It's no secret, I love scones!
I've shared many combinations over the years on this blog, my favorite one being the orange and cranberry scone . . . but I must say that this one is also quite delightful.
I've had thoughts of making strawberry scones over the years, but struggled with how they would turn out using fresh strawberries.
Given that fresh strawberries contain a lot of moisture (at least the wonderfully sweet ones do), my concern was how it would affect the dough while baking. Would the added moisture create a 'soggy' scone and a barely noticeable strawberry flavor?
And so began my quest to figure out how to add real strawberries to scones without compromising the perfectly tender and light texture of the bread.
Well, I found my answer (on accident!) while browsing in the dried fruits and nut aisle at my local Trader Joe's a few weeks ago.
Freeze dried strawberries!
They're the real thing, only freeze dried. What that means is that the moisture that I was concerned about is gone. So you're left with the total sweetness of a strawberry without the added 'water.'
And I must say, these little freeze dried strawberries have a concentrated sweetness and scent that is quite intoxicating. They're so much fun to just munch on, too.
I was so excited to bring them home and try them out in my favorite sour cream scone recipe.
. . . And they were even better than I had hoped they would be!
I added white chocolate chips to the dough for a 'creamy' factor, giving them the flavor of 'strawberries & cream.'
I served my strawberries & cream scones alongside a big bowl of fresh whipped cream & fresh strawberries from our little garden. What a pleasant Summer treat!
strawberries & cream scones
. . . . . . . . .
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons COLD butter, cubed
1 cup cold sour cream
1 egg yolk
2 cups white chocolate chips
2 cups dried strawberries, roughly chopped
. . . . . . . . .
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar in the raw
. . . . . . . . .
Preparation
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In a food processor, pulse flour, sugar, baking powder,
baking soda, and salt together. Add the cubed COLD butter until a coarse meal forms.
Pulse in the sour cream and egg yolk until just combined. Add white chocolate chips and dried strawberries until just combined.
Turn the sticky dough out onto a lightly floured surface and
knead until the dough comes together into a ball.
Gently pat the dough down
into a 3/4 inch thick square shape.
Using a fluted cookie cutter, cut out shapes.
Transfer onto a parchment paper lined
baking sheet. Brush the tops of each scone with heavy cream and sprinkle it
with some sugar in the raw. This will create a shiny and crunchy top for the
scones.
Bake in preheated oven for 12 to 14 minutes until the
bottoms of the scones are light brown.
Remove from oven, cool slightly on the sheet pan and then
transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
