Scones are simple: flour, butter, cream, salt, baking powder, and maybe egg. Yet, there are so many styles of scone: American, English, Scottish, and Irish. American scones are usually dense, crumbly and taste of baking powder with lots of sugar or mix-ins. In contrast, English scones are lighter, moister and usually taste best when accompanied by cream or fruit spreads. This White Chocolate and Apricot Scone is a perfect hybrid. It's light, not too sweet, tastes deeply of apricot and won't leave scone crumbs all over your shirt.
These scones take about 10 minutes to come together and 10 minutes to bake. That means you could have a warm treat in less than half an hour. Furthermore, these scones age better than other varieties. Although they are a dream served just out of the oven, they're still very good on day two.
This recipe is adapted from Mark Bittman's Classic Scones published in the New York Times. I've modified the recipe in several ways, but his recipe was my touchstone.
NOTE ON KITCHEN TEMP.: Scone dough does not like a warm kitchen. You don't want your butter to soften. So, if I make these in a warm kitchen, I freeze my butter. If my kitchen is truly hot, I put the white chocolate chips, apricots, and even the flour mixture and bowel into the fridge for 30 minutes before I began to make this recipe.
NOTE ON SCONE SHAPE: English scones are typically round and American scones are usually a triangle. I vote triangle every time. The less you work your dough the better your scones' texture. You have to gather and re-roll your dough for circles, and your last few scones will probably be over worked.
NOTE ON SCONE STYLE: If you want these to taste more like American scones, there are two changes that you can make: use all-purpose flour and substitute 1/3 cup heavy cream for the 1/3 cup buttermilk (for a total of 2/3 cup cream). These changes will give you a denser scone and will allow the flavor of the baking powder to standout.
White Chocolate and Apricot Scones
Prep time 10 minutes. Bake time 10 minutes. Makes 8.
Ingredients
Scones
2 cups cake flour 230 grams (I use Swans)
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons white sugar
3/4 teaspoon diamond kosher salt (or a scant 1/2 teaspoon table salt)
5 tablespoons COLD unsalted butter
1/3 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 egg (straight from the fridge)
1/3 cup apricots (measured after diced)
1/3 cup white chocolate chips
Topping
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 tablespoon finishing sugar or turbinado sugar
STEP ONE
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Prep your butter by chopping it into roughly 1/4 inch pieces and then put those pieces into the freezer. I know they're only in the freezer for a minute, but you don't want your butter warming. Prep your apricots by dicing them into roughly 1/4 inch pieces, a bit bigger than your white chocolate chips. Set apricots aside.
STEP TWO
Using food processor, add flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt to the food processor bowl and pulse to mix, then set aside while you prep your wet ingredients.
STEP TWO
In a small bowl gently whisk egg, cream, and buttermilk together, then set wet ingredients aside while you get your butter from the freezer. Add butter pieces to the flour mixture and pulse until bits of butter resemble coarse meal. Then add cream mixture and pulse 2-3 times for only a few seconds. Cream mixture will only be half incorporated. Add apricots and white chocolate to mixture and pulse the food processor 2-3 more times so that ingredients are all incorporated but white chocolate and apricots remain mostly intact.
STEP THREE
Put dough onto a lightly floured counter top and shape dough into one 10-ish inch circle. Cut into 8 triangle wedges (just like cutting a pizza), then brush each triangle top with the extra cream and sprinkle finishing sugar or turbinado sugar. Put wedges directly on an ungreased cookie sheet, baking for 9-11 minutes and golden around the edges.
Serve immediately. Enjoy!
Once fully cooled, scones can be kept in a container on the counter. They're best enjoyed within 3 days.
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