-By James Mellgren

"No matter how old you are, you need to eat your oatmeal…" advises Dana Jacobi in her book, 12 Best Foods Cookbook (Rodale, 2005). As one of the highly touted "super foods," that is food that contains high amounts of antioxidants and other phytonutrients, oats (Avena sativa) are as good for you as they are good to eat. The earliest cultivation of oats seems to have been around 1000 B.C. in Central Europe, although they were considered poor cousins to more favorable grains for many years until their importance to the diets of Wales and Scotland prompted Dr. Johnson's famous dictionary definition of oats as "a grain which in England is given to horses, but in Scotland supports the people." Time and modern dietary knowledge, however, have vindicated the Scottish people as far as their regard for oats as a delicious and satisfying food.

The Good Stuff
Among oats' more exalted attributes is their ability to lower one's blood cholesterol, news of which originally sent people scurrying to eat their daily oat muffin. In addition to protein and high fiber content, they are also loaded with thiamine; minerals like selenium, magnesium, potassium and zinc; and a bunch of phytonutrients. There is also evidence, according to Jacobi, that eating oats reduces insulin resistance and helps stabilize blood sugar. Eating whole grains, we are told, is part of an overall healthful diet, and fortunately, oats are very easy to eat in whole form. The most common form of oats is rolled oats, or old-fashioned oats, in which the whole oats (called groats) are rolled into flat flakes between big steel rollers. This is essentially the same process used to make cornflakes. The thinner the flake, the faster it will cook, hence quick-cooking oats are very thin, and instant oats are extremely thin and usually pre-cooked. Irish and Scottish oatmeal are cut into pieces and are called steel-cut oats. In our house, we prefer organic oats to avoid genetically modified versions, and when adorned with maple syrup, walnuts, a bit of cream, it is a most civilized and nourishing breakfast.

But while oatmeal is without doubt our most common form of consuming oats, with oat muffins probably a close second, there is another delicious way of feeling your oats. I first fell in love with scones while traveling through Heathrow airport sometime in the mid-1980s. Oh sure, I'd had them before that, the crumbly, sawdust-filled variety one gets in any deli in Manhattan, or the doorstops one finds in coffee shops around the country, but I never saw the appeal in them. At the airport in London, however, they actually had freshly made scones available that came on a small tray with clotted cream and a pot of strawberry jam. We thought, how bad could they be? Turns out they were fabulous. We couldn't believe how good they were and I've loved them ever since, although it would be a good long while before I had another as good as those airport foodservice scones.

You Say "Skoan," I Say "Skon"
Scones are most closely associated with Scotland, where oats are highly regarded and greatly consumed in breads and porridges. It is supposed that the name, attributed to Scottish origin, derives from the Dutch word schoonbrot, meaning "fine bread," but the name for these small cakes made from flour, oats and sometimes barley is used all over the United Kingdom. It was put to me once that our pronunciation, "skoan," is incorrect, and that in the UK, they are called "skon." Since I'd heard them called "skoans" many times by Brits, I assumed this bit of etymology was bogus. Then I learned that both pronunciations are used -- "skon" in Scotland and in the north of England, and "skoan" in the lower regions of England (I don't know what they call them in Wales. Perhaps they don't care for them there). However one chooses to call them, the name represents a variety of styles, both sweet and savory, and they are consumed all over Britain and increasingly in America. Savory scones can be filled with cheese, herbs, ham or just about anything else. To sweet scones are often added dried fruits like raisins and currants, but are best topped with either butter or clotted cream, and jam, preferably one made from ripe, organic fruit in small batches by the hand of an artisan. In olden days, they would have been cooked on a griddle atop the stove, but most scones today are baked in the oven and should, I might add, be eaten as soon after they are done as possible.

Of course, not all scones are made with oats, and indeed, wheat flour is almost indispensable in getting the cakes to rise. In our house, however, scones always include oats, which bring to the scones a pleasant, well, oatiness. Over the years, my wife has perfected her recipe for scones to the point where the surest way to fill the house with people is to mention that she is making them. I like a little warning so I have time to procure some good Devon, or clotted, cream, a luscious topping made by slowly cooking fresh cream until it reduces to a thick, creamy consistency, and once infused with wild cultures, takes on a tangy flavor that marries perfectly with sweet jam. All that is needed is a piping hot pot of tea to complete this most civilized breakfast or teatime treat, and you can take comfort in the fact that they are a very healthy treat as well.

Sydney's Oatmeal Scones
The only utensils Sydney uses in this recipe are her two hands. It requires a quick rinse-off after mixing in the buttermilk, but it's the only way to make the scones so light. Handle the dough only until it comes together and holds a shape. If you can't find whole-wheat pastry flour (King Arthur makes a great one), substitute all-purpose flour instead. But don't leave out the oats. These are divine with Devon or clotted cream and jam. Although these are best right after they are made, they actually hold up rather well, and have also been known to be consumed as a midnight snack.

Makes 12 scones

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup ground oats
1/4 cup sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
6 tablespoons unsweetened butter, cut into ½-inch pieces
1 cup whole rolled oats
1/2 cup currants (optional)
11/4 cups buttermilk, plus extra for brushing on the scones

Preheat the oven to 375º F. Sift together the flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a mixing bowl. Mix in the ground oats and sugar. Add the butter and blend until it resembles coarse meal. Mix in the whole oats and currants. Make a well in the flour mixture and add the buttermilk. Bring the dough together gently, turn it out onto a floured pastry board, and form into two one-inch thick discs. Cut each disc into six wedges and place them on a lightly buttered baking sheet. Brush with buttermilk and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with Devon cream and jam.


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