Fortnum & Mason's scone recipe

After the holidays, it's nice to have a lighter schedule.  I'm enjoying the slower pace and having time to do things, like read, again.  That said, I'm happily staying busy in the kitchen in the new year.  In fact, I've been paying attention to satisfying all my random food cravings!

These cravings run the gamut, from steel cut oatmeal to veggie stews, to, of course, chocolate.  One recent craving I've been having was for scones.  I think it may have something to do with my vague idea for a Christmas afternoon tea of sorts during the holidays that I couldn't manage to make happen.  So with more time to cook more random things, it was time to make another batch of scones!

I have developed a preference for British-style scones (which are lighter, more cake-like than the American counterpart), particularly after having an amazing afternoon tea at Fortnum & Mason in London a couple of years ago.  I came home from that trip to London and wrote about making Battenberg cake and jammy dodgers and I realized I never posted about Fortnum's scones, which I've made a few times as well.  

I started making them after Fortnum published their scone recipe in their cookbook published in 2017.  I had to get my hands on some '00' flour first.  This superfine flour is common in Italian cooking, for making things like pasta; I'm happy to note that it's a lot easier to find this flour now and I can pick up a bag at my local Whole Foods.

I am admittedly quite shaky (i.e., bad) at making things like scones, biscuits, and pie dough.  But, somehow, I keep trying.  So my Fortnum scones don't come out quite as lofty, or uniform, or nearly as beautiful as the real deal.  However, they still taste wonderful!  These scones are delicate in a way - light and soft in texture, and sweet.  They are less buttery and heavy than American scones and more cake-like; they almost melt in your mouth.  After eating the latest batch this past weekend, I realize why I've been craving them! 

When I make British scones, I always get the urge to make a small batch of lemon curd to go with it.  I did just that this past weekend.  It felt so nice to sit down, split open a freshly-baked scone, and slather it with a little homemade lemon curd.  As much as I was enjoying the combination, I couldn't help but think how much I like these scones all by themselves, just enjoying the taste and texture of them.  Needless to say, I was really happy I paid attention to this particular craving and wanted to put down the recipe here.

Cream scones

Sometimes, I buy cream for a particular recipe and find myself with some leftover that I'd like to use up.  This last time, I thought I'd make some cream scones.

These cream scones are made with butter, egg, and cream - these are rich, crumbly, somewhat flaky, biscuit-like American-style scones.  They're a bit like shortbread cookies with a soft interior.  (In contrast, British-style scones are more cake-like, fluffier and softer - well-suited for splitting and topping with things like clotted cream and jam.)

Once in a while, I'll make a batch of scones and pop them in the freezer so we can have them freshly baked and warm for breakfast.  It's very easy to take them straight from the freezer and into the oven.  So this is what I had in mind and what I did.  That said, it's a struggle for me to work with this kind of American-style scone dough (so it's good to have more practice)...I find the dough generally dry and it's tricky to bring it together to shape and cut without over-handling it.

Frankly, I muddle through and do the best I can.  And while British-style scones might be better suited for splitting and slathering with jam and whatnot, I still sliced these and spread them with things like lemon curd (I use this small-batch recipe) and strawberry jam.  

That way, no one really notices if my scones aren't quite as light and tender as they could be!  

Before baking, I brushed the tops of the scones with cream and showered them with sanding sugar for a little extra color and even more texture.  As you can see, these scones are quite biscuit-like with a flaky, crunchy top and sides.  I didn't manage to slice them without breakage - be ready for lots of crumbs while eating these!

Lemon curd biscuits

Let's not stop the tea party just yet...and extend it just a teensy bit longer, shall we? I need to put the little tea cups and china I bought on our recent trip to London to good use.

So let's sit a spell and have another cup of tea.  Nothing fancy, but we need something to nibble on.  I know!  How about some lemon curd biscuits to go with our cuppa?  Doesn't that sound good?  A traditional crisp, buttery, British-style biscuit with a refreshing taste of lemon is just the thing to go with a cup of tea on a spring afternoon.  

After we braced the long lines and gawked at the crown jewels at the Tower of London, I bought a couple of souvenirs...the tea cup I'm using here and a little book full of recipes for afternoon tea.  This biscuit recipe in that book called out to me because I adore lemon (and other citrus flavors in desserts) and these biscuits actually have a bit of homemade lemon curd stirred into the dough itself to give it a nice strong lemon flavor.

The dough is a bit dry and I likely handled it a little more than I should have.  I found these biscuits best eaten the day they're made and I really enjoyed the flavor of them...a lovely blend of sweet-and-tart from the lemon curd.  The neat thing is you start the recipe by making a small batch of lemon curd.  After using a portion of it for the biscuits, you end up with a little extra lemon curd as an added bonus!

These lemon curd biscuits are great on their own.  But you know me...I dipped some in chocolate.  Absolutely not necessary but it's a near reflexive move that I can't control at times.  Either way, with or without chocolate, it's just about taking a break and enjoying simple things.  Even if it's a tea party for one sometimes, it's nice to take a moment to treat yourself.  

