Thursday, October 19, 2006


Scones
As Classic European Breads draws to a close, we are dropping in on diverse cultures and cuisines. This morning we make a brief stop in Great Britain and dip our bakers’ hands into the preparation of scones. The recipe is remarkably easy. A little baking powder, flour, butter, milk and egg mixed by hand, and you’re on your way to a proper afternoon tea. I sprinkle my mixture that resembles pie dough with cranberries and nutmeg in honor of the cool autumn days. My teammates are showing bursts of creativity, mixing in lemon zest, ginger and candied citron.

Chef K gives us a nifty tip – once you’ve pulled the shaggy dough together, shape it into a long, rectangular log. Then, you can cut neat triangular wedges from the log, or even freeze the log for several days and just pull it from the fridge and slice and bake to serve hot scones to guests. The key is you must serve them hot, as scones can quickly become stale.

We pull them from the oven just before lunch. My lofty, buttery scones are warm and crumbly and dotted with bright crimson, tart-tasting sweet cranberries.

© 2006 T.W. Barritt All Rights Reserved

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