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Summer marks the beginning of the berry season here in the Northwest. Strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackcaps and of course huckleberries begin their glorious arrival.
This recipe for Sourdough Scones with Lemony Glaze came about after I ended up with extra blackberries after a catering event, and wanted to use up some extra sourdough discard,(sourdough starter) I had in my fridge.
Let me just say right away, the sourdough starter gives the scones an earthy robust flavor that pairs beautifully with sweet and tangy berries.
what is sourdough starter/discard?
Sourdough Starter is often referred to as “wild yeast”, made from flour and water and the wild yeast in the air around us,and it is typically used as the “yeast” when baking Sourdough Bread. The sourdough “discard” – the part of the starter that often goes to waste- can be used to make flavorful scones, biscuits, wafflesand pancakes.
what can you do with sourdough discard?
- Make Sourdough Waffles!
- Make Sourdough Pancakes!
- Make Sourdough Biscuits
- Make Sourdough Buns!
- Make Sourdough Tortillas!
A few days ago, on a camping trip in Idaho, we stumbled upon a patch of wild strawberries. In size, they were the smaller than a pea, yet surprisingly, bursting with so much strawberry flavor, it was hard to believe the flavor was real and not manufactured. It was as if all the strawberry flavor of a regular-sized strawberry was packed into their tiny little bodies, they were so intense and delicious!
For the tastiest berries, head to your local farmers market. There, produce is picked right before it is sold, given time to ripen on the vine. Much of the produce that finds its way to our grocery stores have been picked early for travel, ripening off the vine, producing a fruit or vegetable that often lacks flavor and vibrancy.
How to get the best looking Berry Scones?
When making berry scones, an easy way to make them so you can actually see the berries after they are baked is to line a cake pan with plastic wrap or parchment. Place a layer of fresh berries on the bottom of the pan.
Then gently press in your scone dough over the berries. Freeze for a couple of hours. Invert, then cut into wedges. This way, the berries are on the top of the scone. Cutting them into wedges when frozen makes it easy to get uniform pieces. If the dough is too hard to get the knife through, just let thaw for 15-20 minutes on the counter.
Let them thaw on a parchment– lined baking sheet before baking.
How to make Sourdough Scones- Tips
Whenever you follow a recipe calling for flour, make sure to mix the container of flour before measuring, fluffing it up. If flour sits for too long in the bag or canister, it will settle and get heavy and dense. Giving a quick mix with a wooden spoon will add air to it and will ensure that you don’t end up with too much flour in the recipe. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup.
The basic recipe is easy, just read it over once before starting. Use cold butter, and don’t leave out the lemon zest. Don’t overwork the dough, which will release the gluten in the flour and cause the scones to be chewy.
Place wedges on a parchment-lined baking sheet, spaced 2 inches apart, let thaw, and bake for 18-24 minutes.
More recipes you may enjoy:
Sourdough Scones
- Prep Time: 170
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 2 hours 50 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
- Category: breads, scones,
- Method: baked
- Cuisine: pacific northwest
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
An easy recipe for Sourdough Scones with Berries and Lemon Glaze using Sourdough Starter! Plus an easy tip to help keep your berries intact! Vegan Adaptable!
Ingredients
Scones:
- 2 cup fresh or frozen blackberries (or raspberries or other berries)
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (see notes)
- zest from one lemon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup cold butter- sliced into 8 pieces ( or vegan butter)
——-
- 1 cup sourdough starter (275 grams)
- 1/3 cup milk or cream (or nut milk, plus more if necessary)
——-
1 beaten egg, for brushing, optional
Lemony Glaze:
- 1/4 cup Fresh Lemon Juice
- 1 cup powdered Sugar
- 1 tablespoon butter (optional)
Instructions
- Line an 8-inch cake pan with parchment and fill with 2 cups fresh berries. If your berries are very tender, freeze for 30-60 minutes beforehand, this way they will hold their shape ( and not smash) a little better.
- In a food processor, pulse flour, lemon zest, salt, baking powder, baking soda and sugar. Pulse in cold butter until mixture resembles coarse sand.
- In a small bowl mix milk and sourdough starter together. Add the starter mixture to the food processor and pulse until it just forms a ball (just a few times) adding a little more milk only if necessary. Dough should be heavy and thick. Don’t overwork it.
- Spread the dough over the berries and press down gently, into all the corners with your fingers. Place in the freezer for 2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 400F. Remove dough from the freezer and invert on cutting board. Let sit a few minutes or longer until thawed enough to cut. Cut into 8 equal size pie shape wedges. Brush with beaten egg (optional). Space them 2 inches apart (they will puff and spread a bit) on parchment-lined baking sheet, let thaw 20-30 minutes and bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.
- While baking, make the glaze. Stir sugar into lemon juice in a small pot on the stove until dissolved. Whisk in butter (optional). Set aside. Drizzle over warm scones.
Notes
If you prefer to mix berries into the dough itself- using frozen berries makes this much easier. Simply fold them into the dough, and no need to freeze the dough. This will save time here!
If subbing other flours- just start with 1/2 cup. (For example, 1/2 cup whole wheat mixed with 2 cups white.) You can tweak it from there, the next time. 🙂
Nutrition
- Calories: 325
Keywords: sourdough scones, blackberry scones, how to makes scones with starter, best blackberry scone recipe
When starting a starter should you cover with cheesecloth or a solid lid as you did in the video?
Also, during the first week, do I have to wait until the starter falls before feeding again or discard and feed while it’s grown to the top or even over the top of the jar?
I like a solid lid, so it doesn’t get overly dry. I would wait until after it has peaked. It doesn’t need to fall all the way down, but just be on its way down -if that makes sense.
Great. Thank you.
My starter has been very active, I can’t wait to bake.
★★★★★
Awesome Anthony!
Ok. This is my last comment. My starter has been very active since day 2. On day 5 my starter rose from 300ml to 1000 ml. I didn’t feed it right away, it peaked and fell. I fed it 24 hours after the first feed instead of 12. Later it became more like pancake batter and lost its elasticity. I’ve fed it 2x, 12 hours apart since then, will it recover. What should the consistency be after 7-10 days when it’s ready to use and being maintained.
Thank you in advance.
Anthony
Hi Anthony- It doesn’t need to be your last comment 😉 The consistency of the starter will change depending if it’s fed, or if it is hungry. The starter will get looser, “runnier” as it gets more hungry. So there is no “set” consistency. When you feed it it is thick, like a thick paste. As it digests the flour, it gets runny. As long as it is getting runny or you see bubbles, it is still active and alive. But you want to see that consistent rise, or doubling. Read thorugh the trouble shooting section. You are so close. 🙂