Today we had friends from home visit (!!) and I made scones. So I’m popping in on this fine Saturday to share the recipe. Also, I just really wanted to post these photos because, see that serving board? My brother made that for me for Christmas! Isn’t it gorgeous? I love it.
I had so much fun arranging a bunch of mini scones on it and setting it out next to the coffee cups and little plates and forks.
These scones are our very favorite. We make them for breakfast, we make them for a snack, we make them for dessert. We make them with chocolate mostly, and we make them plain sometimes. We make them regular-sized and we make them mini. The recipe comes from America’s Test Kitchen via a dear friend, so of course they’re practically perfect.
cream scones
recipe adapted from america’s test kitchen
[ makes 8 large or 16 mini scones ]
for the scones:
2 cups (9 ounces) organic all-purpose flour
⅓ cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon sea salt
6 tablespoons (3 ounces) cold butter, cut into cubes
1 cup (5 ½ ounces) chocolate, coarsely chopped
¾ cup heavy cream
2 large egg yolks
for the egg wash:
1 large egg
1 tablespoon milk or cream
for finishing:
Raw sugar
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Combine the heavy cream and the egg yolks in a glass measuring cup or small bowl and set in the refrigerator.
Mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl or in the bowl of a food processor. Add the butter and cut in with a pastry blender, or pulse until the largest chunks remaining are a little smaller than peas. Add the chocolate, if using, and toss or pulse to combine.
Add the cream/egg yolk mixture all at once and stir with a fork or pulse until a dough is formed and the dry ingredients are incorporated into the wet.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and pat into a 1-inch thick round. Cut into 8 equal pieces with a sharp knife. Place the scones in the freezer while you whisk together the egg and milk for an egg wash in a small bowl. Clean a few dishes and give the scones a handful of minutes to get cold in the freezer.
Arrange the scones on the baking sheet and brush with the egg wash. Sprinkle raw sugar over all the scones and bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until the edges turn golden brown (a toothpick inserted in the center of a scone will come out clean).
Remove to a cooling rack and serve warm (cooled for about 10-15 minutes) or cool.
Variation: Make these mini, like in the photos! Just divide the dough into two pieces before patting it out into a round. Cut each half into 8 pieces, and you’ll end up with 16 mini scones. Bake them for 10-12 minutes.