'Beautiful Bread'

There is some debate as to the origins of the word scone.  Some say it comes from the 'Stone of Destiny' where the Kings of Scotland were crowned; some say it comes from the dutch word 'schoonbrot' which means beautiful bread.  What ever it's word origins, cranberry, lemon scones seemed like a good thing to make this morning.

Julie Van Rosendaal has a recipe for biscuits in her Starting Out cookbook that includes a variation for scones.  I pretty much followed her recipe this morning.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

2 cups of flour
1 tablespoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup sugar
pinch of salt
3/4 cup of milk
1/2 cup cold butter
grated lemon rind
1 cup of frozen cranberries

Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar in a mixing bowl.
Add the grated lemon rind.  Cut in the 1/2 cup of cold butter (cold butter and a hot oven is the key to beautiful, fluffy scones!) until crumbly.  Add the cranberries and milk and stir just to combine.  Pat dough into a circle about 2 and half inches thick and cut into 8 wedges.  Brush the tops with milk and sprinkle with sugar.  Place on a parchment lined baking sheet.
Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes or until golden brown and enjoy your 'beautiful bread'!

Of course you can change this up and add other berries, orange rind, chocolate or more savoury additions such as rosemary, cheese, hot peppers or olives that lend themselves well to a big bowl of chili or soup.