Bluberry Scones

Scones are a delicious and easy breakfast or brunch idea. You may have had a scone in the past and thought it dry and tasteless. I am sorry. That scone lied to you. Scones are perfect; billowy, soft, crumbly, studded with a generous amount of fresh blueberries and drizzled with generous amount of sweet glaze. Pair these with a mug of coffee and you are set! Out of all the breakfast carbs out there- scones are pretty delicious compared to pancakes, muffins, donuts, and waffles. Scones are a traditional British baked good that resemble American biscuits. They can be sweet or savory.

If you have never attempted scones, you have to know they are easy to make! More good news – once you have a good scone base, you can make all kinds of modifications of either sweet or savory scones. This is also a once size fits all recipe where you will never need another one and it is so easy to adapt to any type of scones you want to make!

Tips for perfect scones –

1. Cold butter – COLD butter is the key to making perfect scones. As the butter cooks it creates air pockets in the dough that makes those great big, fluffy, flakey layers that we love in a great scone. I suggest freezing the butter and removing it 15-20 minutes while you gather all the ingredients and start making them.
2. Don’t over mix the dough– When the dough is formed you don’t want to knead it or handle it too much. Just pat and shape it dough to help it come together into a round or shape desired. When you over mix the dough, your baked goods will come out dense and chewy instead of tender and flaky.

• 

Ingredients

2 cups of all purpose flour, plus extra for dusting

2 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest

1/2 tsp salt

6 tbsp cold/frozen unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces

1/2 (4 oz) ripe Anjou pear, cored and coarsely chopped

1/2 cup plain whole milk yogurt

1 large egg, cold

1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries

For glaze

1/2 cup powdered sugar (adjust as needed)

1-2 tbsp milk

Method

For scones

Preheat oven to 450F. Lime a rimmed baking sheet to prevent sticking. Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt in food processor. Pulse around 10 times or until ingredients. Add the chilled/cold butter; pulse until the mixture is crumbly- approx. 18-20 times. *Using cold butter is very important. Transfer mixture to large bowl. Place the pear and yogurt in the food processor and combine until smooth. Add the egg and pulse until mixture is uniformed. Pour the yogurt mixture over the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Carefully fold in the blueberries, using your hands if needed to help incorporate the berries into the dough. Important tip here – Make sure not to overwork the dough to prevent gluten from activating- which will cause a dense/chewier scone instead of it being flakey and airy.

Place dough on a lightly floured work surface and dust top lightly with 2 tbsp flour. Pat dough into an 8 inch circle and around 1 inch thick. Cut into 8 even wedges. Transfer scones to the prepared baking sheet, spacing them evenly apart. Bake until scones are golden brown to top and bottom, 18-20 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Cool at least 10 minute more before serving. Drizzle glaze over it prior serving (optional). Serve your scones warm or room temperature.

For glaze

Stir together 2/3 cup powdered sugar and 1 tbsp milk. Easily thicken glaze by adding more powdered sugar and thin it out with more milk. Drizzle glaze over scones and serve warm or at room temp.

Storing scones – let them cool completely. Store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days. Don’t make mistake of storing them in refrigerator, because they will get stale very quickly.