Well, today I have good news: I changed the sheets on the bed. Which implies that I got out of bed, for a change. Crazy-talk, huh? And I actually did. A very good change, indeed. Since I have been living in the bed, literally, for a long, long time, we can all rejoice. I’m feeling better. And though progress is maddeningly slow, the antibiotics are working. The fever is gone. I find myself interested in cooking again. And leaving the house again, and all those normal things one does when one is, in fact, well.
So while I continue on my journey to health, I thought I would leave you with this recipe for scones. A really simple, but super-delicious variation on a recipe of Dorie Greenspan’s. One day last December I was just thinking about figs and dark chocolate and what a sexy combination they are. This adaptation of Dorie’s recipe is the result; the contrast between the melted chocolate, the chewy figs, and the slightly crunchy figs seeds is divine.
Dark Chocolate and Fig Cream Scones
adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking From My Home to Yours
1 large egg
2/3 cup cold heavy cream
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and chilled
1/3 cup chopped dark chocolate
1/3 cup chopped dried figs
Preheat oven to 400 degrees with a rack in the center position. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Stir the egg and cream together in a small bowl. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Drop in the chilled butter pieces, and toss to coat the butter with the flour mixture. Working quickly, using your fingers or a pastry blender, rub or cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is pebbly. (A mixture of tiny pieces, flakes, pea-sized pieces, etc.)
Pour the egg and cream mixture over the butter/flour mixture and stir with a fork just until the dough comes together. It will be wet and sticky. Add the chocolate and the figs. Knead the dough in the bowl gently about 8 to 10 times.
Lightly dust a surface with flour and turn the dough onto the floured surface. Divide it in half. Pat each piece into a rough circle about 5 inches in diameter, cut into 6 wedges, and place on the prepared baking sheet. (At this point the scones can be frozen on the sheet, then wrapped airtight. Don’t defrost before baking – just add 2 minutes to the total baking time.) In the picture above, I left the dough as one piece, patted the dough into one large circle and cut the dough into 8 wedges.
Bake the scones for 20 to 22 minutes, or until the tops are golden. Transfer to a rack and cool for 10 minutes before serving. (I’ve found it necessary to be absolutely certain the oven has reached the full 400 degrees – I check with an oven thermometer – before putting the scones in. If the oven is still heating up at all, the edges of the scones will brown too quickly. My oven cheats a bit and beeps to tell me the oven is pre-heated to the right temperature when it still needs to heat up about 20 more degrees!)
