Strawberry Cream Scones – A Valentine’s Treat

Soon to be February, my thoughts have turned to the celebration of Valentine’s Day and what an afternoon tea should look like. This Strawberry Cream Scone is a delightful addition to a Valentine’s Tea or a Spring Tea. In fact, just to have on your own is a delight. It’s treating those you love with kindness….that includes yourself!

I had never made a traditional cream scone so was anxious to try this one. Please read on and learn from my failures and successes. My first attempt was not successful, but I was determined to add cream scones to my scone repertoire and I really wanted to serve them in some upcoming Valentine’s functions. My error in the first attempt was adding too much cream – the scones looked beautiful when prepared but spread during the baking process. The dough was too wet. Though the flavor was good, I wasn’t pleased with the outcome. They didn’t have the height I wanted. My second attempt was to streamline the process and use a mini-chopper for the strawberries. Unfortunately, this macerated the strawberries and yielded too much juice. The dough was pink and gloppy. It was all thrown out. So I tried a third time and held to the 1 1/2 cup of heavy cream the recipe calls for and manually diced the strawberries. And this worked beautifully. Taste testing of course, I smiled as I indulged myself in a fresh warm strawberry cream scone with a little lemon curd. Quickly I shared my positive results with my sisters. Since we do not live close, they would have to live vicariously through my comments and pictures. Best friends forever…..

Here are the steps you want to follow: You will preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Line your baking sheet with a silicon baking mat – my preference. You can use parchment paper if you prefer but I find that my scones brown too quickly and sugar toppings burn.

Small dice the strawberries and place in a bowl. Dust the strawberries with 2 tsp of all-purpose flour. This will help the strawberries to not juice out in the scones.

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In a separate bowl, whisk together 3 cups of all-purpose flour, 1 tbsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt, and 1/3 cup sugar. Set aside.

In another bowl, measure out 1 – 1 1/2 cups of cold heavy whipping cream. Add 1 tsp of vanilla and 1 tsp of strawberry extract to the cream. I like to add the extract especially if it is off season for the strawberries. It gives that extra little taste to the scone, but will not discolor it. Mix this altogether.

Pour half of the liquid into the dry ingredients. Gently stir the mixture. Take the remaining cream mixture and pour into the batter, again being careful to not overmix but not leave pockets of flour. Fold in the strawberries. The batter will be moist but should not be wet – remember this was my major mistake in my first attempt. You can add an additional 1-2 tbsp of cream if you feel like it is too dry.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Shape the dough into a 7 inch round, making sure that the height is level. Gently press in the sides to ensure all the crumbs are incorporated into the dough. Take a sharp knife and cut into the classic triangular 8 scone. You can also use other shapes like circles or hearts if desired.

NOTE: I cut this into 12 scones if I am serving in an afternoon tea. These scones are large when cut into 8. I like to serve two scones per guest and so the 12 scones makes for the perfect size.

Take the scone and brush with cream and dust with granulated sugar. Place on your prepared baking sheet. I do this before placing on the baking sheet so to not have sugar burn on the baking pad. Place the scones 1-2 inches apart on the baking sheet.

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Chill the scones in the freezer for 15 minutes prior to baking. This is an important step and helps the scone to firm its shape. After 15 minutes, place the scones in your preheated oven. Bake for 14-16 minutes or until they are golden. Remove from the oven and immediately place on a cooling rack.

These scones freeze well unbaked or baked. They store well in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.

When serving, warm the scone up and serve with some lemon curd or Devonshire Cream. Its a delightful addition to your afternoon tea or just for yourself. I would serve this with a nice cup of Lady Londonderry, a tea tenderly infused with strawberry and lemon. Step back from your busy schedule, take a deep breath and enjoy this sweet morsel.

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