Easter Tea with Lemon Scones

Lemon Scone!

I'm sure you all know by now how I feel about tea as a meal. I love it. If you don't know, read this post. Well, my friends, I'm not the only one who likes tea. My family likes it too. Which is why we decided to do tea for Easter, in lieu of our usual brunch or dinner.

I knew as soon as we decided to have tea that I wanted to make scones, for what is a tea without scones? Nada, that's what. I decided to make the Sour Lemon Scones from my Baked cookbook, because lemon sounded nice and Spring-y. Besides, yellow is one of the wonderful colors I associate with Easter.



I also made these lovely sandwiches.

You might not know it, but I actually really love Easter. I mostly love the colors, but I also love the candy. And the Easter Bunny. And, most of all, the memories of dressing in matching dresses that my mom made for my sister and I and going to church wearing our Sunday finest.

As for the scones, they were well received by all. I actually served them at two teas in one weekend (yes, I was so lucky!). At both teas, they were a hit. They were tender and flaky, best served fresh out of the oven, no accompaniment needed. They were just lemony enough, though I'm not sure why they are called "sour lemon" scones, as there is nothing sour about these scones. Simply delicious.



Enjoy!

 Sour Lemon Scones
from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking

4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ginger
3 sticks unsalted butter, cubed and cold
1 lrg egg
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup grated lemon zest (from about 3 lemons)
2 tbsp raw sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ginger. Whisk until combined.

Add the butter. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until the butter is pea-sized.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, 3/4 cup of the buttermilk, and the lemon zest. Slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, and then gently knead the dough with your hands until the dough starts to come together. Move the dough to a lightly floured surface. Use your hands to shape the dough into two discs (about 1 1/2 inches in height). Do not overwork the dough.

Cut each disk into 6 wedges. Place the wedges onto the prepared baking sheet. Brush each scone with the remaining buttermilk and sprinkle with raw sugar. Bake in the center of the oven for about 25 to 30 minutes (rotating the baking sheet halfway through the baking time) or until the scones are golden brown.

Transfer the scones to a cooling rack; they can be served slightly warm or completely cooled.

Note: Since I served these twice, on day one I put one of the discs, wrapped in plastic wrap, in the fridge until the next day when I was ready to bake and serve them.