Procrasti-baking

Written by Elise Fantin

It’s the week before exams and you know you have a tonne of study to do but you can’t get motivated to start. So what do you turn to keep the guilts away? Procrasti- baking . That’s right procrastinating by baking.

A friend recently informed me I suffer from this condition and I immediately laughed at her. Are you serious and is that even a word? But a quick Google search clarified it was and then it hit me. She was right. No longer is watching an entire DVD series or stalking people on Facebook a sufficient distraction, I must bake things from scratch. I’m not sure why. I’m not even hungry, but I think pounding dough, cracking eggs and violently mixing batters have therapeutic benefits. Plus at the end you can admire your finished product and a sense of achievement overwhelms you. You have actually done something today, besides printing off lecture slides, colour coding folders and revising topics you already know.

But be warned this new form of procrastination does not come without its challenges. During last semester’s exam season, thinking I was Australia’s next Masterchef I was perhaps a little too ambitious. Let’s just say the delicate French dessert I tried to whip up did not end well. Therefore, in times of high stress I recommend sticking to the basics like scones or cupcakes because you don’t need the disappointment of a baking disaster to exacerbate your pre-exam “I’m going to fail” stress.

So the point of this article, if you fall in this trap (procrasti-baking or procrastinating in general) every time exams come around you’re not alone. And if you don’t well… good for you. But maybe after reading this, procrasti-baking might just become your friend because who doesn’t like coming home to freshly baked treats? And if you’re sick of the same old pre-exam routine here is one of my fave procrasti- baking recipes, lemonade scones, that might just get you on the bandwagon.

Ingredients

3 ½ cups self-raising flour

1/3 cup caster sugar

½ cup sultanas (optional)

250ml thickened cream

250ml lemonade

Milk to brush with

Jam to serve with

Preheat oven to 180?c
In a bowl sift the flour and then stir in all other dry ingredients
Make a well in the middle and add all wet ingredients, mix using a wooden spoon
Once well mixed use your hands to bring the dough together and knead lightly
On a lightly floured surface mould dough out so it is 4cm thick
Use a round cookie cutter or glass to press out scones
Place on a tray lined with baking paper leaving a small gap between each one and lightly brush scones with milk
Bake for 20 – 25 minutes or until a lovely golden colour
Serve with jam and cream and enjoy J (makes about 8-10 large scones)

Hot tip: No matter how stressed you are don’t knead the dough too much or you will end up with rocks / paper weights your choice.

Happy revising and in the future I will write an article on how to counteract the weight gain caused by this method of procrastination.