Bite-Size British Scones

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...How times have changed! A year ago entertaining one or two dozen people wouldn't phase me. I had space enough to feed large groups of people, and meals and parties came together with ease. Here's the conundrum. Our new digs are much smaller and I have to be careful if we are doing anything larger than a dinner for six or eight. This week, I'm testing how many people we can comfortably squeeze into our condo. With one group of 12 and another even larger, I've decided to serve bite-size foods that will make it possible to feed folks without setting formal places at tables for which their is no room. A gathering on Wednesday is a "coffee" and, among other things, I'll be serving two types of miniature scones. One is American and the other is British. I found the recipe for British scones in Cook’s Illustrated magazine and with their help I was able to discern how the British version differs from our own. In a British scone, flour is sealed with fat, so gluten doesn't readily form and the dough can be kneaded with an abandon that would toughen the American variety. If you have a food processor, you'll find these currant scones a breeze to make. They'll take about 10 minutes of your time to assemble and just a bit longer than that to bake. I am happy to report they are delicious. I plan to serve these two-bite morsels while they are warm. I make and freeze these well ahead of serving and warm them, while still frozen, in a 300 degree oven for about 20 minutes before serving. I do hope you'll give this recipe a try. You won't be disappointed. Here is how the scones are made.

Bite-Size British Scones...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Cook's Illustrated magazine

Ingredients:
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) of softened butter cut into 1/2 inch cubes
3/4 cups dried currants
1 cup whole milk
2 eggs

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 500 degrees F and place rack on the upper-middle position.
2) Line 2 rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Measure out all ingredients.
3) In your food processor, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and pulse until combined {5-7 pulses). Add butter to dry ingredients and pulse about 20 times, or until butter is incorporated and mixture resembles sand. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Mix currents into flour mixture and using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon stir until currents are coated with flour mixture.
4) Whisk milk and eggs together in a small bowl. Remove 2 tablespoons of mixture to a custard cup for later use. Pour remainder of liquid (14 tablespoons) into dry ingredients, folding together with rubber spatula or wooden spoon until just incorporated. The dough will be wet and sticky.
5) Turn dough onto a heavily floured surface, gather it into a ball and knead it 25 to 30 times, or until it forms a smooth ball. Using a floured wooden rolling pin, roll dough into a circle 1 to 1-1/4-inch thick. Use a floured round 1-3/4-inch cutter to shape scones. Gather dough scraps, form into ball, and roll out again to use all dough scraps.
6) Brush tops of scones with reserved 2 tablespoons of milk and egg mixture.
7) Reduce oven temperature to 425 degrees F and bake scones for 10-15 minutes, rotating halfway through baking, or until scones are golden brown. Transfer to wire cooling racks for at least 10 minutes before eating. Serve with preserves and butter. Yield:about 32 bite-sized scones.

Cook's Note: Scones can be stored in a airtight container and re-heated at 350 degrees for 5 minutes before eating.

                    

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