Lemon Ginger Cream Scones on a Hot Summer Day

I’ve had a craving for scones for a while now, but have put off making them until a few days ago, which turned out to be one of the hottest days in New York so far this year. Not an ideal day for baking of any kind, in fact, but my craving won out, and I cranked 

up the a.c. and got to the task at hand. I made a classic cream 

scone, but added crystallized ginger and lemon zest to the dough instead of the standard currants. Despite the a.c., my kitchen was warm, so I put the bowl containing the flour and butter mixture 

in the freezer for a few minutes so that the butter wouldn’t 

melt into the flour as I cut it in. The scones came out perfectly—extremely tender and warm and fragrant with the scent of ginger and lemon. And if you’re eating a scone (which rhymes with 

‘gone,’ not ‘own,’ in their country of origin), you’re indulging, so you might as well go all the way with the accompaniments. I suggest raspberry jam, homemade crème fraiche and honey butter, and a nice strong pot of Earl Grey tea. Or perhaps iced Earl Grey tea. It is summer, after all.

Note: If you prefer to cut out the scones with a round cutter, reduce the amount of butter to 6 tablespoons. The shaped scones will hold their shape better.

Lemon Ginger Cream Scones

Makes 8 scones

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup cake flour

¼ cup light brown sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold and cut into tablespoons

1/4 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger

1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest

1 ¼ cups heavy cream

1 egg, lightly beaten, for egg wash

Turbinado or granulated sugar, for sprinkling tops

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, brown sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the butter pieces and, using 2 knives or a pastry blender, cut it into the flour mixture until the largest pieces are the size of peas and the rest resembles coarse meal. Stir in the ginger and lemon zest. Add the cream and stir gently with a rubber spatula just until the dough comes together.

3. Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and lightly dust it with more flour. Shape it into an 8-inch disc. Cut the disc into quarters, then cut each quarter in half to make 8 wedges. Transfer the wedges to the baking sheet, spacing them 2 inches apart. Brush the top of the dough with the eggwash, and sprinkle generously with  sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown.  Serve warm.

Honey Butter

Makes ½ cup

½ cup/4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons

1 tablespoon honey

Pinch of salt

Place butter chunks in bowl of electric mixer and mix at low speed, using the paddle attachment. Increase the speed to medium and gradually add the honey and salt. Beat until well blended and smooth, about 5 minutes. Scrape into ramekins and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Homemade Crème Fraiche

Makes 1 1/3 cups

1 cup pasteurized heavy cream (not ultra-pasteurized)

1/3 cup buttermilk

Combine the cream and buttermilk in a jar or glass measure. Cover and let stand at room temperature for 12 to 24 hours, until thickened. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours, until chilled.

Crème of the Crop: Top Ten Pastry Chefs in America 2010

Dessert Professional, the magazine that I co-edit, recently named the Top Ten Pastry Chefs of 2010, as we’ve been doing for the past 15 years. The ten chefs were honored at a ceremony at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York, where each chef presented a special plated dessert. Tasting portions of each dessert were served to the 300 or so hungry guests. Here’s a list of this year’s Top Ten Pastry Chefs in America, what each chef served, and some photos of the desserts and the event. Thanks to Jeff Lazar, our art director, and Raj Walia for their great candid shots.

Christopher Boos

Dunkin Donuts

Milk Chocolate Jasmine Tea Tart: Baskin-Robbins Cranberry Sorbet w/Soaked Cherries

Dunkin’ Dark Roast Coffee Cream

Frank Vollkommer

The Chocolate Mill Pastry Shop and Café, Glens Falls, NY

Pistachio Financier with Vanilla Parfait, Lemon Custard & Rosemary Infused Wild Blueberry Compote

Kimberly Bugler

21 Club, New York, NY

Strawberry Upside Down Cake with Kalamansi Silk, Basil Ice Cream, and Vanilla-Roasted Strawberries

Michelle Tampakis

Institute of Culinary Education, New York, NY

Gluten-Free Trio: Carrot Cake, Chocolate Concord Cake and White Forest Cake

Nicholas Lodge,

French Pastry School, Chicago, IL

Chapeau Chic (Pistachio Biscuit with Pistachio Mousse and Sour Cherry Cremeaux)

Roy Pell

The Phoenician, Scottsdale, AZ

Jacquelyn (Hazelnut Sponge with Milk Chocolate Coffee Cream and Vanilla Bavarois)

Robert Truitt

Corton Restaurant, New York, NY

Rhubarb Bavarois, Sorrel Cucumber Granité, Pistachio Sablé

Steve Evetts

New York Marriott Marquis, New York, NY

Hazelnut Passion Green Tea and Corazon

Bill Foltz

L’Auberge du Lac Casino, Lake Charles, LA

Honey Cake, Coconut Haupia, Valrhona Cream, and Pineapple Lemongrass Salsa

Yannis Janssens

Fontainebleau Miami Beach, Miami, FL

Foret Noire: Manjari, Kirsch Chantilly and Griottines

And Dessert Professional's Hall of Fame honoree, Gary Guittard of Guittard Chocolate:

Raspberry and Lemon-Mint Sorbet with Pistachio Shortbread Cookies

World Cup fever is raging. This became apparent to me yesterday as I was working in the kitchen and heard my husband yelling at the television “Come on! Come on!! What’s wrong with you??” England (referred to as ‘Team BP’ by the yeller) was playing the U.S., and our nation’s honor was on the line in the Boyle-Eggleston household, as it was in bars and homes all over the U.S.

