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The year was 1999 and my first book had come out and was nominated for one of those terribly-important cookbook awards. During the dinner and awards presentation, everyone thought I was a shoe-in and so I was seated right up in front, sharing a table with Graham Kerr, Claudia Rodin, some woman from Sweden (I had no idea who she was; the only Swedish women I’ve committed to memory are the ladies of Abba, I’m afraid)—and, gulp, Julia Child.

It was nice to be considered, but the real reason I wanted to win was because Alice Medrich was presenting the award in my category and I quickly thought of something that I wanted to say about her. When I was starting out as a baker, I used to step into her shop, Cocolat in Berkeley, on my way to work and get a truffle or a wedge of cake, which I would devour before beginning my own baking shift. And I credit her for introducing me, and a lot of other Americans, to the pleasures of fine chocolate.

white chocolate for scones

Unfortunately I didn’t win and the following year, I was relegated to the rear of the room, back with rest of the riff-raff.

But sour grapes do not make a good sorbet, although sour cherries do make an excellent addition to scones. I’ve been meaning to do a recipe from Alice’s amazing book, Pure Dessert, and when I saw her scone recipe which combines rustic buckwheat and crunchy cornmeal, I knew it’d be a perfect vehicle for not just the cherries, but for rough-cut chunks of white chocolate, too.

egg & milk white chocolate & sour cherry scones

Like all of Alice’s treats, this one relies on a few ingredients, is easy-to-prepare, but with results that are always better than the sum of their parts. And this one is a winner.

(Unlike me.)

And speaking of sour, last week while at the health food store, I was craving tofu (after my week-long chocolate tour, can you blame me?) I spotted low-fat organic milk and decided right there that it was time to make the switch. The milk is only, like, 80 centimes more than regular milk and why not contribute to the cause when and where I can?

flour & butter for scones organic milk

Okay, well…I found a reason. When I opened the bottle, this big ol’ wad of cream was blocking the top, which pretty much nullified any benefits of its demi-écrémé designation. And even though I shook the life out of it before I added it to my morning café au lait, when I poured it in, it curdled into a zillion tiny little bits. And take it from me, peering into a brown bowl of steaming-brown liquid teeming with curdled fragments of milk fat bobbing on the surface is the last thing you want to face first thing in the morning.

scone dough

Being Monsieur McFrugal, I decide to use it for making these scones, and they came out great. And I guess tips them towards the ‘healthy’ category. Which is a good thing, because I made these twice this week and ate almost both batches all by myself. I would’ve handed them out to friends, but I don’t know the word for scones in French, nor do I know how to describe them.

scone dough

So that’s my excuse. And I’m sticking to it.

White Chocolate and Sour Cherry Scones

Adapted from Pure Dessert (Artisan) by Alice Medrich You can swap out dark chocolate for the white chocolate chunks. I prefer to used chopped chocolate because those pre-prepared chips don’t melt and get as gooey when baked. You can also swap out any other bits of diced dried fruit for the sour cherries; California dried apricots would be fantastic with the white chocolate chunks. See the Notes at the end of the recipe for tips on handling the dough.
  • 1 large egg
  • a scant 1/2 cup (115 ml) cream, whole, or low-fat milk
  • 1 1/3 cup (170g) flour
  • 1/3 cup (45g) buckwheat flour
  • 1/3 cup (45g) cornmeal, preferably stone-ground
  • 1/3 cup (65g) sugar
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, chilled, cut into cubes
  • 1 cup (140g) white chocolate chunks
  • 1/2 cup (60g) coarsely-chopped dried sour cherries
  • 1 teaspoon egg yolk mixed with 1 teaspoon milk
  • coarse sugar (or granulated) for dredging the scones
  • Preheat the oven to 400F (200C) and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
  • In a small bowl, stir together the egg with the milk or cream.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, buckwheat, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
  • Using a pastry cutter, work in the cold butter until the pieces are about the size of corn kernels. (You could use an electric mixer or food processor instead.)
  • Add the egg mixture, stirring with a spatula, until the dough is moistened, then stir in the white chocolate bits and sour cherries.
  • On a lightly-floured surface, pat the dough into an 8-inch (20 cm) round. If it’s too wet and is very sticky, knead in a spoonful or two of flour on the countertop. (The originally recipe called for 3/4 cup (180 ml) milk and cream, and my dough was very sticky, which may be the original intent, but I found it hard to work with. Slightly less than 1/2 cup, (115 ml) seemed right. Good thing making scones isn’t rocket science!)
  • Use a pastry scraper to divide the dough into eight wedges.
  • Brush the tops of each wedge with the a glaze made by stirring the egg yolk with the teaspoon of milk together with a fork. Dip the top of each scone in small bowl of coarse or regular sugar so they’re generously coated, then set each one right-side up on the baking sheet, evenly-spaced apart.
  • Bake the scones for 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown.

