Scones: My Secret Scone Formula's no Secret Anymore
Plus: Scones Squared: My Recipe for Crystallized Ginger Scones and Shirl's Scone Tips
7/14/23
Hi, all Bakers and would-be bakers,
Today’s Post is all a Flashback…….
Looking back a few years, I remember all the challenges at the beginning when the chef buys the Southfield Store down the road from The Old Inn On The Green, where I am the pastry chef. This is in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts; everything you see oozes a New England vibe, especially in the fall when the leaves turn all shades of gold to red.
Located out in the country, the store is a neighborhood meeting spot, coffee shop, lunch place, and bakery all rolled into one, and open every day. The waitstaff serves all kinds of delicious sandwiches, coffee, and desserts from the refrigerated case. Oh, and gelato too. We keep the front counter filled with an abundance of breakfast pastries such as croissants, Danish pastries, and sticky buns as well as muffins, scones, cookies, coffee cakes, brownies, or anything else that doesn’t need be refrigeration. Nearby is a big display of Shirl’s Granola.
All the baked things, desserts, granola, and gelato are my responsibility. What I want to talk about today though are the scones, which is one of the challenges. To be more exact, it’s the scone recipes that are the challenge. I need recipes that not only taste great but have the oomph to make them stand out on the front counter.
In cooking school, I had it drilled into me that “presentation is everything.” Well, not quite everything, because flavor is essential too. One chef instructor used to say to us over and over in the savory cooking class “I don’t want to see any wimpy food in here.” I never forgot that either. But wait! I think we have some scones just coming out of the oven.
Let’s take a walk to the back of the store and down the stairs to the bakeshop-pastry kitchen. This is where the pastry staff and I do all the baking and dessert making. This is where we make it all happen. The centerpiece of the kitchen is a big marble table, twice as wide as a normal counter, and is the first thing you notice as you descend the stairs. It’s perfect for working with a big batch of bread dough. The kitchen is conducive for creativity, and always just begging for you to bake something wonderful.
At the back of the kitchen, next to the big Blodgett convection oven are two speed racks, waiting for sheet pans of freshly baked scones to come out of the oven. I am thrilled that they have the pizazz that I’m looking for─ beautiful golden brown scones that are tall and proud, with tops that have an eye-caching smattering of crunchy sugar.
This recipe can be cut into wedges if you like.
As I pull these scones from the oven I realize that this is the culmination of a journey that I have been on for several years now. How do I make the perfect scone? It has taken me a while to discover the differences between the good and the bad. There’s the ones that I’m proud of and then there are the others that are rather meh. Many things influenced this trip.
First, my husband is a scone aficionado and has a lot of input because I develop many recipes at home. I’ll write about Bob and his scone fetish in another post. Also, on my very first day of cooking school, after seeing a demo of Currant Scones by Sarabeth Levine, famous in New York for her bakeries and restaurants, all featuring her fabulous baked goods. I was in awe of her. After that, I am even more determined to create more and better scones. All this time, I continue to bake scones: pan after pan after pan. Each scone bake provides insight. It is becoming an obsession, but I love it.
I don’t recommend my procedure for developing scone recipes up to this point, as it is bass akwards. Develop a recipe by trial and error and then figure out what the formula or ratio is later. But that is my modus operando in this instance. After I analyze all my “good” recipes, it shocks me to learn that there is a common thread. There is a ratio in plain sight. And ta-da. I’m going to give it to you now.
Shirl’s Scone Formula / Ratio:
Liquids + Fat = Flour (by Weight) Ratio: 1:1
Liquids = 340 grams (240 grams milk + 100 grams eggs)
Fat (Butter) = 160 grams
Total Liquids + Fat = 500 grams = 1 Part
Flour = 500 grams = 1 Part
This example uses the ingredient quantities from the recipe below. In general, the liquids should be roughly twice that of the fat. If you stay within 10-15% of the ratios, this formula works. But it only works by weight, preferably in grams. The sugar in scones is such a variable quantity that I don’t consider it as part of the formula. Going forward, my scone recipe development will be based on these ratios.
