Lemon Scones

I was feeling a bit thrifty trying to decide what to bake for this blog entry. I looked over my wish list and started going through recipes to see what I could make with ingredients I already had on hand here in the apartment. Thanks to some remaining heavy cream leftover from a messy, but very yummy, truffle-making experiment and with the exception of a few fresh lemons, I had everything I needed to make a simple summer breakfast treat of lemon scones.



After a little bit of research, I learned that one of the keys to successful, flaky scones (like biscuits as well) is to handle and work the dough as little as possible. Like the pie crust, you also want to use a pastry blender to cut the butter in this recipe into the dry ingredients while it is cold.



The Joy of Cooking also recommends using two butter knives to cut fat into a flour mixture if you do not have a pastry blender.



This recipe turned out to be relatively simple and easy to execute. I look forward to making scones again and again, adding different flavors and ingredients each time. Orange and white chocolate chip scones are sounding like an excellent idea for fall!

Here is the recipe so you can try it in your own kitchen!

Lemon Scones
Preheat your oven to 450°F

Dry Ingredients:
1 ¾ cups of all-purpose flour
2 ¼ teaspoons of baking powder
1 tablespoon of sugar
½ teaspoon of salt

Wet Ingredients:
¼ cup ( ½ stick) of cold butter
2 large eggs
1/3 cup of heavy cream
2 tablespoons of lemon zest

-Combine dry ingredients and sift together into a medium-sized bowl.
-Cut the butter into the flour mixture.
-In a small bowl, beat the two eggs together and then set aside 2 tablespoons of the beaten egg for later use.



-Add the heavy cream to the beaten eggs
-Mix 2 tablespoons of lemon zest to the liquid mixture.
-Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour the liquid mixture into the well.


*I forgot to add the lemon zest earlier, so I had to add it in at his point. Turned out to work just fine.*

-Just combine the ingredients in a few strokes. Don’t mix thoroughly! Turn the dough onto a floured work surface.



-Pat the dough to ¾ inch thick and into an 8-inch round.



-Cut into 8-12 wedges



-Place on an ungreased baking sheet



-Brush with the reserved egg.



-Bake at 450°F until golden brown (about 15 minutes)
-Remove from the oven and sift powdered sugar over the top.



You can eat them warm out of the oven or let cool completely and store in an airtight container to enjoy for up to a week. Tea drinkers will love this treat combined with their favorite summer tea.


Enjoy!