Notes

Notes: There’s two theories about making biscuits and scones; one says the batter should be firm enough the cut, the other says it should be wet and spoonable. If your dough is very soft, or you don’t want to get the counter dirty, you can certainly spoon it onto the prepared baking sheet in 8 mounds.
For firm, neater-looking scones, the dough should be not too sticky and you can knead a bit more flour into the dough. I’m happy to sacrifice picture-perfect scones for ones that are light and tender. If you’re looking for a sturdier scone, you might want to check out my Chocolate Cherry Scone recipe in my book, The Great Book of Chocolate.
Since the scone dough is on the soft side, this is the time to get out your metal pastry scraper. If you don’t have one, a metal spatula will make lifting the dough, and the cut scones, a little easier.
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82 comments

    • Sarah

    Those scones look lovely! I love white chocolate, and I’m sure they’d go perfectly with sour cherries.

    xox Sarah

    • Vicki Archer

    These images have sent me straight to the kitchen! xv

    • bron

    I’ve never put chocolate chunks, white or otherwise in scones, I think it’s about time I started. Your first photo has me clawing at my monitor – scrumptious!!

    • TR

    These images have sent me straight to buy an oven !

    • krysalia

    Maybe i’m not remembering this very well, but didn’t you say once that you were lactose intolerant ? I think I remember that you also said that one or two scoops of ice cream were not a crime when you are lactose intolerant, but I do not remember if you were talking about you or about someone else.

    I don’t know much about lactose intolerance by the way. For example, baked milk as in this scones, is it still dangerous or do the milk need to be uncooked and in large quantities to be a problem ?

    • Michelle in NZ

    You’ve taken the humble scone to a glorious new height.

    My Mother worked with Graham Kerr when he was the Catering Offiver for the New Zealand Airforce back in 1959. SHe was a newly wed. He used her to test out the cooking knowledge of young NZers for his food column. Then he went and became all famous!

    • David

    krysalia: I am lactose intolerant, but as Jeffrey Steingarten pointed out, most people can drink milk and cream in reasonable quantities. This recipe has 1 tablespoon per serving.

    For those avoiding lactose, you can try this with goat milk, lactose-free milk, or perhaps soy milk. There is now lactose-reduced milk in France, although I haven’t tried it. (And I have little experience baking with soy or rice milk, so some experimentation may be in order if folks wish to use those.)

    • Mélanie

    Oh, don’t worry, we understand the word Scone perfectly! You won’t even need to describe them, they’ll be gone before that ;-)

    • Mélanie

    I forgot to ask you : where do you buy dried cherries in France? I can’t find them, even G. Detou don’t have any….

    • MrsLavendula

    wow! those made me crave for scones! white chocolate and cherries! yum!

    • dorie

    I was lucky enough to taste these scones — David bicycled them over to my apartment — and I’m hereto tell you that they taste as good as they sound and as they look! The white chocolate is a real surprise. Merci, David.

    • nyc/caribbean ragazza

    I love scones and these two flavors sound excellent together.

    • gharkness

    Now, that’s an excuse if I ever heard one (not knowing the word for “scone” in French). When it comes to food, words are never needed! :-) Looks to me like you just wanted to eat them all yourself!

    Although, reading through the comments, looks like you DID manage to share with dorie! They do look delicious.

