Tuesday, July 12, 2011

English scones at teatime

My best friend is getting married in a couple weeks, and I had the honor of throwing her a bridal shower last week! She wanted an English tea party, so of course, I practiced my scone recipe for weeks beforehand to make sure they turned out perfect for her shower. Here's the best recipe I've found so far for scones:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt
6 tablespoons of cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces.

Mix these ingredients together until you have the consistency of cornmeal. Next stir in:

1/2 cup of dried currants, cranberries or blueberries (I used frozen blueberries)
1 large egg
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon grated orange zest (optional)

Mix with spatula until ingredients are moistened. Gather into a ball and knead against bowl until sides of bowl are clean. Transfer to floured surface and pat dough into an 8-inch round and 3/4 inch thick. Cut into 12 wedges and place on baking sheet. Brush tops with cream and sprinkle with sugar. Place into preheated 425 degree oven and bake until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool on rack and enjoy warm!