I'm really excited to share this date scone recipe with you Dear Reader! These soft and fluffy date and ginger scones are one of the most delicious and easy scones you can make! I think they're one of the best scones I've ever made (also judging from the reaction from my usually scone apathetic friends and family).
This is another pushy recipe courtesy of one of my loveliest readers Robbie who gifted me with a Sicilian Pear and Chocolate Cake recipe among other recipes. I did fiddle with these date scones but minimally, just adding some crystallised ginger to the combination. Okay I also added a salted maple drizzle on top because I can't help myself. I am notoriously fussy and fuss and fret over things.
Mr NQN doesn't like scones. In fact they're among his least favourite foods. To him they're dry and whenever go out to afternoon tea I get his share. Nina is also on a very low gluten diet and both of them devoured their scones and then had seconds (Mr NQN has thirds) all in one sitting.
Recently, I started fussing and fretting because we went away for a holiday for my birthday. That meant that we had to find someone to look after Mochi for just under 2 weeks. Usually we would ask my mother but she didn't want to. And our neighbour upstairs who brought her to us and often looks after her was overseas. Nina who was another choice is busy with her own new bundle of energy Marley.
So we found a pet sitter and left Mochi with her after meeting up and checking out her house. She had her own cavoodle puppy and was looking after a large dog that barked a lot but was friendly to other dogs. Mochi seemed at home there and at ease with the other dogs. We also hoped that she would become more comfortable with other dogs as she had very little contact with dogs during the first 8 years of her life.
"Don't ever feel like you're bombarding me with pictures," I said to the dog sitter hoping that she would do just that. I needed my Mochi fix as I missed her so much. She sent me 3 pictures or videos a day and she quickly learned that Mochi just wants to be somewhere soft and comfortable and next to a human. I wondered whether she would be upset at us for "abandoning" her.
When we picked her up after 2 weeks she was shaking with excitement and easily fell back into our family unit. Another delightful thing was that she no longer barks at other dogs when she comes to cafes with us. She greets them and is more curious about them (although she still doesn't understand the butt sniffing thing yet). So it's never too late to learn new tricks.
Or scone recipes! ;)
So tell me Dear Reader, do you like scones? And do you like trying new recipes or do you tend to use recipes that you've tried and tested before? Do you fiddle with recipes?
Date & Ginger Scones With Salted Maple Drizzle
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1/4 cup chopped crystallised ginger plus 2 tablespoons extra for decorating
3/4 cup icing sugar
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon maple syrup
Pinch of salt
Step 1 - Preheat oven to 220C/440F and line a round or rectangular baking tray with parchment. Blitz the flour, sugar, butter and salt until the texture is like fine crumbs. Then place this in a bowl and knead in the buttermilk, soda water, dates and ginger. Do not overknead. Then shape into a round around 1 inch high. Cut wedges with a knife or a dough scraper. Bake for 15 minutes.
Step 2 - Sift icing sugar and mix with the water, maple syrup and add salt until it hits that sweet salty pleasure point. Place in a piping bag and drizzle over the scones and decorate with ginger pieces. Serve with double cream.
Once you've cut out your scone shapes, flip them over and place upside down on the baking tray. This will help them rise evenly and counteract any 'squashing' that happened when you cut out the dough. Perfect scones should rise to about 2 inches high.
We recommend using all-purpose flour. There is some debate as to what flour one should use to go around achieving the perfect scone. This is because within different flours comes different levels of protein.
Keep scone dough as cold as possible. To avoid over-spreading, I recommend chilling the shaped scones for at least 15 minutes in the refrigerator before baking. In fact, you can even refrigerate overnight for a quick breakfast in the morning! Bake until golden brown.
First and foremost, brilliant scones are about having the confidence to do as little as possible. The less you knead the mix, the less the gluten will tighten up – which means your scones will stay loose and crumbly, rather than tight and springy. Make sure you sieve the flour and baking powder into your bowl.
They are typically extremely high in calories from the heavy butter and cream. And, although scones with fruit might seem healthier, most are even higher in calories and still high in saturated fat. Steer clear of scones.
The explanation is simple: As with other doughs, including pizza dough, resting lets scone dough's gluten relax completely, so that it doesn't snap back during shaping or baking.
Bake scones in a 425°F oven for 18 to 23 minutes, until they're a very light golden brown. Don't over-bake; dark scones will be dry. Break one open to check for doneness: the interior shouldn't appear doughy or wet, but should feel nicely moist.
American scones use much more butter than British scones, and they usually have quite a bit more sugar. The extra butter is what makes them so much denser. This is not really a good or bad thing, as British scones pile on plenty of sugar (in the form of preserves/jam) and butter or clotted cream as toppings.
Over-kneading your dough will result in scones and biscuits that are tough, dense, or rubbery. The longer you knead the dough, the stronger the gluten network will be. We want just enough gluten for the scones to hold their shape, but not so much that we sacrifice the light and flaky texture.
The two come in combination as bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) is an alkaline and needs the addition of an acid, such as cream of tartar, to create the carbon dioxide that causes the scones to rise. The amount of cream of tartar - 4 1/2 teaspoons - is correct.
Not sure whether to use baking soda or baking powder? You can use baking soda if you've added an acidic ingredient to the dough (e.g. buttermilk, vinegar, lemon juice). Use baking powder if you have not added anything acidic.
When cold butter is rubbed into the flour, it creates flaky pockets of flavour (which soft, room temperature butter can't do). Once the cold butter and liquid (e.g milk) hits the oven, the water in the butter and cold liquid begins evaporating.
Scones can be made either with self-raising flour or with plain flour and baking powder. Sweet scones and cheese scones have an egg added to enrich them. Both will rise but whatever scone you make its important that they are handled lightly and not rolled too thinly.
Overworking the dough: when you overwork your dough, your scones can come out tough and chewy, rather than that desired light, crumbly texture. The trick is to use light pressure and only the work the dough until it just comes together.
First, make sure you're using fresh baking powder, one that has been opened less than 6 months ago. Also, if you knead the dough too much, the scones won't rise as tall. Knead gently, and just enough to bring the dough together. Adding more flour also prevents the dough from rising as high, so only dust lightly.
Butter must be COLD from the very start to when the dough enters the oven. The cold butter melts upon entering the oven and the water content in butter evaporates in steam. As the steam escapes, it bursts up and creates that beautiful tall, flaky, fluffy texture.
Introduction: My name is Eusebia Nader, I am a encouraging, brainy, lively, nice, famous, healthy, clever person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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