Scones in honor of St. Patrick’s Day

In honor of Saint Patrick’s Day, this week’s photo features a holiday favorite - currant scones. But, like everything else we eat, there’s a story behind the ingredients and an evolution of the recipe. Today’s scones have a light texture that could not be more different from their ancestor, the plate-sized cake called a bannock. 

Although scones are typically associated with British and Irish cuisine, we have the Scottish to thank for these. Before baking soda and baking powder were available as leavening agents, traditional bannocks were made from barley or oatmeal dough cooked directly on a hot griddle. 

Often, a bannock stone made of sandstone was set directly onto a cooking fire, and the flat, round disk of dough was placed on it to bake (not unlike the way we use a pizza stone today).

The texture of this unleavened bread was decidedly tough and mealy. The disk was cut into wedges and the Scots referred to each wedge (or the entire thing) as a scone. 

Once baking powder and baking soda were added as ingredients, this simple bread began its evolution in several directions. Across the British Isles, a range of bannock styles became popular. Those associated with the changing seasons were given romantic names like Beltane bannock (for the start of summer celebrated May 1) or Samhain bannock (for winter’s beginning Oct. 1). 

Others were named according to key ingredients, style of cooking or specific use. Among these you will find teething bannock for children, bannock made from bere or barley meal, and fallaid bannock made from leftover scraps of dough. Certain Scottish towns like Yetholm and Pitkeathly (known for its mineral water) had namesake bannocks. 

By the mid-19th century, this simple bread had become a buttery delight with a soft, delicate texture, studded with raisins and called Selkirk bannock.

This version, which is still sold in supermarkets across Great Britain today, is the closest you will come to the round, prepackaged scones baked and sold in the American supermarket. 

There are two very important differences between commercial scones and the homemade ones in the photo. The first is freshness; scones should be served about 30 minutes after they leave the oven. Their crumb is still tender, the crust hasn’t dried and the fruit is still moist, with a texture much like a perfect buttermilk biscuit. 

The second difference is the fruit used in the recipe. Raisin scones are made with dried grapes, either the familiar dark raisins or light-colored sultanas (golden raisins). I find these are much too large for the delicate pastry. Currant scones are not made with currants at all, but with another type of sweet, dried grape called Corinth raisins or Zante currants. 

True currants are another fruit entirely. Related to the gooseberry, currants are small, tart berries that grow on a shrub in varieties colored red, white and black. The last type is commonly used for preserves, while the red and white fruits are eaten fresh, out of hand. That is, if you can find them. 

In 1911, commercial cultivation of currants was outlawed in this country because the shrub was a host in the life cycle of a dread botanical disease known as White Pine Blister Rust. The federal government was pressured to enact legislation to protect the lumber industry, and currants were banned. 

In the 1920s, very small dried grapes were first imported from the Ionian Islands in cases marked in Greek with the name Korinthos. Workers at the pier translated this to to Zante currant, and until just a few years ago most of us didn’t know these were just another type of raisin from a tiny grape. 

In 2003, an enterprising horticulturist named Greg Quinn succeeded in having the ban on currants overturned in New York state by demonstrating newer strains of currant bushes resistant to White Pine Blister Rust. He runs a large currant farm in the Hudson Valley and has helped other farmers cultivate black, red and white currants. 

This delicious tart-sweet fruit is on the menu in many restaurants, and various currant products are available for sale. Now I have to order some (www.currantc.com), so I can bake a batch of currant scones with real currants. Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!

Currant Scones 

1 C flour 
1 t baking powder 
1/4 t baking soda 
1/2 t nutmeg 
1/4 t salt 
4 T butter 
1/2 C dried black currants* 
1 T sugar 
1 egg yolk 
1/3 C buttermilk 
1 egg white 
1 t sugar 

Preheat oven to 375 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg and salt. Slice the butter into pieces and cut it into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives until the texture resembles cornmeal.

Add currants and sugar, tossing to combine. In a measuring cup, whisk together egg yolk and buttermilk until smooth. Pour into flour mixture and stir until a soft dough forms. Knead gently a few times and form dough into a ball. Flatten dough into a 6-inch circle on the baking sheet. Using a sharp knife, cut into 6 wedges; do not separate dough. Whisk egg white until smooth and brush the top of the dough with it. Sprinkle with sugar. Bake until golden brown, about 20 to 25 minutes.

Cool on a rack for about 5 minutes, then separate wedges and cover lightly with a dish towel. *Note: if currants are not available, substitute Zante currants or Corinth raisins. Yield: 6 scones.

Cranberry Scones 

3 C flour 
4 t baking powder 
1/2 t baking soda 
1/2 t salt 
8 T butter 
1 C fresh cranberries 
1/2 C sugar 
1 t orange zest 
2/3 C plain yogurt* 
1 egg 

Preheat oven to 375 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Slice the butter into pieces and cut it into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives until the texture resembles cornmeal.

Add cranberries, sugar and orange zest, tossing to combine. In a measuring cup, whisk together yogurt and egg until smooth. Pour into flour mixture and stir until a soft dough forms. Knead gently a few times and form dough into a ball. Flatten dough into an 8-inch circle on the baking sheet.

Using a sharp knife, cut into 8 wedges; do not separate dough. Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes.

Cool on a rack for at least 30 minutes before serving. *Note: use regular yogurt or substitute buttermilk; do not use Greek yogurt. Yield: 8 large scones.