I have an extreme and enduring love for scones, but that also makes me very picky about them -- there are some very bad ones around. We made these for Easter brunch last weekend, and they are definitely a favorite; they're tender and flaky and not that sweet, but with a sugary top crust. I've made them several times before as well, and I find the recipe to be pretty fool-proof.  You can make these into larger scones, but I love the mini size.

Adapted from the Ovenly cookbook (which is all-around great!)

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ROSEMARY CURRANT SCONES

• 1 stick (112 grams) chilled, unsalted butter
• 3 cups (360 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar (62 grams), plus more for the tops
• 1 1/2 tablespoons (18 grams) baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup (130 grams) dried currants
• 1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 1/2 cups chilled heavy cream, plus more for brushing

Cut the butter into 1/4" chunks and place in the freezer for 10 minutes.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in the chilled butter until butter is in small pieces (smaller than pebbles). Add the currants and rosemary, and stir with a spatula to combine. Pour in the heavy cream, and stir with the spatula until the flour is almost fully incorporated; don't mix this more than you need to.

Turn the dough out onto a work surface, and divide into two even portions (if making mini scones). Working with one piece at a time, form into a rough round of dough; if it's really crumbly, you can cut the dough in two pieces, and stack them together, sandwiching the dry bits in between. Smush it back down into a small round, about 3/4" thick. Wrap well with plastic wrap, and chill until firm, about an hour. Repeat with second round of dough. (If you'd like to make larger scones, just form the dough all into one round.)

Once chilled, take the dough out and cut into 8 wedges like a pie. Wrap well and freeze.

Preheat oven to 400°. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange scones on baking sheet with at least an inch between. Brush tops with heavy cream, and then top each with a generous amount of sugar. Bake, turning once, until golden brown, 22-28 minutes. Makes 16 mini scones, or 8 large.

We made these scones last weekend for Easter brunch, and they tasted like springtime. They're cream scones with a nice delicate texture, and roasting the strawberries first with a little balsamic vinegar concentrates the strawberry flavor.

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

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ROASTED STRAWBERRY CORNMEAL SCONES

for the roasted strawberries:

• 1 ½ cups hulled strawberries, halved or quartered if large
• 1 ½ tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 ½ tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 400°. Toss together the strawberries, brown sugar, vinegar, and salt on a baking sheet lined with foil, and roast for about 25 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the berries are shrunken and the juices thicken.  Make sure you pull them out before the edges of the juices burn.

Leaving behind any excess juices, lay the roasted strawberries individually on a piece of parchment on a plate or baking sheet, and freeze for half an hour or so, until solid.

for the scones:

• 2 cups (240 grams) all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup (28 grams) cornmeal, medium or fine grind
• 1 tablespoon (12 grams) baking powder
• ½ cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon (6 grams) kosher salt
• 6 tablespoons (85 grams) cold, unsalted butter, cut into 1/2” pieces
• roasted strawberries, frozen (recipe above)
• 1 cup heavy cream, plus extra for brushing tops
• coarse sugar for sprinkling

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, and preheat oven to 425°.

Combine flour and cornmeal in the bowl of a food processor, and run for about 10 seconds or so to grind the cornmeal a bit finer. Add the baking powder, sugar, and salt and pulse to mix. Add the cold butter and pulse until the mixture resembles a crumbly meal with tiny pea-sized bits of butter. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. 

Gently stir in the frozen strawberries, so that they are coated in dry ingredients, then stir in heavy cream. When you’ve mixed it in as best you can with the spatula, go ahead and knead it once or twice in the bowl, to create one mass. Do not worry about getting the dough evenly mixed, but be careful not to overmix.

Turn the dough out onto a piece of parchment and gently roll or press the dough out to a long log, about 3 inches wide and ¾ inch thick. Cut into squares, and then each square in half to make triangular scones. (Alternatively, you can roll out to ¾ of an inch and use a biscuit cutter for round scones.) Place scones on prepared baking sheet, brush the tops with cream, and top generously with coarse sugar.

Bake the scones for 12 to 15 minutes, until well-browned at the edges.

*If you’d like to make these ahead, they freeze well; shape the scones, but don’t top with cream and sugar yet, and freeze them well-wrapped on a baking sheet. You can bake them directly from frozen – just add a couple minutes to the baking time.

Makes 12 medium-sized scones.

This is my all-time favorite granola - it's super crunchy, and the flavor of the olive oil and the salt make it just a little sweet-savory. You can adapt this in lots of ways: use whatever nuts and dried fruit you like, or leave out the dried fruit. Unsweetened coconut flakes (the large kind) are delicious, too; my husband is coconut-averse though, so we usually leave that out. This recipe doubles easily for a larger batch.

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OLIVE OIL GRANOLA

• 1 3/4 cups rolled oats
• 3/4 cups cashews (or other kind of nut)
• 2/3 cups pumpkin seeds
• 1/3 cup sunflower seeds
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup dried cherries (or other dried fruit; optional)

Preheat the oven to 300°F. In a large bowl, stir together the rolled oats, cashews, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, brown sugar, and salt. Add the maple syrup and olive oil, and stir. Spread on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 15 minutes, then give it a good stir. Do this twice more (so the granola bakes for a total of 45 minutes), or until it's golden brown and toasted. Let cool, and then stir in dried fruit, if using.

Makes 3 1/2 cups