Then Michael Ruhlman’s book Ratio (2009) comes out and throws more inspiration on the fire. It serves as a confirmation of what I have leaned about scones. What a book! It is a great little paperback for any baker to have. But alas! There is no scone ratio in the book. However, looking at his biscuit ratio of 3:1:2 (3 parts flour, 1 part fat, and 2 parts liquid), I realize that it is basically my scone formula. The main difference between biscuits and scones is that scones contain eggs and sugar, while biscuits don’t. Thanks
.Shirl’s Scone Tips:
Here’s my tips and some thoughts about scones. These are things I’ve learned along the way, the hard way, by baking many sheet pans of scones, both professionally and at home:
· Shape: I don’t particularly care for flattened out pancake-like scones. I prefer tall ones, which my formula will provide, if you use a thick dough, at least 1 ½” (4cm) thick or more.
· To Frost or not to Frost: I never put icing on scones (I save that for cakes.) There’s something about icing on scones that seems out of place to me. Just my opinion.
· “Go Big or go Home:” When I make scones I make a bunch. I learned this in the bakeshop; it was our favorite saying when discussing how much of something to make. It seems a complete waste of time to me to make 6 or 8 scones. For the same amount of time and effort, you could end up with a dozen or more scones, some for now and some for the freezer. Scones freeze well. Now, I realize that it takes freezer space to make a big batch of scones. If you have that, go big. If not, I understand. Fortunately, I have a freezer in the garage where I can stash my bakes.
· 4-Fold Technique: I know you’ve seen scone recipes that say to knead the dough. Kneading to me means bread dough, never scone dough, because it develops the gluten too much causing a tough crumb. What I like to do is a series of 4 half-folds, and I do it gently with a light touch; this is just the right amount of folding to smooth out the dough without over-working it. The folding process creates an attractive layered texture in the scones. “Folds” is a term borrowed from the laminated dough world of croissants, puff pastry, and Danish pastries.
Wow! Look at Those Layers: This photo reveals the results of the “4-Fold Technique”
· Egg Wash: Rather than icing, I prefer to make scone tops as appealing as possible by brushing on egg-wash or heavy cream and sprinkling on various kinds of sugar. Sugars I use are granulated sugar, sparkling sugar, Turbinado, also sold as Sugar-in-the Raw, Demerara, and Swedish pearl sugar.
Or sometimes I use no sugar at all, just a double egg-wash, as in the recipe below. Also, when brushing on egg-wash or cream, I am careful to keep it only on the tops of scones, never on the sides and, of course, never dripping down the sides. This translates to don’t have too much egg-wash or cream on your brush at one time. Double egg washing, before and after chilling the dough, produces a deep burnished crust like you see in the photos in this post.
· Double Pan: Because my scone recipes make tall thick scones, they need to bake longer than thinner scones. To prevent the bottoms from getting too brown, I double-pan them, which means to stack two sheet pans together lined with parchment paper before adding the scones. My general rule on double-panning is to do this for any scones that are going to bake close to 30 minutes or more.
· Baking Scones: I know it’s counter intuitive, but scone dough is better when baked very cold or partially frozen, which helps the scones hold their shape in the oven. As far as baking temperatures for scones, I like high temperatures to start, 400-425° F (204-218° C). This gives the scones a boost called “oven spring” and contributes to a higher rise. If the oven temperature is too low, the scones just melt and lose their shape.
Some recipes can be baked the whole time at a high temperature. Depending on the recipe, I will turn the oven down if browning too fast. I keep a close watch and when they are the right color, I cover loosely with a large piece of foil, which allows the scones to keep baking without further browning.
· Using a Thermometer: I always use a digital probe thermometer when baking thick scones, adding it when the scones have formed a crust, usually after about 15 minutes of baking. Fully baked scones have an internal temperature of 208-210° F (98-99° C).
· Cutting Scone Dough: I will never be able to get out of my mind that scones should look esthetically attractive, as beautiful as you can make them. To me, this means nice and tall with cleanly cut edges; I always cut them when very cold or partially frozen. I never cut freshly made dough. The dough needs to chill first so the gluten can relax; this prevents the dough from shrinking and baking out of shape, unless you are not picky like me.
Cutting Cold Scone Dough: I score first and then cut.
· Freezing Scones: Both unbaked scone dough and baked scones freeze equally well, up to a month or so. Cut the dough into desired shapes and place the scones on a sheet pan to freeze. You can put them into plastic bags when frozen if you like, or if you are short on freezer space. Frozen scones only need a few minutes at room temperature before you can bake them. By the time you spread them out onto a sheet pan, egg wash, and sprinkle with a little sugar, they are ready to bake. Bake off as many as you like when needed.
· How to Warm up Frozen Baked Scones: 30-45 seconds in microwave just to thaw. Then warm in 300° F (149° C) oven about 10 minutes until the tops are crisp and they feel hot to the touch. I use my toaster oven for this.
