Lemon Poppy Seed Scone
I am deeply attracted to the taste that lemon and poppy seed offer to baked sweets. I made a batch of scones on Saturday morning and ate another this morning with my cup of coffee before going to work. I will share with you my recipe. It is straight forward with no frills or tricks added. This is a very well tested recipe and I have been using it as a standard in my Coffee Corner coffee shop back in 1996. If you are interested…the scone is related to shortbread. We will be making a classic coffee house delight and it is easy and basic in its preparation. Let’s make some scones.
Recipe
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup sugar
1⁄4 tsp salt
2 tbsp poppy seeds
2 tbsp lemon zest
1⁄2 cup unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2/3 cup half and half or buttermilk (I use buttermilk if it is in my refrigerator)
3 tbsp heavy cream
Icing
1⁄2 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest
- Preheat the oven to 425 ̊F.
- Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. (I always use parchment or my new baking mats which are great)
- Place the flour, baking powder, salt, poppy seeds, and lemon zest in a bowl. Combine well.
- Add the cold butter and continue cutting in the cold butter until the mixture is in small, pea-size pieces. Transfer to a larger bowl.
- Whisk together the egg, buttermilk, and lemon juice. Pour into the dry ingredients and work in to form a rough dough (do not over work).
- Turn out the dough onto a floured surface or in my case directly onto the parchment.
- Form the dough into pie shape . Using a knife cut into 8 triangles.
- Separate the scones 1 to 2 inches apart on the baking sheet.
- Brush with heavy cream.
- Bake the scones until firm to the touch and golden, 18 to 20 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and transfer to a rack to cool.
To make the icing:
Whisk together the confectioners’ sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest in a bowl.
Once the scones have cooled slightly, spread roughly 1 teaspoon of icing on each scone.
This is a great recipe with some decent technique training involved. You learn to cut butter into flour to make a lumpy primitive dough. Plus you learn to zest a lemon