Fruits of August Tea Party: Blackberry Cornmeal Scones

What good is a tea party without scones? For the Fruits of August Tea Party, I wanted to have scones, but didn't want to take the risk of trying a new recipe. I'd been burned before. So I turned to trusted baker Dorie Greenspan. Her oatmeal nutmeg scones are among my favorites to grace the tea table. But nutmeg and oatmeal just felt too autumnal for a tea party meant to celebrate late summer! So I adapted. Literally.

​Thankfully, they turned out DIVINE. I will definitely make these cornmeal scones again. They are the classic scone - crisp, flaky, not-too-dry, but not gummy. I was worried about folding in whole blackberries, but it worked out wonderfully, with some careful handling. Here's my adapted recipe:

Blackberry Cornmeal Scones

Freshly baked scones cooling on a wire rack.

I've long known that you can substitute whole grains for at least 1/3 of the flour in just about any recipe and still have it turn out. Cornmeal especially can be tricky if you use more. So since Dorie's recipe called for 1 2/3 cups of all-purpose flour and 1 1/3 cups of rolled oats, I thought I'd try my luck with a 2:1 ratio for cornmeal. Foolishly, I'd forgotten to buy buttermilk, but a substitute of whole milk and some bottled lemon juice did the trick. 

1 egg
1/2 cup cold buttermilk (or scant 1/2 cup milk with a tablespoon of lemon juice, let set to "turn")
2 cups all-purpose flour 
1 cup medium stoneground cornmeal (I used Bob's Red Mill)
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter (1 stick, plus 2 tablespoons)
not quite a pint of whole blackberries

Preheat the oven to 400 F. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and buttermilk. In a larger bowl, whisk all dry ingredients together, than cut in butter (I sliced my stick of butter three times lengthwise, and then turn halfway, three times lengthwise again, and then crosswise to make small, squishable cubes). Add egg mixture and toss with a fork until mostly combined. Knead a few times until the remaining flour is absorbed, then turn out onto a floured surface. Pat into a large circle, then place whole washed (and dried!) blackberries on top. Carefully fold the dough until the blackberries are largely encased - don't overwork the dough or it will be tough. Divide into two rounds and cut into small wedges. 

Bake on parchment on a large sheet pan on the center rack for 20-22 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer from sheet pan to a wire baking rack to cool. Serve warm with plenty of honey butter!

Simple Honey Butter

1 stick softened salted butter
1/4 cup or more liquid honey (I used local raw)
salt to taste

Mix the softened butter well with a fork in a small bowl, then add the honey. Add more to taste and extra salt if needed. Serve room temp or slightly chilled with the hot scones. Try not to eat the whole batch and a whole stick of butter by yourself. 

Two split and honey-buttered blackberry cornmeal scones on my pretty purple plate.

Do you have a favorite way to eat cornmeal? Blackberries? Do you love scones as much as I do? Share your comments and stay tuned for more recipes.