My brother and sister-in-law had a bumper crop of apricots this year and kindly shared some of their harvest with me. For the most part, I’ve been eating the fruit raw as a snack. However, I used a few pieces to bake a batch of fresh apricot scones with ginger and white chocolate chunks yesterday morning.
Yes, I’m headed to London tomorrow, but I couldn’t resist busting out the butter, flour and sugar one last time before my departure. No matter – I already polished off two and plan to share the rest.
These fresh apricot scones are not too sweet, a touch spicy (thanks to the addition of ginger), and perfectly moist and tender. If you fancy a tasty treat, try your hand at this easy recipe.
Fresh Apricot Scones with Ginger and White Chocolate Chunks
Makes 8 scones
Ingredients
Dough:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces
- ½ cup buttermilk (see notes*)
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
- ¾ cup fresh or frozen apricots (see notes**)
- ½ cup roughly chopped white chocolate
Finish:
- heavy cream or half-and-half
- 1 tablespoon Demerara sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the butter and rub it into the flour mixture with your fingertips until it resembles coarse meal.
- In a separate bowl, combine the buttermilk, egg, almond extract and ginger; mix well.
- Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and stir until just combined. Gently fold in the apricots and white chocolate.
- Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface and pat into a ¾"-thick rectangle. Fold the dough in half, turn it 90 degrees and pat into a ¾"-thick rectangle. Repeat the process, flouring your work surface as necessary to prevent sticking.
- Cut out scones with a round cutter and transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Press together scraps and cut out one or two more scones.
- Brush tops of scones with heavy cream or half-and-half, and sprinkle with Demerara sugar.
- Bake for 20-23 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer scones to a wire rack to cool.
Notes
*I rarely buy buttermilk because it's so easy to make with ingredients you likely have on hand. Just pour 1½ teaspoons lemon juice or white vinegar in a measuring cup and add enough milk (I used almond, but any kind will do) to hit the ½-cup line. Let the mixture sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes until curdled.
**If using fresh apricots, freeze them for at least one hour before folding them into the dough.
**If using fresh apricots, freeze them for at least one hour before folding them into the dough.
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