After the biscuits are made, you still have a small bonus amount of homemade lemon curd leftover.  It's an excellent excuse to bake a fresh batch of (British-style) scones, which is just what I did!  Maybe we have a renewed appreciation for British-style scones now because my family and I enjoyed these immensely over Sunday breakfast.  Lemon curd is simply delicious with scones! 

Use the extra lemon curd from this recipe as a spread for scones

Mini lemon phyllo tarts

Aside from all things chocolate, another dessert I often crave is a lemon tart.  There is something great about the balance of tart and sweet, the crispness of the crust versus the creaminess of the filling.   

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and don't mind jumping right back into talking about food and desserts!  Continuing the theme of mini desserts and small bites, and to satisfy my all-too-frequent craving, I recently made a small batch of these easy mini lemon tarts using prepared phyllo cups.  It's a simpler, faster - not to mention, lighter - way to satisfy that lemon tart craving.  And it's the holiday season when party foods, small bites, and variety is the name of the game.  A mini dessert like this brightens up the table and taste-wise, it's light and fresh, packed with a strong lemon punch that provides so much flavor in each small bite.  

These mini phyllo cups from the supermarket are very handy.  I usually use them for savory fillings (I'm thinking of a spin on crab cakes at my Christmas party this year) but they're naturally great for many kinds of sweet filling, including lemon curd.  

I was inspired to make these after watching a cooking show.  From it, I picked up the tip of lightly spraying the phyllo shells with cooking spray and sprinkling them with some granulated sugar before baking for them for a few minutes to help make and keep the shells really crunchy.  I made a small batch of lemon curd for the filling and topped the little tartlets with a little bit of whipped cream, to which I added some fresh lemon zest. You can leave out the whipped cream if you like but I think they make them look extra special.

These phyllo cups are so incredibly crispy, shattering in your mouth, and cushioning all that lovely tart yet sweet flavor of the lemon curd.  It's easy to eat many of these! 

I can't help but think I'd love to make some chocolate mousse tartlets and set them alternating with these lemon ones on a big platter for a holiday party. Don't you love all the food and variety we conjure up during the holiday season? Here's to many, many tasty small bites and lots and lots of celebrations to go with it in the month ahead!  

Lemon tart - inspired by Paris

You'd think that after coming home from Paris, I'd be filled with inspiration on the baking front.  That actually wasn't the case.  When I first got back, I wasn't feeling much motivation to go into the kitchen although I was craving many of those wonderful pastries we ate while we were there.  I kept wishing we were still in Paris and could walk to a pâtisserie to pick up an amazing croissant, tart or eclair.

But I'm happy to report that those initial feelings of lethargy passed fairly quickly.  Reality set in.  I do not live in Paris (but very close to New York City, which is not too shabby either) and I still love to putter around in the kitchen, playing with flour.  If anything, the trip has given me more focus - to take my time and make what I think my family and I would really like to eat and explore. 

Now, I sit here with some ideas and inspirations from Paris.  The first thing I did was make this lemon tart, or tarte au citron since we're in a French mood.  I talked about the delicious lemon tarts I tasted in Paris and I now know why the French are known for their citrus tarts.  The flavor of a lemon tart is decidedly lemon, rather than sugary sweet.  I really wanted to recapture and enjoy that flavor again so I made this lemon tart recipe from David Lebovitz, who I consider a great, approachable source on pastry and French living.

One of the things about French pastry you notice right away is the artistry.  It's not just cake but many of the creations are miniature works of art as far as flavor, textures, and the layers involved.  At the same time, though, the French excel at simplicity, using high quality ingredients, not messing around with it too much, to create something delicious.  I find that duality really interesting.  For me, I'm certainly more at home sticking with the simple but delicious, which brings me back to this tart. 

I started with what I think is the simplest tart shell there is and filled it with a fairly modest amount of lemony lemon curd.  The whole thing is quite simple to put together, especially if you do what I did and make the tart shell (up to a month) in advance, store it in the freezer, and have it ready to bake the day you plan to put the whole thing together.  The lemon curd is simply cooked over the stovetop, with an equal ratio of 1/2 cup of lemon juice to sugar so that you have a delightfully lemon result.  Most recipes call for a lot more sugar and I'm happy to report that the end result here was not too tart and the taste was very reminiscent of the tart I ate from La Maison Paul so it really brought back a happy memory for me.

When it comes to the filling, I highly recommend using organic lemons if possible.  Take a sniff of the organic variety and you'll know what I mean.  Before making this, I wrestled with whether or not to make a bit more of the lemon filling.  Ultimately, I decided to stick with the recipe and make the modest amount, which I think is perfectly suitable to everyday eating.  For me, the relatively thin layer of filling was just right.  I didn't walk away from the table feeling like I over-indulged.

Incidentally, I highly recommend a cup of hot coffee to go with a slice of this tart.  My husband and I were sharing the last slice I'd tucked away in the fridge one morning (yes, morning) and it was particularly delightful with coffee.