    • David

    dorie and gharkness: Although I learned that a bike basket makes a pretty good cooling rack, you do need to be careful with your scones when you come to a stop…!

    • Vidya

    Oooh yum…I may actually venture to make a dent in my precious dried cherry stash for these. Unfortunately I have exams right now so I’m eschewing cooking/watching TV/most leisure activities aside from browsing food blogs when I’m supposed to be editing papers. But soon…

    • deeba

    Lucky Dorie…these scones look abs YUM! I love Alice Medrich recipes. Have tried her Citrus Olive Oil Cake before…her recipes got character, rustic character, just like these beautiful scones. Thanks for sharing such a yummy recipe David. I happily have some sour cherries that landed up from the UK, & white chocolate in the pantry…what a fab combination!! …Oh yes, got a metal pastry scraper too-must be my lucky day!! No stamp licking for me…LOL!

    • adrian

    they look delicious! I think I’ll try these soon. Any special type of white chocolate? What did you use? And you mentioned goat milk above: Is it lactose-free?

    • malecki

    I will recommend the Fromagerie de Saunière, who sell at the Raspail Sunday market. That’s the only place I have seen them. Their lait cru entier is among the best I’ve had and makes me immediately dream of fior di latte gelato. Their fresh sheep and goat cheeses are first-rate too, but skip the yogurt.

    So, as a crazy market-going and biking person here in Paris I generally think nothing of going to both Bastille and Raspail on a Sunday morning — the latter just for milk and a mélange moitié-moitié of mexican coffee and hot chocolate (2€!).

    • lagramiere

    I so agree about the milk! We get the same brand at our bio-coop down here. At first I loved the idea that it was from a smaller producer, but I finally gave it up for the very same reasons you just mentioned… I still buy fresh bio milk, but it comes from one of the big guys…that’s the problem with living so far south, there aren’t very many cows here, and there are no small dairies producing small batches of cows milk. We can get sheep and goat milk a plenty, but it’s not so good in the coffee!!

    • Kerrin @ MyKugelhopf

    I am ALL over this ! My ears perked up at buckwheat and my eyebrows shot up at cornmeal. Chocolate in the mix too, and my whole face is lit up. It will be dark chocolate for me though — love making chocolate chip cookies with buckwheat flour, so why not scones?! And since I am just as obsessed with Medjool dates as I am with dark chocolate, I think I just found my combination for this recipe. Can not wait !

    • krysalia

    david> thanks ! I’ve read the article, it’s pretty interesting. Maybe I’ll be able to eat “les chicons cuits” one day, with this method…

    • dawn

    would I love to get my hands on some of that organic milk. I can only imagine how much more depth it added to the scone–lucky you to have that.
    I did use cornmeal in a scone once and was pleasantly surprised, why am I not still using it?
    I adore that very first photo: stunning–3D-like.

    • Marilou

    These were wonderful, even if it took a trip around town to find the buckwheat flour.
    I wonder if raspberries might be good in this recipe too. I seem to have a raspberry craving lately..spring and all.Thanks!

    • Mama JJ

    The photos in this post are exceptionally gorgeous! I’ve been hankering after scones…

    • Whitney

    I was eyeing these on Flickr and now I am very excited to make them!

    • kayenne

    i just made dried cranberry and chocolate chip scones last week! thanks for the great idea of using buckwheat… i do have a bag lying about somewhere for making galette… which i have yet to make… but scones are my heaven these days! i’m thinking bacon and fresh white cheese… you are bad for the waist-line, as my friend would say.

    hmmm… would using yogurt help the lactose-intolerant? i think the addition of 1/4 tsp baking soda makes yogurt or buttermilk ok? if not, goat milk is great! esp if you can get fresh ones with the cream still floating on top!

    • Aran

    how i love seeing that raw dough on the bench! i can feel it in my hands.

    • lee

    Since your post on baking powder, I have used nearly a whole can of it. I am baking more than ever and am much happier with the results. My family is very pleased to have so many fresh baked goods.

    • Luisa

    You’re such a winner anyway! Silly cookbook awards. Buckwheat and cornmeal sounds fantastic. I’m on such a whole-grain kick lately.

