Fresh Milled Sourdough Scones

Teatime nostalgia + a recipe for overnight sourdough scones

Teatime holds a deep sense of nostalgia for me, as my mom brewed a pot of tea almost every afternoon in the latter years of my childhood. Jasmine pearl tea, coconut pouchong, and vanilla almond were (are) a few of our favorites. Sometimes we had tea with cookies, biscotti, or scones, and other times, it was simply time to sip and watch an episode of Little House on the Prairie together as the afternoon turned into evening. This time became a grounding rhythm in our home, and we often invited nearby family and friends over to share afternoon tea with us.

On special occasions, we would visit a little teahouse on the main street of historic Jacksonville, OR - each room had it’s own theme. When you arrived, you could choose which room you wanted to sit in. Tiered trays of little sandwiches were placed on the table alongside cups of their rich chicken and leek soup, tiny bowls of sugar cubes, and little pitchers of cream. Personal tea pots were filled with a tea of choice and covered with tea cozies. Many years of special occasions were spent with family and friends at that little cottage on main street.

When I turned eighteen, a dear family friend gifted me a teapot of my very own, made by a well known English potter, and purchased from our little teahouse. That teapot made its way across the country when I moved as a naive newly wedded nineteen year old - little did I know how special the teapot, and other heirlooms would be to me as the years unfolded.

The yellow teapot found itself next to my chair as I rocked newborn babies and on the homeschool table as my children learned about sea life and the civil war and long division. It has sat on a tray for long conversations with friends and family - in person and across the miles. Teatime symbolizes a thread that has woven its way through the story of my life, and now my children’s lives.

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Teatime at the cabin with littles and my grandpa and grandpa - miss them so. Homeschool days - also miss them so. Facetime tea with my mama and sis (still happens weekly.)

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Teatime’s perfect companion is a warm, fluffy scone. They can be sweet, savory, or a little of both.

When working on this recipe, I wanted it to be adaptable and simple. You can select an inclusion from the list below, or simply bake these plain, with a bit of flake salt or sugar sprinkled on top. These are best when proofed overnight on a cookie sheet in the refrigerator, to let the sourdough do it’s work and to chill the ingredients before baking.

I recommend using a soft wheat for this recipe, as the scones will come out lighter and fluffier. All I have on hand right now is hard red and white wheat, and though these were still delicious, they were a bit dense/bready.

Once my soft wheat berries come in, I will give the recipe another go around and report back! If you have soft wheat berries and try the recipe, let me know how it goes!

Inclusion ideas:

• chocolate chips

• cranberries and orange zest

• blueberries and lemon zest

• roasted garlic and herb

• crumbled bacon and chive or cheddar

• cinnamon and sugar

• pumpkin spice

• apple cinnamon

Fresh Milled Teatime Scones

makes 8 scones

Ingredients

• 285 grams, about two cups, of fresh milled flour. If using soft wheat, increase by 1/4 cup

• 1 tsp or 5 grams salt

• 45 grams or 1/4 cup sugar (I used maple sugar)

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 cup cold butter (frozen works best)

• 1 egg

• 1 tsp vanilla

• 80 grams, or about 1/3 cup milk

• 70 grams, or about 1/3 cup sourdough starter

optional

• zest of one lemon

• 3/4 cup frozen blueberries

Method

1. Prepare cookie sheet. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

2. Mix dry ingredients + add inclusions. Combine fresh milled flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder in a medium sized bowl. If you are adding mix ins, now is the time to add them to the dry ingredients.

3. Incorporate butter. Using a cheese grater, grate cold butter into the bowl of dry ingredients, then combine by using a pastry cutter, or your hands.

4. Mix wet ingredients. In another bowl, mix egg, vanilla, milk, and sourdough starter.

5. Combine wet and dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients to dry, and mix with a danish whisk or your hands, but do not over mix. Just bring everything together until there are no dry bits left in the bowl.

6. Press dough into round. Dump dough out onto parchment lined cookie sheet and using your hands, press it into a round that is about 8” in diameter, and 1/2” thick.

7. Slice scones. Using a pizza cutter or knife, cut dough into 8 slices, like you are cutting a pie or a pizza. Cover with beeswrap or plastic.

8. Move to the refrigerator for at least 1 hour, and up to 48 hours, before baking.

9. Brush with cream/sprinkle with sugar + bake. When ready to bake the scones, preheat the oven to 375º and remove the scones from the fridge. Brush the tops with a bit of cream or milk and sprinkle sugar on top. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden.

10. Cool and serve. Remove scones from the oven and let them cool for a few minutes before moving to a plate and serving.

Fresh Milled Sourdough Scones

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If you missed the note I posted earlier in the week, I did some troubleshooting with my sourdough chocolate chip cookie recipe and they are now perfection! My family keeps begging me to make another batch.

You would never know these are made with fresh milled flour. Give the recipe a try this weekend, if you haven’t yet, and let me know how you like them!