Fresh Cherry Scones

Baking scones is always more enjoyable when there's someone to share them with. And, it helps when I get a taste-tester who enjoys partaking in the results of a new scone recipe. Every filled scone recipe I have made prior to this one has turned out soupy and disappointing. But, finally, I managed to get one to work! After adjusting the Berry Scone recipe from the Test Kitchen's Baking cookbook, I ended up with the following recipe--which held together to produce beautiful, light, airy scones with fresh cherries.






The Ingredients:

5 tbsp unsalted butter, chilled and cut into chunks
1 1/2 cups pitted and halved cherries
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups all purpose flour
scant 1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda


The Instructions:


1. Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Whisk the milk and sour cream together in a large measuring cup. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda together in a medium bowl.


2. Add the chilled butter, using your fingers or a pastry blender until the mixture looks like coarse sand.


3. Fold in the milk mixture until the dough just comes together, but is still a little floury. (You may have extra of the milk mixture.)


4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured countertop and knead 6 to 8 times until the dough holds together.


5. Flatten the dough into a square. Fold the bottom 1/3 of the dough up, and then fold the top 1/3 down over the bottom to make an "envelope". Then fold the dough in half lengthwise and place on a plate (see following pictures). Chill in the freezer for five minutes.

Fresh Cherries, pitted and halved

6. Remove the dough from the freezer and place on a lightly floured counter. Using a rolling pin, flatten the dough into a 12-inch square. You can cover with parchment paper before rolling to avoid having the pin stick.


7. Take the cherries and spread over the top of the dough evenly, pressing in gently. Fold up the lower 1/3 of the dough and then fold down the top 1/3 of the dough. Pinch the seams together, dabbing with water if necessary to smooth the seam.


8. Place the log seam side down and flatten into a long rectangle using your palms, approximately 12 inches by 4 inches. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into eighths. 


9. On a parchment-lined baking sheet, spread the scones so that they do not touch. (Optional) Brush the tops with milk or melted butter and sprinkle with coarse sugar.


10. Bake at 425ºF about 18-25 minutes, or until golden, rotating halfway through. Remove and let cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes.

The Process:

Prepare ingredients:
Whole milk, Fresh Cherries,
Sour Cream, Sugar, Unsalted Butter,
Salt, Baking Powder & Soda

Dough before being turned out. It should still be rather floury and unkneaded.

Knead a few times and flatten into a 12-inch square, fold up the bottom, then fold down the top.

Fold in half lengthwise.

Covered with parchment paper and rolled out.

Evenly placed cherries before folding.

Tri-folded with the seam pinched shut.

Dough flattened into a log.

Use a sharp knife to slice the dough log into eighths.

Evenly space the scones on the parchment paper to bake. Can be baked as above.

Or brush with a light layer of milk (or melted butter) and sprinkle with coarse sugar.

Baked until golden, 18-25 minutes.

Results:

I think the picture almost speaks for itself, doesn't it?

But since I've taken the time to write this blog, I'll elaborate. It's light, airy, rich without being dense, and made with fresh cherries. How can it get any better? 


These are definitely best fresh or just cooled. Since they're made with fresh fruit, it's best to refrigerate them after baking, but that can make them go stale quicker. 


If you only want a few scones, you could make a couple and freeze the rest for up to one month. If you freeze them, bake them at the same temperature (425ºF) but increase the time by approximately 5-10 minutes. Since every oven is different, keep an eye on them and bake until golden (it's even more important to keep a close eye on them if baking frozen, as I've found baking time varies widely).