    • Aimee

    Those looks amazing! Good use of the Bio milk. I bake scones almost daily at my tea house and I have decided not to translate nor really explain what a scone is to my French customers. They more or less know what it is. And when they pronounce it with their French accents it makes me smile. I do like how yours turned out. I use a cast iron pan to bake mine in just for aesthetics but I think I will roll the next batch out and cut them like you did here for a change. :)

    • peevish

    Where is step number 8?
    ;-)

    • Adam

    These look and sound great – but they don’t look or sound like scones. They look a little bit more like flapjack. Are they short on some kind of raising agent or is that the point of this particular recipe?

    The French word for scone is…scone I believe! You see them around sometimes. It reminds me of a childhood joke – what’s the fastest cake in the world? Scone….

    • gosia

    I normally don’t comment, but your milk story made me smile. Never shake the “real” milk, or it’s lost for the coffee. My mom buys such milk all the time, so i know the pain ;) If there is a cream “wad” at the top, u can try scooping it carefully with a spoon. Then i usually pour milk in a big bowl, let it sit for a minute and then collect the rest of cream from the surface.

    • arugulove

    These look delicious. Would fresh cherries work or would they release too much liquid and mess up the texture? I just started getting those in my CSA box and I’d love to make baked goods with them.

    • Laura

    I have the book but somehow I missed this recipe. I have all the ingredients to make these so thanks for the inspiration.

    If of any consolation, you didn’t win in 1999, but everyone in the pastry world knows your name, so you are a winner now!

    A bientot!

    • Bernadette

    That is a great combination, white chocolate and cherries and a terrific photo, just perfect.

    • Bethany

    That looks amazing, white chocolate and cherries are two of my favorite flavors, put them together and i am a zombie with only the above mentioned on my mind!

    • David

    arugulove: I think fresh ones would exude too much juice. If you have too many cherries, why not try my No-Recipe Cherry Jam, and preserve the bounty : )

    Laura: Alice’s recipe calls for walnuts, but I like white chocolate and cherries better!

    Adam: There’s 2 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder used as leavening.

    adrian: Any kind of real white chocolate will work. For this, I used a Lindt bar.

    peevish: My glasses are on their way. I just have to find the frames that make me look super-cool.

    Aimee: Now if I could only find a way to charge for mine around here…

    • Susie

    David –

    I have been reading and enjoying your blog for a couple years now and have found great inspiration as well as encouragement that a person working in a kitchen smaller than my own can be as prolific and yummy-looking as you are. Um, as your baked goodies are.

    This recipe caught my attention, as it has for so many others, and I ran out, got the ingredients and have just put the scones in the oven. Mmm, anticipation!

    I used full-on cream in my scones, feeling a bit reckless and having it on hand for chocolate mousse, and found the dough to be quite crumbly. So I submit that the amount of cream/milk used should vary based on its fat content – higher fat, larger amount – to get the crumb/goop factor just right. Would this make sense based on your extensive pastry experience?

    Thanks for your blog. It’s so enjoyable and you have a great online personality.

    • Susan

    Fabulous–you had me hooked from the first glimpse of that stunning close-up. I’ve been looking for a new scone recipe and this looks like the one. And conveniently there’s a surplus of dried cherries in the kitchen.

    Have you ever tried freezing the butter and coarsely grating it into the dried ingredients? It’s my new lazy trick. I also like to pre-mix and freeze a recipe’s worth of dough with everything except the liquid, and mix up a small batch when I’m jonesing for a scone or two (or three…). Extremely quick for a breakfast treat.

    • SaraLe

    Hi,
    I think the white chocolate chunks & dried sour cherries were forgotten..
    Love the blog.

    oof! I swear, my eyeglass prescription is in my messenger bag. I just need to find some cool frames, which I hope doesn’t take too long. (And so do you guys, I’m sure..) Thanks : ) -dl

    • Susan

    Well, Monsuer McFrugal (french/irish…uhm?), good save on the organic milk, but these are anything but a poor folk scone! Appear worth the splurge though and am going to give them a try.

