Strawberry Rhubarb Scones

It’s Springtime!

Well, actually it’s been spring for about a month, but the weather is finally starting to warm up in the Pacific Northwest.  Which means berry season is just around the corner.  The berries that are ripe for picking first are usually the strawberries.  Now in Oregon, strawberry season is typically a short one-month window during June.  During this time, you will see highways and roads littered with farm stands selling these scrumptious berries by the pints and flats.  Since the season is so short, I get tempted to buy a flat at a time to make the most of this short season.  I may be biased, but having tasted berries from around the country, I truly believe the best are found in Oregon.  They’re just so juicy and full of flavor.

Although it may not quite be strawberry season in my neck of the woods, the temptation to make these scones was too great.  So I went to the store and bought a carton of ripe California strawberries and got to baking.

Elements of a Great Scone

The key to any great scone is first and foremost the butter.  It’s got to be cold and cut into small pieces.  This helps the scone achieve that wonderful flaky and tender consistency.  What I like to do is freeze my butter ahead of time and then grate it into the dry ingredients.  That way, the butter doesn’t get warm as I try to cut it into pea-sized bits.

The other critical element to a great scone is making sure you don’t overwork the dough.  It all comes back to the butter.  The more you overwork the dough, the warmer the butter gets as it moves between your hands, and the less flaky your scone will be.  Believe me, it gets tempting to overwork scone dough.  It tends to be very crumbly and you just want to force it to come together.  However, it should just barely hold form in the shape of a ball and ultimately in the shape of a disk as you press it out.

When you go to press your dough into a disk, you may find yourself wanting to add more flour.  The dough will be slightly sticky and wet.  This is how you want it.  Adding more flour will cause your scones to dry out.

Next, I cannot overemphasize how imperative it is that your produce be ripe.  Strawberries that are not ruby red and rhubarb that is a light reddish-green will leave your scones bland.  To get the most bang for your buck in the flavor department, make sure you use produce that is ripe.

The last important element is the temperature of your oven.  I made two batches of this recipe.  The first time I had my oven set to 350°, and the second time, I had it set to 400°.  The difference was night and day.  The scones that went in at 400° rose higher and had a nicer color on top than the ones that went in at 350°.  Here’s the reason why this happened.  Scones have a good amount of baking powder in them.  This helps them to rise.  Baking powder is activated at higher temperatures, so when the dough is hit with the initial blast of high heat, it activates the baking powder faster, resulting in scones that rise higher.  The end product is a scone that is thick and golden-brown with a slightly crunchy top and a soft and tender filling.

I hope you’re as excited as I am that berry season is almost here.  Why not celebrate by making these delicious scones?

Blessings on your home and table                                                                                                                   ~Natalie

Strawberry Rhubarb Scones

Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar + 2 Tablespoons for sprinkling
• 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, frozen
• 1 lemon zested
• 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 eggs (will use one for an egg wash at the end)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups strawberries, diced
• 1/2 cup rhubarb, diced
• 2 Tablespoons milk

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.  Grease or line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, 1/4 cup sugar, cardamom, salt, and lemon zest.
3. Grate the frozen butter into the dry ingredients and mix together with your fingers.  Butter should be in pea-sized bits.
4. In a small bowl, combine heavy cream, 1 egg, and vanilla.  Mix with a fork until egg is well incorporated.
5. Make a small well in the middle of your dough.  Pour the wet ingredients into the well and use a fork or your fingers to incorporate to moisten the dry ingredients.  Do not overwork!
6. Add in diced strawberries and rhubarb.  Gently bring together into a ball.
7. Place ball of dough on a well-floured surface.  Press the dough into an 8-inch disk that’s around 1-inch thick.  Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into eight triangles.  Place triangles on a baking sheet.
8. In a small dish, combine the remaining egg and two Tablespoons of milk.  Brush this mixture over the scones and sprinkle the tops with the remaining sugar.
9. Place scones in the oven and let bake for 20 minutes or until edges are golden-brown.  Take out of the oven and let cool.
10. Enjoy with jam or clotted cream if you want to be fancy  😉 .