While I was in Miami for the holidays I bought a copy of the on sale. I’ve already made the lemon bars with success so now it’s just a matter of cooking my way through the book.
I decided to tackle the scones. Oddly enough I NEVER eat scones. Usually if I want a breakfast pastry I gravitate towards a croissant or a danish (or a doughnut… shhhh… I’m Canadian!). Generally I tend to think that it’s pretty easy to find a bad scone but hard to find one that is amazing. The best scone I’ve ever had was at the Windsor Arms during high tea. It was soft, pillowly and delicious.
When I came upon Tartine’s scone recipe my mind immediately went back to my Windsor Arms scones. When I went shopping for ingredients I realized that I wasn’t too familiar with dried currants. At first I was a bit apprehensive because I have serious “no raisins” policy but I decided to forge ahead because currants are not raisins. Lo and behold I think I LOVE currants. They are so small and so sweet and have a bit of a crunch to them. I suppose you could substitute other berries/fruit for the currants with success.
The scones were pretty easy to throw together. I got to use my stand mixer which of course made my day. The recipe makes 12 but I halved it to make 6. Keep in mind that each scone is HUGE. The triangles could easily be cut in half to make a more comfortable serving size (for me at least). Sadly, I burned the bottoms of the scones a bit so they weren’t as delicious as they could have been. The non-burnt parts were pretty great. The texture was really light and almost flaky like a biscuit. I don’t find myself saying this often, but the scones could have been a touch sweeter.
I would definitely plan to consume the scones right out of the oven or at least on the same day that they were made. Even the following morning the scones were on the hard side. These are a great addition to a brunch table.
Tartine’s Buttermilk Scones
makes 12 large scones
4 3/4 cups of flour
3/4 cup of dried currants
1 tablespoon of baking powder
3/4 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 cup of sugar
1 1/4 teaspoon of salt
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon of cold, unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups of buttermilk
1 teaspoon of grated lemon zest
For the topping:
3 tablespoons of melted butter
sugar, for dustin
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment.
2. Soak the currants in hot water for about 10 minutes or until they are plumped. Drain the currants.
3. Sift together the flour, baking soda and baking powder into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the salt and sugar and mix slowly to combine.
4. Cut the butter into small cubes and distribute them on top of the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl. Pulse the mixer to combine, without breaking down the butter too much (you should see pea-sized pieces of butter).
5. Add the buttermilk, lemon zest and currants, and mix over low speed until the dough just comes together (you may need to add a bit more buttermilk).
6. Dust a large cutting board with flour and place the dough onto it, shaping it into a long rectangle (about 5 inches wide and 1 1/2 inches thick).
7. Brush the dough with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar. Cut the dough into 12 even-sized triangles and transfer them to your baking sheet.
8. Bake the scones for approximately 25 to 35 minutes (until the tops are lightly browned). Serve warm, with jam, clotted cream, butter, or just plain.
(Recipe from the )
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Yum! These are beautiful and I haven’t made scones in quite some time, I think I have to put it on my too make this for the week.
[…] can't beat a good, pillowy scone. [What's On My […]
I used to get a lemon currant scone every morning from a bakery around the corner when I lived in Arizona. It was AMAZING! Could you add lemon juice or something in addition to the lemon zest?
Thanks!