July 8, 2020

Blueberry Scones

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Blueberry Scones

July 8: National Blueberry Day

Our love for scones is reflected in our blog, as we have a separate section just for the many scones recipes under our Theme Menus. We even got our Hawaii expatriate friends Pat and Phyllis S. into scones. They love them just as much as we do now. We used to just buy the scone mixes at the store but they are better made “from scratch”, especially if it is blueberry scones. The mix contains the dried fruit but nothing can beat the fresh fruit in these scones that literally burst with flavor!

When we visit and stay with Pat and Phyllis in San Antonio, Texas, they serve scones for snacks or breakfast. Our favorite was their blueberry scones—so much so that Phyllis had to bake another batch! Because we don’t get to see them as often as we’d like, they gave us blueberry scones to eat on the long drive back to the Gulf Coast. And they also gave us the recipe so we can make them at home and share with our blog readers on National Blueberry Day and throughout July—National Blueberry Month.

Recipe

(From Phyllis S.)

Ingredients

  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/3 – ½ cup sugar, granulated white
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • zest from one orange
  • ½ cup salted butter, cold and cut into small pieces
  • 1 egg
  • ½+ cup heavy whipping cream, cold (reserve about 1-2 tablespoons for brushing on top)
  • 1 cup blueberries, fresh
  • coarse/turbinado sugar (optional topping)

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and orange zest.

Cut in the cold butter pieces. Mix until it resembles coarse crumbs. Beat in the eggs and cream until a sticky dough is formed.

Transfer the dough onto a clean, floured surface. Fold in the blueberries. Shape into a round disc about 1-inch thick. Cut into 8 wedges and separate them. Place onto a lightly greased baking sheet. Brush a little bit of the remaining cream on top.

Sprinkle with coarse/turbinado sugar (optional). Bake in a preheated oven at 400 degrees F for around 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven. Serve warm.

Notes

  • Substitute the citrus and use lemon instead of orange zest.
  • If the dough is too dry, add a little bit of cream. If the dough is too wet, add a little bit of flour.
  • Avoid overmixing the dough or the scones will get too hard.
  • Search our blog for more scones and blueberry recipes.

 

May 30, 2020

Sundried Tomato, Basil and Feta Cheese Scones

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Sundried Tomato, Basil

and Feta Cheese Scones

May 30: National Scone Day

Most of the scones recipes we feature on our blog have been sweet ones. But we are slowly adding more savory scones recipes on our list, such as this one with sundried tomatoes, fresh chopped basil, crumbled feta cheese and black olives (optional). They look like tender American biscuits with a subtle Italian flavor—a testimony to the international impact of the humble Scottish scone! For National Scone Day, mix up something savory—make tomato, basil and feta cheese scones.

Recipe

(Adapted from RecipeLand)

Ingredients

  • 1½ cups flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • pinch of black pepper
  • ¼ cup very cold unsalted butter, chopped into small pieces
  • ½ cup + 2 tablespoons buttermilk
  • ¼ cup sundried tomatoes, drained of oil and chopped finely
  • ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
  • ½ cup feta cheese, crumbled
  • ¼ cup black pitted olives, drained and chopped (optional)

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt and pepper.

Cut in the butter and mix until the flour resembles large peas. Stir in the buttermilk and gently mix until the dough is moistened. Avoid overmixing the dough or the scones will be hard instead of tender. Add the chopped sundried tomatoes.

Stir in the basil leaves and feta cheese. Mix well until the dough comes together. Add a little buttermilk if it is too dry; add a little flour if it is too wet.

Turn out the dough on a clean, floured surface. Roll out to 1-inch thickness. Cut into 2-inch rounds (or triangle shapes). Place on greased baking sheet lined with foil. Brush tops with a little buttermilk. Bake in a preheated oven at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until browned on top. Remove from the oven. Serve warm with butter. Yield: Approximately 9 scones.

Notes

  • Islander is not fond of olives so she omitted them in this recipe. But Highlander likes them so she adds them to these savory scones on occasion.
  • Search our blog for more scones (both sweet and savory) recipes.
 

December 18, 2019

Honey Scones

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Honey Scones

December 18: National “I Love Honey” Day

Our wedding anniversary this year happened to coincide with our Scottish clan society’s annual general meeting at which Islander had to present a major project (updating a 35- year-old publication). Although it was a working weekend for us, the appreciative event organizers tried to make our anniversary as memorable as possible. We got a blessing at the clan tent at the highland games in North Carolina (see Notes); the simple ceremony concluded with us drinking a wee dram of whisky from a quaich. At the banquet, Highlander wore his new kilt and Islander wore a tartan ribbon sash and, as advised by our chieftain’s wife, Lady G., a silk floral head wreath using the clan plant (bay laurel leaves), Scottish thistle and white heather (as shown in the photo above). Lady G. said thistles and heather grow all over Scotland but white heather is rare and special and symbolizes good luck in love and marriage.

We have incorporated Scottish heather honey in a scone recipe for National “I Love Honey” Day. Considered the “Rolls Royce” of honey, it made these honey scones the most fragrant out of the oven! But it cost nearly $12USD for a 4-ounce jar of Scottish heather honey. We have tried a few other honey (including organic Hawaiian honey and local Texas honey) for this recipe and they all work wonderfully well. But we wanted to use our prized heather honey for a special Scottish scone to remember our anniversary celebration and celebrate National “I Love Honey” Day.

Recipe

Adapted from “The Honey Book” by Lucille Recht Penner

Ingredients

  • 1 cup flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 3 tablespoons butter, cold
  • 1 egg
  • 3 tablespoons honey (we used Scottish heather honey)
  • ½ cup golden raisins
  • milk

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in the butter and mix until coarse and crumbly. In a mixing cup, blend the egg with honey. Stir it into the flour mixture.

Fold in the raisins. Make the dough into a disc and place onto a clean, well floured surface. Roll to ½ inch thickness. Cut into two-inch rounds. Place on a greased baking sheet at least an inch apart.

Brush milk on top. Bake in a preheated oven at 425 degrees F for 10-12 minutes or until the tops are browned. Remove from oven and cool slightly. Serve warm with butter, clotted cream or jam.

Notes

  • North Carolina also has some good quality honey. There are many vendors selling them on the roadside. We especially love honey barbecue sauce on pork ribs!
  • Search our blog for other scones recipes.

 

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