I am not much of a blueberry muffin eater. I think I have had so many bad cafeteria and coffee shop versions that I am a little averse, though my Blueberry Cobbler Loaf or Maple Blueberry Loaf hit the spot. So, I do love baking with fresh, in season summer blueberries. I sometimes make blueberry biscuits, but as I prepare for my summer trip to London the idea came to me for a British-style scone with the ultimate English twist of Earl Grey tea. And the result is a lovely, tender scone with juicy pops of blueberry and lovely undertone of bergamot-tinged tea. I am so pleased with the result. The scone itself is not cloyingly sweet, so I love a little drizzle of glaze. A recipe like this makes me want to host an afternoon tea, but these are a treat for breakfast too.
Cold butter and cold dough helps keep scones (or biscuits) light and puffy. And grating butter to add to the dough is a genius way to ensure you have those small pieces of butter that melt in the oven and create steam pockets that lift the dough, creating flaky pockets. Hard fridge cold is good, frozen is even better. Freezing the prepared scone dough prevents them from spreading out and helps them to rise up. I cut these into rectangles or squares because, frankly, it is the easiest way, but you can certainly pat the dough into a round and cut wedges, or cut with a round biscuit cutter. I love these with a good swipe of butter, but blueberry jam would not go amiss, or some rich clotted cream. These also make a great base for a blueberry shortcake, split and piled high with whipped cream and blueberries. You can make these ahead by freezing the dough as instructed until firm, then storing in a ziptop bag. Bake from frozen, adding some cooking time and glazing as below. The glaze is in fact optional, but I love that little hit of sweetness it adds.
Ingredients
- For the Scones
1 Earl Grey teabag
½ cup boiling water
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup granulated sugar
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ cup unsalted butter, cold or frozen
¼ cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing
1 large egg
1 heaping cup fresh blueberries (1 pint)
Coarse, turbinado or cane sugar for sprinkling
- For the Glaze
¾ cup confectioners’ sugar
1 Tablespoon tea
1 Tablespoon heavy cream
Directions
- For the Scones
- Put the teabag in a measuring jug and pour over ½ cup boiling water. Leave to steep until completely cool.
- Line small rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Put the flour, sugar and baking powder in the bowl of a stand mixer. Pulse the mixer a few times to combine. Mix ¼ cup of the cold tea and ¼ cup of cream in a separate mixing jug or small bowl (sve the remaining tea for the glaze). Add the egg and beat well. Grate the butter into the flour woth th large holes of a box or other grater. Mix on low speed until the butter is mixed into the flour in pea-sized pieces. Dump in the tea and cream mix and mix on medium low until the dry ingredients are mostly imcorporated, then dump in the blueberries and and mix a few more times. Take the bowl of the stand and use you hands to blend in the last of the dry ingredeints and distribute the blueberries. Be gentle, don’t over mix or knead.
- Put a tea towel on the counter and lightly sprinkle it with flour. Dump the dough onto the towel and press it out into a rectangle about 6 by 8 inches and 1 inch thick. Square the sides with a bench scraper or large knife, then cut into 6 pieces. Place the scones close together on the baking sheet and freeze for 20 minutes.
- Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Brush the tops of the scones lightly with cream then sprinkle a light layer of coarse sugar over the top. Bake for 20 – 25 minutes, until golden brown and a tester inserted in the center comes out dry. Cool of 5 minutes on the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- For the Glaze
- Whisk the confectioner’ sugar, tea and cream together to a smooth glaze. Drizzle over the scones and leave to set.
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