Meyer Lemon and Dried Strawberry Scones

While it's been bitter and brutally cold here in Chicago for the past few weeks (and about to get even colder), it must be warm someplace because some great citrus fruits have been showing up in my local produce market. Sweet Meyer lemons, tart blood oranges, and the usual array of grapefruits and oranges.

Last week I made macarons with Meyer lemons (which were pretty tasty), but this only used 2 out of the 4 that come in a bag. So I had more to use. And I also had some very tasty (and tart) sweetened dried strawberries that I picked up when traveling recently. This combination of two sweet-tart flavors seemed intriguing, so I decided to try them together in a scone for brunch this morning.

Scones are an odd genre because recipes range all over the map. Some are dry and flaky; others soft and spongy. Some are intended primarily as a delivery device for clotted cream or lemon curd; others are loaded with currants, nuts or other fruits. Some even have chocolate chips. The defining characteristic seems to be something that could plausibly be eaten with tea or coffee, and probably has some butter in it.

One of my favorite scone recipes for modifying with additions, though, has been one from Alice Medrich's Pure Dessert. Her book is all about bringing out simple flavors from natural grains and sweeteners, so it's a bit ironic that the recipe works so well with additions. But it really does. It's also a unique scone recipe because she replaces some of the flour with stone-ground corn meal for a bit of coarseness and crunch. That coarseness seemed like an asset in this context.

Using her recipe as a starting point, I made a few simple modifications. I didn't have any buckwheat flour (which she calls for), so I used whole wheat instead. Plus I zested one of my Meyer lemons and mixed the zest into the sugar for the batter, and added about 3/4 cup of dried strawberries into the batter. I also used the juice of the Meyer lemon to make a thin powdered sugar glaze to lightly coat the tops.

The result was tasty, with some sweetness and tartness coming from both the lemon (glaze and zest) and the strawberries in their occasional bursts, and crunchiness from the corn mean. There's not a lot of sugar, so they weren't too sweet. I'd make them again, I think.

Here's the recipe (modified from Pure Dessert, by Alice Medrich):

1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1.5 cups (6 oz) all-purpose flour
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup stone-ground corn meal
1/3 cup sugar (mixed with the zest of 1 Meyer lemon)
2.5 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut in pieces
3/4 cup sweetened dried strawberries.

Whisk the egg with the milk and cream; set aside.

In a stand mixer with the paddle, mix the dry ingredients thoroughly and then add the butter a few pieces at a time. Mix at medium-low speed until the butter is broken down into small (pea-sized) pieces, but is still clearly visible. Stir in the dried strawberries.

Pour the wet ingredients over the dry and fold together with a rubber spatula until all the dry ingredients are just moist.

Gather the dough together, press any loose pieces into it, and put it on a floured surface (or Silpat). Press it into a disk about 3/4" thick. Slice into 8 wedges. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Place each wedge on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake at 425 F for 10-13 minutes, until golden brown.

Prepare a glaze of 2-3 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice and 1 cup powdered sugar. Brush over the scones once partially cool.