Basic Blueberry Scones

Blueberries are not my favorite berry. In fact, they are one of my least favorite. However, dried blueberries were on sale at my local grocery store the other week, and I grabbed a couple packets, thinking I could use them for some scones. I'm glad I did, for these turned out quite yummy. I don't have pictures of the process, but the directions should suffice.

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp granulated sugar
3 tbsp butter, cut into six pieces
1/2 cup dried blueberries
1 cup heavy whipping cream, plus extra for brushing
Coarse sugar for sprinkling on top


Instructions:

1. Whisk dry ingredients together (flour, cream of tartar, salt, baking soda, granulated sugar).

2. Add butter to the dry ingredients and, using a pastry blender or a fork, work butter into ingredients until it resembles coarse sand.

3. Add dried blueberries and mix.

4. Add 3/4 cup whipping cream and mix. If the dough doesn't come together, continue adding the cream in small amounts until the dough holds together after a kneading or two.

5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured countertop and flatten into a round about 1/2 inch high. Cut into 8 pieces and place on a parchment paper lined sheet.

6. Bake at 450F for approximately 12-15 minutes, or until golden on top.

7. Remove from oven and transfer to a cooling rack. Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Results:
These are a wonderful, basic scone for breakfast or to accompany afternoon tea or coffee.

Mascarpone Cherry Scones

This was one of those days where I wanted to make scones, but I didn't quite have the right ingredients for any recipe. So, I made up my own. I had some Mascarpone cheese in the fridge needing to be used, and an excess of dried cherries.

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
8 oz Mascarpone cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 cup dried cherries
enough water to wet the dough (approximately 1/2 cup)
Coarse sugar for sprinkling on top


Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 450ºF. Whisk dry ingredients together (flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, granulated sugar).

2. Add Mascarpone to the dry ingredients and, using a wooden spoon or a fork, work into ingredients until only small pieces remain.

3. Add the dried cherries and mix.

4. Add water to the dough in small increments (if needed) until the dough holds loosely together after one or two kneadings.

5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured countertop and flatten into a round about 1/2 inch high. Cut into 8 pieces and place on a parchment paper lined sheet.

6. Brush the tops with whipping cream or milk and sprinkle with coarse sugar.

7. Bake at 450ºF for approximately 15-20 minutes, or until lightly golden on top.

8. Remove from oven and transfer to a cooling rack. Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Results:
I sent these into work with my husband, so I tasted the barest corner of a scone to make certain they were edible and I wasn't going to kill someone with them. My tastebuds approved. Since not one scone returned from work, and I heard good things, I figure I can safely assume that these scones were a success. (Either that, or everyone at my husband's workplace has very low standards for scones. But I'll go with the former, since it's more flattering for us both.)

Sweet and Spicy Cornbread Scones

Well, it was one of those days where I needed to clean out the fridge before a trip and what better way to do that than with making up a scone recipe? This is a variation of another cornbread scone recipe that I created which had Crème Fraîche in it.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup corn flour

1/2 cup cornmeal

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup John Cope's Toasted Dried Sweet Corn (Rehydrated)

1 tbsp cumin

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (to taste)

5 tbsp butter
1-1/4 cup milk

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. Mix dry ingredients: flours, salt, baking powder, sugar and spices.

2. Add butter and mix to coarse sand/pebble consistency (a few pea-sized lumps okay).

3. Add toasted sweet corn and mix.

4. Add milk and stir until the dough comes together. If necessary, knead a few times with your hands until it all sticks. 

5. Shape into a round and slice into 8 scones or use a cookie cutter to shape into rounds. Bake at 400ºF until brown around the edges or golden on top.

6. Serve warm.

Results:

These are a solid, basic cornbread scone. They really don't taste like cornbread much at all, which is probably why I didn't mind them. They weren't my favorite scone, but served alongside chili, they are a great complement. If I made them again, I would probably try them as a drop scone so that they'd not be as dry. That would mean increasing the milk used to probably close to 1-1/2 cups, and not forming them into triangles, but simply using a large spoon to scoop them out onto parchment paper and bake. I think if I did that, they would be softer and much less dry.