    Question? Do you gently warm the chocolate to cut it into such neat little chunks or is there another method? I’ve had terrible luck chunking chocolate, it just shatters and flys everywhere.

    • WWW.CHICSETERA.COM

    What a delicious recipe! I am dying to try it!!!

    xoxo

    • Paula

    delicious looking scones! Too bad you had to keep them all for yourself ;-P

    • lisaiscooking

    I have a thing for scones, and I haven’t tried Medrich’s yet and I have no idea why. But, mostly, I want to make these so I have an excuse to go buy some white chocolate and cut big chunks of it.

    • Natalie

    This is Sinful !!

    • Natalie

    Pardon, c’est tres Sinfull !!

    • Tone Victoria

    Haha!

    “Super-cool” is just so extremely French! And I bet that they find themselves really super-cool, just by pronouncing that very phrase!

    • yola

    David, those scones look (and I bet taste) fantastic! Gonna try them out next weekend… almost done reading your book, it’s been a wonderful way to approach the farmer’s market as we head into summer and to remember my trip to Paris last fall — thank you, I’ve truly enjoyed reading it!

    • Sophie

    I truly cannot understand everyone’s complaints about Gaborit’s milk. Indeed, it is unhomogenized. But it’s real milk with real flavor, and it has an unbeatable richness to the taste and texture, probably on account of their use of lower yield Jersey cows. It is to regular supermarket milk as supermarket milk is to UHT, once you’ve tried it you never want to go back to the other stuff. It makes a fantastic yogurt, too. And I’ve never had problems with coffee, on the contrary, heated up and lightly whisked, it froths up like a charm.

    To Malecki, about Saunière, have you tried their sheep’s milk yogurt? It is outstanding and well worth trekking halfway across the city for. Saunière’s milk is also good, but I find it’s not as rich tasting as the Jersey milk. The taste does change dramatically with the seasons. Nowadays the milk tastes very herbal and grassy — a bit of a shock with cereal when you’re not expecting it, and frankly a bit weird with coffee.

    • Maryann Guerra

    Mmmm, this recipe made me nostalgic for the white chocolate cranberry scones I would buy every week at the Monterey Bay Farmer’s Market. Eventually the man who made and sold them there would save me 5 of them since they sold out rather quickly!

    I don’t think those were made with buckwheat or cornmeal but that sounds like a wonderful addition for a heartier scone.

    Also, I just recently made the switch from supermarket milk and to cream-on-top non homogenized organic milk and heavy cream. And there is simply no way I could go back. Of course I simply scoop the solid cream from the top, mix it with a little agave and dip strawberries, raspberries, etc in it. Such a guilty pleasure!

    • Paula Maack

    Umm… Buckwheat, Cornmeal, Sour Cherries and White Chocolate!!?!?? You slay me!!

    I just want to break out chorus of “My Favorite Things” from The Sound of Music, and tear into a few of those beautiful scones!!!

    Wow. I am not sure if I can wait until next weekend to make these.

    That Dorie Greenspan is one fortunate woman! : )

    XOXOXOX,

    ~ Paula

    • Margie

    Yummy…and different. I’ll have to make them because they are so healthy looking…and delicious sounding. :)

    • Sarah (Coffee Beans and Curry Leaves)

    Mmmm…what is it about a warm scone and a steaming cup of coffee in the morning? Pure heaven! Thanks for sharing this recipe!

    • David

    Sophie: I liked the flavor of the milk, but it was so unappetizing in my coffee (and there was also a sizable layer of sludge on the bottom), that I had to switch back.

    I’ve been looking for fresh milk sold in cartons (or glass bottles!) since I dislike plastic bottles very much, but only found it once at Monoprix. Then they stopped carrying it. I’m not sure why they use plastic bottles here for milk. I would imagine that cartons are less-expensive, and easier to package and store since they’re square.

    But I’m still not sour (excuse the pun) on organic milk and would like to find one that’s good. But all of the others I’ve seen are sterilized (ultra long-life) or just the usual Candia lait. Will keep looking…

    Susan: I just cut the block with a serrated bread knife. White chocolate cuts pretty cleanly due to the higher fat content.

