More Scone Secrets from Chef Peter

In the last scone piece Chef Peter shared for the blog, he wrote about the local ingredients that make our scones special: Capay Mills whole wheat flour, Cheeseboard Collective butter.

He had more to say!

In this post, he'll talk you through the technique he uses to get the perfect, fluffy scones featured on our upcoming Easter menu.

Claire carefully incorporating butter!

In pastry, butter, flour, milk, eggs, and sugar – how they’re mixed and in what ratio – determine the baked good you’re making. For scones, we use a technique to mix butter similar to what produces a flaky pie crust. The butter is not fully incorporated in the flour, leaving flakes to laminate the dough. The difference lies in what happens when the scones are given a chance to rise.

As scones rise in the oven, butter melts, the water trapped inside turns to steam, and the thick pastry becomes soft.  This reaction is what makes a good scone. If the butter is fully mixed into the dough like you would mix a cookie dough, the scone’s texture will be homogenous, dry, and dull. Baking with whole-grain flour, as we do, also helps prevent this kind of overmixing, as well as adding rich, nutty flavor.

Most people treat scones as a brunch pastry, a snack, or as a traditional English teatime treat.  For me, scones are an old-fashioned energy bar. Whole-grain flour makes a robust, nutritious base, and cream and mix-ins provide a rich source of calories.

For Easter this year we have three scones on the menu: dried cherry and dark chocolate, lemon poppyseed, and sweet potato-sage. Each is unique, but I use this special technique for a beautiful crumb on all three.

Orders close Tuesday evening, March 26th. Don't wait to reserve! We're excited to spend the Easter holiday with you.