Currant Scones: A variation of this recipe.
Crystallized Ginger Scones: I use this Crystallized Ginger, which is such a wonderful addition to scones. I love the sweet and sharp ginger flavor, as well as the firm chewy texture, and I think you will too. It is such a surprise contrast to the more neutral scone dough.
When I make this recipe, I like to make two separate batches, and its usually these two: Crystallized Ginger and Currant. This will give me 24 scones, 12 of each flavor (2 Quarter sheet pans).
RECIPE: SCONES SQUARED
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Crystallized Ginger Scones
YIELD 12 Scones 90g (3 oz) each - 2” Square x 1 3/4” Height (5 cm x 4 cm)
Makes One Quarter Sheet Pan - 9" x 12" (23 x 30 cm)
500 grams unbleached all-purpose flour (3 1/2 cups) (King Arthur)
100 grams granulated sugar (1/2 cup)
25 grams baking powder (about 1 Tablespoon + 2 teaspoons)
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
160 grams unsalted butter, cold & cut into 1/4" (6 mm) slices (1 stick + 3 T)
100 grams eggs, cold (2 large)
240 grams half & half cream or whole milk, cold (1 cup)
120 grams crystallized ginger, chopped into 3/8" (10 mm) pieces (3/4 cup) Variations: Dried fruit such as currants, raisins, cranberries, or blueberries
1245 grams = Total 44 oz (2 lb 12 oz)
EGG WASH:
50 grams egg (1 large), beaten with a pinch of salt
1. PREP QUARTER SHEET PAN: Line with parchment paper and spray a little non-stick spray directly on the pan to keep the paper in place. Double-pan to prevent bottoms from over-browning. This means stacking two quarter sheet pans together or placing your pan on a larger half sheet pan.
2. WHISK together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
3. ADD the cold butter and rub the butter and flour between your hands creating large thin butter flakes until you have a mealy texture with some flakes remaining.
4. WHISK the eggs and half & half in separate bowl just until broken up and liquified.
5. POUR the liquids into the bowl of flour / butter. Stir gently until flour is half incorporated. Scatter the crystallized ginger or dried fruit over the top of the dough and continue stirring until evenly distributed and the flour is fully mixed in.
6. TRANSFER the dough to a lightly floured counter. Press it together and pat it out into a rough rectangle about 6" x 8" (15 x 20 cm).
7. FOLD the dough in half with the folded edge towards you, then gently pat into a rectangle again, Repeat this folding step 3 more times until the dough is smooth, maintaining a 6” x 8” size each time. This is my “4-Fold Technique.”
8. REFRIGERATE the dough until relaxed and chilled, about 30 minutes, before cutting.
9. REMOVE the dough from the refrigerator. Press into an exact 6" x 8" (15 x 20 cm) rectangle, score the top and cut into 12 - 2" (5 cm) squares (3 x 4).
10. ARRANGE the scones about 1/2" (1 cm) apart on prepared quarter sheet pan.
11. BRUSH egg wash on tops of scones being careful not to let it drip down the sides.
12. REFRIGERATE the cut scones for 30 minutes.
13. PREHEAT oven to 425° F (218° C) while scones are chilling.
14. EGG-WASH again before baking.
15. BAKE at 425° F (218° C) 15 minutes. Rotate pan and cover loosely with a sheet of foil to prevent tops from over-browning. If using a probe thermometer, insert it now into one of the inner scones. Continue baking another 12-15 minutes. When done, the crust should be a deep golden brown. The internal temperature should be 208°- 209° (98° C). Total baking time 27-30 minutes.
16. COOL in pan for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
RECIPE ANCESTRY:
Recipe inspired by and loosely adapted from Paul Hollywood's Classic Scones in BAKE (2022).
Cranberry Cream Cheese Scones: A recipe from my website shirlgard.com. This is one of my favorites. The topping is heavy cream and sparkling sugar.
Sultana Scones: You can find the recipe for these scones also on my website. They were shaped the quick way, with an ice cream scoop.
Thanks for reading my scone post. I want to hear your scone thoughts. Or any other thoughts.
My mouth is watering! Love your stories… can’t wait to read about your husband’s obsession with scones 😂
Hey, thx for the shoutout. I’ve got mixed feelings about scones. Too often not enough fat. Loved your post and grateful for the mention. There SHOULD be a scone ratio!