Ginger Scones
Although I’m up for a tea anytime, there is something about Spring that inspires me to consider tea parties. Thinking of tea parties leads me inevitably to baked goods, which is how we now arrive at the ginger scone.
These light, flaky scones have the right balance of sweetness without being sugary, and are surprisingly easy to make, especially if you have a food processor. The only tedious part is cutting crystallized ginger into tiny, tiny pieces, and fortunately, these ginger chips eliminate this time consuming step. However, if you have regular crystallized ginger, I have perfected a method of cutting the chunks into bits. First, a 1/2 cup or larger measuring cup with about a teaspoon of flour in it will be the temporary receptacle for the bits of ginger once they are cut. I flour a small cutting board just little and spray just a touch of cooking oil onto the knife (I use a paring knife) I’ll be using to cut the ginger with. Once my little cutting station is assembled, I begin breaking down the ginger with my oiled knife, and the flour on the board keeps the sticky ginger from being itself. As little piles of ginger bits materialize, I transfer them into the measuring cup with the extra flour to continue keeping the bits separated. Once I have roughly 1/3 cup of ginger bits, I gently sift out the flour from the measuring cup and continue with the recipe.
Also, a scone pan is lovely, but not mandatory. A baking sheet with parchment paper or foil is perfectly fine also, and it lends itself to more homemade looking scones. Although not included in this recipe, eggwashing the tops of the scones and then sprinkling the tops with granulated sugar before baking also adds an elegant touch.