Marble Scones - Country Cooking
Submitted by cmof
Marble scones with swirls of vanilla and chocolate dough folded together, made with buttermilk and real butter. A beautiful, flaky breakfast pastry with two-tone appeal.
YIELD
8 sconesPREP
10 minCOOK
20 minREADY
30 minTwo doughs, one vanilla and one chocolate, folded and kneaded just enough to create dramatic marble swirls through each flaky scone. The technique is simpler than it looks and the result is a breakfast pastry that’s as pretty as a bakery display case.
Start with one batch of buttermilk scone dough with butter cut in until crumbly. Split the flour mixture, add melted chocolate to one portion and plain buttermilk-vanilla to the other. You now have two soft doughs: one light, one dark.
The marbling happens by dotting chunks of chocolate dough over the plain dough and folding just 5 or 6 times. Don’t over-knead or the colors blend into a muddy gray instead of clean, distinct swirls. Roll, cut into wedges, and bake.
Kitchen Tips
- Keep the butter cold when cutting it in. Cold butter creates steam pockets during baking, which is what makes scones flaky.
- Only knead 5 to 6 times for the marble. More than that and you lose the contrast between the two doughs.
- Pierce the tops with a fork before baking. This lets steam escape and prevents the scones from puffing unevenly.
- Serve warm from the oven for the best texture. Scones stiffen as they cool.
Variations
- Fold in mini chocolate chips for pockets of melted chocolate throughout.
- Brush the tops with cream and sprinkle with coarse sugar before baking for a sparkly, crunchy crust.
- Use cocoa powder instead of melted chocolate for the dark dough for a less sweet version.
Ingredients
Directions
- Heat oven to 425’F. Grease large baking sheet. In large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.
With pastry blender or 2 knives, cut the butter in until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
Remove 1¼ cup flour mixture to medium-size bowl.
- In small bowl, combine buttermilk and vanilla. In cup, combine ¼ cup buttermilk mixture and the chocolate.
Add remaining buttermilk mixture to remaining flour mixture in large bowl and mix lightly with fork until it clings together and forms a soft dough.
Add chocolate mixture to the reserved 1¼ cup flour mixture in medium-size bowl and stir with fork until it forms a soft dough.
- Turn both doughs out onto lightly floured surface; divide Dot 3 chocolate pieces over surface of plain dough. Fold plain dough over and dot with remaining 3 pieces chocolate dough; knead 5 or 6 times to marbleize dough. Divide dough in half. With lightly floured rolling pin, roll one half of dough into a 7-inch round. Cut into 4 wedges. Repeat with remaining half of dough.
- Place scones, 1 inch apart, on greased baking sheet. Pierce tops with tines of fork.
- Bake scones 15 to 18 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.
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