Perfect Currant Scone is excerpted from Good & Sweet © 2022 by Levy, Brian. Reproduced by permission of Penguin Random House. All rights reserved.
Perfect Currant Scone
Makes 12 scones
Almost everything in this book involves an electric mixer or food processor. Sometimes it’s nice to just get your hands dirty, and scones—with their simple, scraggly dough—are one of those recipes that just feel right to do by hand.
What makes it sweet? The currants do all the sweetening work here (unless, of course, you make my chestnut variation, where the chestnut flour also brings a good deal of sweetness).
- 3/4 cups + 1 Tbsp (185 g) buttermilk
- 1 large egg
- 3 1/4 cups (390 g) all-purpose flour
- 3 3/4 tsp (15 g) baking powder
- Scant 1/2 tsp salt
- 8 Tbsp (114 g) unsalted butter, cold, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 cup (145 g) dried Zante currants
- Heavy cream or melted butter, for brushing
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Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a 13 × 18-inch half-sheet pan with parchment paper.
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In a spouted cup, lightly whisk together the buttermilk and egg and set aside.
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In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Drop the butter into the flour and rub it into the flour with your fingertips until it’s something like soft sand. Add the currants and toss to coat them with flour. Pour in the buttermilk/egg mixture and mix briefly with your hands or a wooden spoon or rubber spatula just until it comes together as a scraggly dough.
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Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and divide it into 2 equal pieces. Pat each of these 2 pieces into a ball and roll each ball out to a round 5½ inches in diameter and 1 inch thick.
Slice each round into 6 wedges and transfer them to the lined pan with at least 1 inch of space between them. Brush the top of each scone with heavy cream or melted butter.
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Bake until puffed and golden, 15 to 18 minutes. Serve the scones as soon as you can, or let them cool to room temperature. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or split them, freeze them for up to 2 months, and toast them when you’re ready.
VARIATION:
chestnut Flour currant Scones
• Increase the buttermilk by 1 Tbsp.
• Reduce the all-purpose flour to 2¼ cups (270 g) and add 1½ cups (175 g) chestnut flour.
• Reduce the currants to ⅔ cup (100 g).