I’ve never eaten a scone in my life before making these.  I had leftover buttermilk in my fridge after making Bacon Cheddar Cornbread, and wanted to put it to good use, so I tried making scones.  I sampled one as soon as they were cool enough to eat and thought it was pretty tasty, but having zero scone expertise, I was clueless as to whether or not they tasted like actual scones.  So I phoned a friend.  A very dear friend who happens to be British which in my mind, more than qualified her to be Official Taster And Judge of the Scones (or scaaaahns, as she calls them).  Her review?  They were more moist than most other scones she’s eaten, but she prefers them to be less dry.  Final verdict?  Delicious!  …and scone-like!

Lemon Poppy Seed Scones
Yield:  8 servings
Time:  15 minutes active;  35 minutes total

Scones:
1½ cups flour
3 tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
zest of one lemon
1½ tbsp. poppy seeds
5 tbsp. ice-cold butter
1 tbsp. lemon juice
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 egg
coarse sugar (I use Sugar In The Raw)

Glaze:
¾ cup confectioner’s sugar
½ tsp. vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)
1 tsp. poppy seeds

1.  Preheat the oven to 400°F.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and lightly spray with baking spray.

2.  In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, lemon zest, and poppy seeds.  Mix well to evenly distribute all ingredients, and to prevent over-mixing of the wet batter.  (Handling the moist dough as little as possible will produce the most tender scones.)

3.  Using a pastry blender, quickly cut the cold butter into the dry ingredients, creating a coarse meal.  The butter should be cut into pieces roughly the size of small peas.  (If the butter is too soft or cut too small, the scones can turn out coarse and dense.)

4.  In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the lemon juice and buttermilk.  Create a well in the middle of the flour mixture and pour in the lemony buttermilk.  Stir with a wooden spoon until just combined, being careful to not over-mix.  Knead gently with your hands if necessary to incorporate all of the flour.  Place the dough on a lightly floured cutting board, creating a circle that’s roughly one-inch thick.  Cut the circle like a pizza into 8 slices.  Transfer each slice to the prepared cookie sheet, leaving room between pieces for them to expand.

5.  Beat the egg and brush onto the surface of each slice of dough.  Sprinkle with coarse sugar, and bake at 400°F for 16-18 minutes, until golden brown on top.  Allow to cool completely.

6.  To make the glaze, whisk together the confectioner’s sugar, vanilla, and poppy seeds.  Drizzle over cooled scones and set aside until the glaze is fully dried.

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