Boiling water without burning it

I've recently been rediscovering what a great recipe scones are. (However, they don't keep very well, and are far better fresh, so when I'm on my own I usually only make a half-recipe.) The recipe below is very flexible; practically every ingredient can be substituted with something else, although some of the substitutions affect taste. I'll give the basic recipe, and then substitutions and variations. I almost always make the drop scones variant, because it's easy and I'm lazy; I also usually put in dried fruit as mentioned in the fruit scones variant. (For a really simple version of this recipe, stripped down to the bare minimum, see this post in cookability.)

Basic recipe

Ingredients
Dry ingredients:
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Other ingredients
2 to 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 tablespoons sugar
2/3 cup milk

Instructions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees fahrenheit (approximately 215-220 degrees Celsius).

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Cut or rub butter or margarine into dry ingredients. Add sugar. Add milk, mixing quickly to form a soft dough.

Pat or roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to about 1/2 inch to 1 inch thickness (or as desired). Either cut into 12 squares or 2-3 inch rounds.

Place scones on a baking sheet and bake towards top of a 425 degree preheated oven for 10 minutes or until risen and golden brown.

Serving suggestions
Serve warm or cold, plain or with butter only, or butter and jam or honey, or with jam and a touch of unsweetened whipped cream.

Substitutions
Flour: can be part or all whole wheat. (Last time I tried all whole wheat, they needed to bake a bit longer than 10 minutes.)

Baking soda and cream of tartar: can be replaced with 1 tablespoon baking powder, to make baking powder biscuits.

Butter/margarine: can be replaced with olive oil. This affects the taste and is probably best in savoury versions of the recipe than sweet ones, but in my experience it works with both.

Sugar: can be omitted, for less sweet scones - good for serving with savoury things, like soup or cheese.

Milk: can be replaced with water. I almost always do this, and I don't think it affects the taste noticeably.

Other variations
Drop scones: Increase liquid to 1 cup and use spoons to drop like cookies onto a baking sheet.

Fruit scones: Add 1/3 cup (50 g. / 2 oz.) dried fruit before adding milk/water.

Herb scones: Omit sugar. Use olive oil instead of butter/margarine. Add some dried herbs before adding liquid. (I think I've used about 1/2 teaspoon each of oregano and thyme, but I'm not certain of quantities, and I'm sure there are other herb combinations that work.)

I keep encountering people who don't know how to make rice without a rice cooker. I grew up making rice in a pot, and have done it for many years, although I currently use a rice cooker that my roommate contributed to the household. I thought I'd post instructions for how to make rice in a pot, in case they're useful to anyone. It's really pretty easy. Here's a recipe for 1 cup of white rice (dry); it can be doubled or tripled or more if you need to make lots.

Put in pot:
1 cup white rice
2 cups water
1/2 t. salt (optional)

Don't put the lid on. Turn on high and bring to a boil.
When it boils, turn the heat down to low and put the lid on. (You might need to wait a minute or so before you can put the lid on without it trying to boil over.)
Set a timer for 20 minutes and leave it alone. Don't lift the lid.
When the timer rings, it should be done.

To make brown rice, cook for 40 minutes rather than 20 minutes. The amount of water may need to be adjusted slightly; I don't make brown rice as much as white rice so I can't give precise instructions.