mix and combine until mixture is the size of small peas. Combine milk, yogurt, egg and vanilla and add to dry ingredients just until moistened. Stir in remaining ingredients, and spoon 1/3 cup of batter onto cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes, or until lightly brown.
Double Chocolate Scones with Cinnamon Butter (see original recipe here)

• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, 1 stick cut into pieces and 1 stick softened
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 large egg
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup confectioners sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a food processor, combine the flour, cocoa powder, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the pieces of butter and pulse until coarse crumbs form. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in the chocolate chips. In a small bowl, mix the egg with the buttermilk until just combined. Add to the dry ingredients and stir until the dough just comes together. Divide the dough into 2 equal parts and place on the prepared baking sheet. With lightly floured hands, shape each piece into a flat, round cake about 6 inches in diameter. Using a sharp, straight-edged knife, cut each round into 6 equal wedges, leaving them in place. Sprinkle the tops with the granulated sugar and bake until firm in the center when lightly touched, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool slightly before breaking into wedges.

In a small bowl, using a hand mixer or a fork, beat the softened butter with the confectioners sugar, vanilla and cinnamon until light and fluffy. Serve with the warm scones.

I forgot to take a picture of my scones, so I used the one off the website. My double chocolate scones looked a little different because I just dropped them on a baking sheet individually instead of forming them into a cake and cutting it.

May you be blessed by blessing someone else today!