January 26, 2011
It took Amanda Hesser 6 years of recreating and recording 1,400 recipes to turn out this incredible new New York Times Cookbook. It took me one glance at its beautiful “Christian Louboutin red” cover to decide it was mine! In all seriousness, it actually has become my new favorite cookbook. I consult it like an oracle, “Oh wise cookbook with the gorgeous cover, share with me your fabulous recipes.” Do not underestimate the power of this book. Just the other day I asked it for the best scone recipe ever, and let me tell you, it delivered! Who says you can’t judge a book by its cover? Here’s the link if you want to buy it online (Amazon always seems to have the best prices for cookbooks).
As a special once-a-week treat, the girls and I head to Jeannine’s Bakery for scones. This is the closest recipe I have ever found to their highly addictive, and ridiculously delicious scone. My husband, “palate boy,” concurs. I am truly impressed that with minimal ingredients, we had such success. The recipe also allows for flavor additions so easily, I can’t wait to play around and experiment with it. This time, I tried it with Meyer Lemon zest, but you could really do anything you want. Get creative–it will be totally worth it! Here is the original recipe from The Essential New York Times Cookbook: May 31, 1998 “Food: Jam Session,” by Molly O’ Neill.
Makes 8 Large Scones
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ to 1 ½ cups heavy cream, plus more for brushing the scones
Position a rack in the top third of the oven. Thoroughly combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of this mixture, add 1 ¼ cups cream, and stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients with a fork. Work quickly, stirring as little as possible, until a soft, shaggy dough forms. Add more cream a tablespoon at a time if the dough seems too dry.
Divide the dough into 8 pieces (I mounded mine in balls) and place on an ungreased baking sheet, allowing at least 2 inches between the scones. Brush the top of each with heavy cream, and bake until golden, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Cooking Note from Ms. Hesser: In Step 2, I used 2 tablespoons of cream.
