Strawberry-rhubarb drop scones: a recipe

Strawberry-rhubarb drop scones

Strawberries and rhubarb: what's the history behind this winning combination?

Well, apparently, like a bajillion other things Americana, we have good old Ben Franklin to thank for rhubarb; he is credited with bringing the first seeds to America in the late 1700s.

As for the strawberry part, I couldn't really find any definitive answer, other than the first strawberries emerge just as the last of the rhubarb wanes, so, based on plenty and seasonality, both became popular pie fillings.

Regardless, it is in fact a great combination.

Regular readers will remember (probably with horror) that I don't really like pie (it's a crust thing), so I had to get my strawberry-rhubarb fix another way.

Scones, baby.

I love scones; they are so much richer and substantial than cake or muffins. And they sound so classy, don't they? Very British-high-tea and all, but they are quite easy to make. Normally, once the ingredients are combined, you pat out the dough into a thick round and cut the scones into wedges with a knife or use a biscuit cutter to make round shapes.

But the recipe that I adapted turned out to be way too sticky and loose for shaping.

All was not lost because I have worked with sticky scones before (aren't you lucky?) and the solution is just to turn them into "drop scones". (This is the nice way of saying just dump a lump of sticky dough onto a tray, but it's classier and more British than "dump scones", which you know could have a whole different meaning if you are The Ninj.)

Such amazing spring colors

I believe in realistic kitchen photos: this is when I decided to "drop" them

Pat or shape into a uniform thickness for more even cooking

You have to make sure they are cooked through, right?

I love these because they are not too sweet so they count as both breakfast and a high-tea treat (for all of you who are having high tea today -- you know who you are). The recipe below made a dozen large scones, mainly because I was too lazy to get another baking sheet out of the cabinet and just crammed them all onto one. If you are less lazy, you could easily make two batches of smaller scones.

Also (more laziness), I totally forgot that I wanted to sprinkle the tops of the scones with raw sugar before baking.

I bet that would have been awesome.

If you want more rhubarb recipe ideas, be sure to check out the rest of the CSA Share Ninja Rescue recipes.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Drop Scones

(inspired by a recipe from Crumbly Cookie)

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
2 cups mixed diced rhubarb and strawberries
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 cup buttermilk
raw sugar for sprinkling (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the butter pieces and, using your hands, mash it all up until the mixture resembles coarse meal and the butter is worked throughout (this is an excellent arm muscle workout). Add the rhubarb and strawberries.

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, egg yolk and buttermilk, then add to the flour-fruit mixture. Stir until combined.

Drop large spoonfuls (a really BIG spoon) of the dough onto a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Pat them down slightly until they are a uniform thickness (about 1/2 - 3/4 inch). If using, sprinkle tops with raw sugar. Bake for about 20 minutes (a little less if you opt for smaller scones) or until the scones are golden and the edges beginning to brown. Cool completely on a wire rack.

(We eat ours plain, but I suppose you could really jazz it up with some butter and jam.)

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