    • Mélanie

    I wonder if you did not see my question, or you want to keep your dried cherries provider secret! It’s so difficult to find them in Paris, they would soon be out of stock and you’d be deprived of scones… I understand your dilemna!!! But I’ve really been looking for them in a lot of places, I need help!

    I bring them back from the states. They do sell them at Grand Appetite, a health food store near the Bastille, but they’re around €55/kg! -dl

    • adrian

    may I comment on the frames you are sporting there in Flickr? I would say they are not you, but I don’t know you, do I? But seriously, heavy frames can be a good thing, but those frames are waaaay heavy and they add years to you. You’d need to start smoking cigars. They make me think of the guy in Ocean’s Eleven with the big specs. Hope I didn’t tread on any feelings.

    • Sandra

    These are absolutely wonderful and much better than Starbucks scones.
    I might substitute in dried cranberries for the cherries, although cherries do seem like the right way to go–I guess it depends on availability and where I’m shopping–no Whole Foods or Trader Joes without driving a healthy distance and why waste the gas for one ingredient when something equally lovely will work as well and taste as good–since you also suggested dried apricots as well.

    • katrina

    Mon Dieu! I was just making up some quick buttermilk scones when I remembered your latest post, so, of course, I had to come see what your latest gorgeous treat was. And, oh! As soon as I find some buckwheat flour & white chocolate I’ll be rustling this up!

    • Mama JJ

    I made these yesterday afternoon, and boy-oh-boy, are they ever good!

    • Susan

    I was gathering these ingredients together to make the scones and it struck a familiar chord somehow. I found my standby cobbler recipe, and sure enough, it is proportionately the same dough, sans corn meal and buckwheat flour, that my cobbler uses. I love this cobbler, and have wondered what it would be like baked as a shortcake or scone. Maybe you should try this as a topping for a cobbler! Just a thought!

    • One Food Guy

    You had me at white chocolate. I love scones and these sound great.

    • Feast on the Cheap

    Positively salivating. Those look divine – I just wish there was a batch sitting here next to me…

    • SaraLe

    Hi,
    I tried the recipe today and they came out amazing…
    I made a few changes; I substituted the buckwheat flour with whole wheat flour, and the milk with orange juice. I’ll make them again for sure.Thank You.

    • foodcreate

    I love scones they are so tasteful. Delicious with a cup of tea.
    Thanks for sharing this recipe.

    • Amy Sherman

    You have the most amazing ability to turn anything into dessert.

    • Eileen @ Passions to Pastry

    Love scones, dried sour cherries and chocolate. Can’t wait to try these.

    • Cathy

    As soon as I saw the photo, I had to try these scones. Heaven! (with a few minor adjustments due to larder ingredients or lack thereof)
    I had a little whipping cream, a little fat-free milk, so poured a scant 1/2 cup combining the two.
    I did not have buckwheat flour, but did have oat flour, so used that (very multi-grain-y tasting. can’t wait to try buckwheat, but in a pinch, oat will do)
    Cornmeal – I puzzled over fine grain or coarse grain and chose the coarse. What a nice addition to the crumb and texture!
    I had some white chocolate lying around from Valentine’s Day candy making. Never liked it much, so was wavering between the white and some lovely bittersweet. I used the white, and the reason I think it’s perfect for this recipe is the yummy melty quality when fully cooled after baking. Bittersweet would harden up again, but the fat content in the white chocolate keeps it wonderfully soft.
    And for those commenters in the States, Trader Joes has fantastic dried Montmorency tart cherries. Also, a place in Wayne, PA called The Head Nut sells wonderful dried raspberries.
    That’s my next riff on this glorious scone recipe. A keeper for sure. Thanks, David.

    • Jenni

    Lovely scones–smooth, sweet white chocolate and sour chewy cherries? Sign me up! Sorry about the Unfortunate Milk Incident. Distressing.

