Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Scone Math


Roughly, a biscuit plus sugar equals a scone.  Or, I guess you could say that scones are muffins minus eggs.  Scones have a sweet flavor foundation, butter always prominent in their makeup. Like muffins, they provide an accomodating stage for a long list of obvious and not-so-obvious flavor additions. A well-made scone is buttery and a little dense, with a crumb a bit drier than a muffin's, which makes for a happy partnership with extra butter, clotted cream, or preserves.

It should be emphasized that over-mixing to where you can't see little bits of butter in the mix will produce a dough that bakes into something with the texture of particle board, because it lacks the leavening that occurs when the moisture in the butter turns to tiny pockets of steam during baking.  What you're aiming for are visible shards of butter, about the size of a split pea, throughout the dough.  One simple way to achieve this is to freeze the butter solid and then grate it before combining with the dry ingredients.  But say you're making your scones in a stand mixer, you're distracted for a minute, and find something in your bowl that looks like a fluffy, dry meal, with no visible butter. Don’t despair -- just finish your dough and roll it out to about 1/8” thickness and cut into circles or wedges that can be folded over.  Put a spoonful of pie filling or jam on each piece, moisten the edges with a wet finger, and fold in half. Then use a fork to crimp the edges and cut a small air vent on top.  Voila -- instant "pop tart"!

Regarding fillings, the sky (or your pantry) is the limit.  Branch out from the familiar “fruit/nut” additions and consider interesting pairings and savory options.  One of my most requested recipes is one that I designed to re-create the "bacon and waffles" experience: Bacon Maple Pecan scones.  I augment the butter with rendered bacon fat, which is frozen, then the bacon and pecans are candied in maple syrup.  After baking, the scones get a maple syrup glaze. They always satisfy, whether paired with a Bloody Mary, or with a cup of tea.

No comments:

Post a Comment