veddy tasty

If you happen to be the general vicinity of western Virginia while it's happening, I highly recommend you stop by the Green Valley Book Fair. We went while on vacation last summer, and made a detour on a trip home earlier this month. It's rather like Barnes & Noble for dimes on the dollar. This time I picked up, among other things, a copy of The Best American Recipes 2001-2002. The cover snagged me right away.



Though many recipes look very promising, I tried this one first:

Blueberry Bannock Scone
from Martha Stewart Living
by cooks Hannah Milman and Susan Spungen

makes one nine-inch scone; serves 8

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
1/2 cup wheat germ
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
5 Tbsp sugar
1/3 cup unsalted butter, chilled
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs
1 cup blueberries
1 tsp water

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Lightly sprinkle a 14x16 baking sheet with flour, and set aside. In a large bowl, combine the flour, pecans, wheat germ, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and two tablespoons of the sugar.

Cut the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or fork until it has the consistency of small crumbs.

In a small bowl, combine the buttermilk and one of the eggs. Add to the flour mixture and stir until just moistened. The dough will be quite wet and sticky; work it as little as possible.

Divide the dough in half and shape one piece into a nine-inch circle on the prepared baking sheet. Spread the blueberries evenly over the circle and sprinkle with two tablespoons of the sugar. On a lightly floured piece of parchment paper, form a nine-inch circle from the remaining dough, and gently slide it onto the berries. With the backside of a knife, score the top into eight wedges.

Beat the remaining egg with the water and lightly brush the egg was over the top of the scone. Sprinkle with the remaining one tablespoon sugar.

Bake until the scone is golden brown, 20-25 minutes. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. When cool, cut into wedges and serve.

I followed those last directions (cut into wedges and serve) before I remembered to take a picture.



My modifications:
- I used 1/2 all-purpose and 1/2 whole wheat flour
- I put a piece of parchment paper on the sheet pan (to make it easier to move the scone to the cooling rack)
- I did not use a separate egg for the egg wash. I just kept the container that had held the buttermilk and the one beaten egg, added a little water, and brushed away. (You can also brush with milk instead.)
- I think it would be pretty easy to make this wheat-free. Bob's Red Mill has a great gluten-free flour. Be sure to add 1 tsp of xanthum gum to balance things out. As for the wheat germ, you might need a few more pecans or tablespoons of the gluten-free four to get the mixture to the right consistency.

Won't you have just a tiny bite?