    • Dawn in CA

    Soy milk works well as a substitute for cow’s milk in baked goods. I have not had good luck with lactose-free milk — for some reason it does not bake up as well. I tried it in a quiche once, and it took for.ev.er. to bake. If you are lactose intolerant (I am severely so, hardly any dairy for the last 20+ years), in addition to goat’s milk, you might try raw, unpasteurized milk. (Not sure if that’s what the “bio” milk was.) I discovered raw milk about two months ago, and am able to drink it with absolutely no side-effects. Yay! Same for raw milk cheeses. I am in heaven.

    Recipe looks sooo good. Thanks.

    • Marina

    David,
    I love your blog and recipes! Just bought your ice-cream and your chocolate book, and my life has changed :)
    I’m studing pastry at Le Cordon Bleu here in Paris, and everything you write about the Parisians IS SOOOO RIGHT!!
    Loved your “what they say versus what they mean” on your last book!

    À bientôt

    Marina

    • mabel

    i tried out the recipe and its absolutely idiot proof :) amazing!
    the texture was just right with no need to add more flour to make it easier to handle.
    i used cranberries instead and single cream.
    the pets camped out in the kitchen the whole time it was baking cos the smell was just beautiful.
    thank you David

    • emily

    i made some with blackberries, dark chocolate and almond slices. mine kind of turned into a giant cookie-scone, because i was using a pint glass to measure everything, but it’s still delicious!!

    • San Francisco Photos

    OMG that sounds so yummy. I would really love to try this although I can never get them to be as good as ones I would get from the store or the bakery but I should try it again. Thanks for the recipe.

    • lisa (dandysugar)

    Your blog is always so delicious and inspiring. I can’t wait to give these scones a try this weekend. Your first photo has me craving morning already and a steaming cup of coffee..

    • Connie

    Whoo boy! I am not a breakfast pastry kinda girl but these are pretty darned good. I ventured out for the buckwheat flour and was surprised to find that it looks amazingly like soot – my dough is quite a bit more wet-sandy looking than yours. My milk was on its way out so I used up some buttermilk, decreasing the baking powder and adding in 1/2 tsp baking soda. I’m not sure how this affected things from the original recipe but they came out lovely. Thanks for another winning recipe :)

    • Kate

    I made these for my boyfriend after he’d finished a gruelling two day night shift. They smelt so good that he woke up after only 4 hours sleep as he could smell the sweet air wafting through the kitchen ceiling and into our bedroom! Needless to say, he stumbled down, ate about five in as many seconds then told me he knew there was a reason why he loved me so much and fell back to sleep for hours. I just made the peanut butter and caramel cookies to keep him going through his next shift…your recipes are a powerhouse fuelling British railway industry David!

    • Mama JJ

    I’ve made these twice now, and I’m finally posting about them today. They are fabulous!

    • darla

    Just made these and they were lovely! Thanks for the recipe.

    And am I just stupid lazy or does anyone else get inappropriately excited when you need only minimal measuring utensils? (No 1/2 and 1/3 dry measures, just the 1/3.)

    I’m also loving that it only made 8 scones. Not too much ass spreading going on.

    • annie

    We had out of town guest staying with us and these were the perfect thing with an espresso in the morning (though they were even better the next day)! The texture was wonderful- I assume from the variety of flours+ cornmeal- and mine actually rose a bit higher than the pictures. Oh, also- they don’t even need the chocolate (but it is sooo good). Thanks for sharing ALL of your great recipes and for the inspiration…

    • Jen

    Hi David,
    I just made these and loved them. I substituted currents for cherries because they were too expensive in the store. I thought since currents were tart they would work ok. My husband told me they made him believe that scones were not hard rocks and used for chipping teeth. In fact, he wanted to take some to work!
    cheers
    jen

    • cia_boy

    easier as-taught-by-CIA version for basic scone

    2c heavy cream, 3c flour, 1/2c sugar, 2tb baking powder
    combine all dry ingredients including desired additional flavorful ingredients,
    then add the heavy cream

    work into shaggy mass, then form & cut into shaped segments

    shaped dough can be frozen, then pieces baked as needed on-demand over multiple days

    bake 30″@350F

    no eggs, no butter

A

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