Enjoy a spot of tea and these delicious Black Currant Scones. You’ll be surprised how easy they are to make!
They are a delicious addition to your Tea Party Foods, alongside Cucumber and Cream Cheese Sandwiches and some Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies.
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I think it’s fair to say that when we were London this fall, we became smitten with anything English. We had such a good time eating in pubs, riding atop double decker buses, trying new foods, and otherwise enjoying another culture without too much of a language barrier.
My husband did order white bread and get wheat one day. And we did have to learn the difference between lemonade (lemon-lime soda) and old fashioned lemonade, but otherwise we got by without too much confusion.
We saw quite a bit of the city from atop a Hop-On, Hop-Off Bus right before we came home, but we certainly didn’t get our fill of London, or the UK as a whole. One thing we didn’t get to do was have a “proper tea” in a teahouse, though we did get to enjoy the tradition in other more casual contexts. No worries. Just another excuse to go back!
This is what we are scheming to do, actually — head back to the UK and Ireland in 2016. Yes, sirree. In the meantime, I’m drinking my English Breakfast Tea and baking up scones and shortbread like my life depended on it.
One of my newest favorites is this recipe for Black Currant Scones. Black currant, or cassis, is one of my very favorite flavors for jam, tea, and, now, scones. The sweet tart flavor is delicious! Bob’s Red Mill sent me a bag to try awhile back, and now I’m ready to keep it always in stock at my house. It makes me feel all Beatrix Potter to add currants to baked goods.
Today I’ve partnered with some blogging friends from the good old days to host a holiday recipe exchange/virtual holiday party/tea/cocktail party. I’ve known many of these ladies for about six years and met many of them in real life. I count them as good friends. Some have held my babies and even washed my dishes!
This is the next best thing to having them all over to my house for tea and scones. Be sure to scroll down to the end of the post to visit their sites and check out what they brought to the party.
In the meantime, have a scone.
Here are a couple things to keep in mind when you make these. They are easy cheats.
1. These taste great with mini chocolate chips if you don’t have currants.
2. If you feel lazy and don’t want to form the dough into squares, feel free to drop the batter in small portions on the baking sheet. They bake up just fine that way. Though they are very cute in little squares.
Just be sure to bake these. They are easy and delicious and a great addition to your holiday table.
Black Currant Scones
Ingredients
- 2 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ cup butter cold, cut into small pieces
- ⅔ cup dried black currants
- ½ cup milk
- 1 egg beaten
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat mat.
- In the bowl of a food processor, fitted with a metal blade, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. Add the butter, and pulse until coarse crumbs are formed.
- Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl. Toss in the currants. Add the milk and egg and stir just until combined.
- Lightly flour a work surface. Place the dough onto the surface and dust with flour. Roll the dough out to ½-inch thick and cut into 36 small squares. Place them on the prepared baking sheet. Alternatively, you can drop the batter into small portions or scoops on the prepared tray.
- Bake for 15 minutes until golden brown. Cool on a tray before serving.
Delia M Bottoms
I am in the process of making your scones with real dried black currents! I found a USA company (Northwest Wild Foods) that sells them at a reasonable price (compared to the cost of imported currents). I did question the amount of baking powder (1 Tablespoon) in ratio to the amount of flour being used (2 cups), but I am going to prep the dough exactly as you have it written. I will let you know the results soon!
Linda
I’d like to sub either honey, maple syrup, or even stevia. Can I do that? Would it be a 1-to-1 sub?
Jessica Fisher
I have never used stevia, so I can’t speak to that. Last year when I did a processed sugar fast, I made scones with honey and maple. You need to adjust the liquid in the rest of the recipe. AND know that the texture is kinda weird. They won’t be crunchy in any way.
Pam
These are yummy. Didn’t have black currants so decided to use chocolate chips. Then discovered I didn’t have nutmeg. So pulled out pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon chips instead. They turned out really good. Even my daughter, who doesn’t like scones because they are usually so dry, liked them. So thanks!
Jessica Fisher
Necessity is the mother of invention! You have a whole new recipe now.
Sharon
Just bottle my homemade black currant liqueur. Saved the currants and will try them in a batch of scones. Will have to play around with the amount of milk so they don’t come out too moist.
Jessica Fisher
Sounds great!
tastycook
When you say black currants, do you mean the fresh fruit or are you talking about dried currants that are found near raisins and sultanas in the grocery store?
Jessica Fisher
The dried currants. We can’t get the fresh in the US, but good question.
Mariana
I did with fresh ones …but frozen them before for half hour …very good. Thank you for a recipe
Delia Bottoms
Real dried black currants are not easily available in markets in the US as they are in the UK. I found a company that does carry them (Northwest Wild Foods), and their prices are reasonable compared to the cost of buying imported currants. They have a uniquely delicious flavor that I love. We have a few black currant shrubs in our yard that I plan to expand since the fresh fruit is wonderful for preserves or jelly. If you prefer sultanas or raisins, those work as well. But it will be a different flavor. Happy Baking!
Lynn
Yum! My kids love scones so I will have to try these. I like to stock my freezer with scones for the kids to take out for an easy breakfast or snack. These would work perfect for that.
Amy of MomsToolbox
I love that you brought a bit of your trip home with you! I have no doubt these scones are delicious and bring you a sweet reminder with every bite. We’ll have to give them a try over here, too. Cheerio!