Dried Cherry Scones

Submitted by Little Suzy Homemak

"This recipe was in the August 2008 issue of Gourmet. My husband who doesn't like pastries and sweets even said these were very good and ate half of them! They are easy to make and other dried fruits could easily be substituted (I was thinking cranberries or blueberries would be good). I didn't use cake flour but made a substitute that is 1 3/4 cup all purpose flour and 1/4 cup cornstarch to make 2 cups "cake flour substitute.""

 

• Ready In: 50mins
• Ingredients: 8
• Yields: 9 scones
• Serves: 9

ingredients

• 4 cups sifted cake flour (not self rising)
• 1⁄2 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3⁄4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 cup dried cherries
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup heavy cream

directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees with rack in middle.
2. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Scatter butter on top and blend with your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Mix in dried cherries.
3. Whisk together egg and cream in a small bowl, then fold into flour mixture until dough just comes together (dough will be quite delicate).
4. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. With floured hands press into a 1 inch thick rectangle. Use a 3 inch round cookie cutter and cut into rounds and arrange 2 inches apart on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Gather scraps and cut out additional scones.
5. Brush tops of scones with additional cream and sprinkle with sugar.
6. Bake scones, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking, until tops are golden, 25-30 minutes. Cool on a rack about 10 minutes before serving. They are also good the next day!