Happily, we tied, which, because of our lowly status in the team pecking order, was the equivalent of a win reminiscent of the Revolutionary War. As the sporting war raged, I was ensconced in my own world, calmly making sorbet, one of my favorite desserts. I fell in love with the refreshing tartness of lemon sorbet as a child.

freezing, but the hands-on time in the kitchen is next to nothing, allowing you plenty of time to watch the next World cup match. Homemade cookies, such as my Pistachio Shortbread Cookies,

are a natural accompaniment. The cookies, by the way, are also great with very finely chopped dried cherries added to the dough for some color and a pop of flavor.

Go U.S.A!


Raspberry Sorbet

Makes about 1 quart

4 cups (466 g) fresh raspberries

3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar

1 cup water

1 ½ teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1. Process the raspberries, sugar, water and lemon juice in a food processor or blender until smooth. Pass the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, until well chilled.

2. Process in an ice cream machine according to manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze for at least 3 hours before serving.

Lemon-Mint Sorbet

Makes about 1 quart

2 ½ cups water

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (225 g) granulated sugar

1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest

1 cup packed fresh mint leaves

1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1. Combine the water and sugar in a medium saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, just until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the lemon zest and mint, cover, and let infuse for 30 minutes. Strain into a bowl and stir in the lemon juice. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, until well chilled.

2. Process in an ice cream machine according to manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze for at least 3 hours before serving.

Pistachio Shortbread Cookies

From The Good Cookie (Wiley, 2002)

Makes 46 cookies

Storage: in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Special Equipment: 2-inch fluted or scalloped round cookie cutter

1/2 cup shelled unsalted pistachio nuts*

3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 large egg yolk

*Note: If you can only find salted nuts, place the shelled nuts in a sieve and rinse them in running water. Dry the nuts thoroughly with absorbant paper towels.

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or foil.

2. Place the pistachios and 1/4 cup of the sugar in the bowl of a food processor and process until the nuts are finely ground, about 30 seconds. Add the flour, cornstarch, and salt and pulse until blended. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, using the paddle attachment, beat the butter and remaining 1/2 cup of sugar at medium-high speed until light, about 2 minutes. Add the egg yolk at low speed and mix until blended, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Add the dry ingredients at low speed, mixing until combined.

4. Scrape the dough out onto a work surface and knead it a few times until it is smooth. Divide it in half and shape each half into a disc. Place one of the discs on a large piece of waxed paper. Place another piece of waxed paper over it and, using a rolling pin, roll it out to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Carefully peel off the top piece of waxed paper. Replace it loosely and flip over the dough. Peel off the top piece of waxed paper. Using a 2-inch fluted or scalloped round cookie cutter, cut out as many cookies as possible from the dough. Gather up the scraps and reroll them between sheets of waxed paper.

5. Arrange the cookies, 1/2 inch apart, on the prepared baking sheets. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, for 10 to 15 minutes, until just lightly colored around edges. (Watch the cookies carefully as their color changes very quickly.) Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Posted by Tish Boyle at 10:49 AM

Raspberry and Lemon-Mint Sorbet with Pistachio Shortbread Cookies

World Cup fever is raging. This became apparent to me yesterday as I was working in the kitchen and heard my husband yelling at the television “Come on! Come on!! What’s wrong with you??” England (referred to as ‘Team BP’ by the yeller) was playing the U.S., and our nation’s honor was on the line in the Boyle-Eggleston household, as it was in bars and homes all over the U.S.  

Happily, we tied, which, because of our lowly status in the team pecking order, was the equivalent of a win reminiscent of the Revolutionary War. As the sporting war raged, I was ensconced in my own world, calmly making sorbet, one of my favorite desserts. I fell in love with the refreshing tartness of lemon sorbet as a child. 

You couldn’t get it in the supermarket back then, but my father would take me to a place called Home Made, an ice cream shop in Northern N.J. that specialized in homemade ice cream and sorbets (though I think they called them ‘ices’ instead of ‘sorbets’). Home Made has been closed for over 20 years, but the memory of that simple, tart lemon sorbet is as fresh as ever. Fortunately, sorbet is one of the simplest desserts to make. Yes, it requires chilling and 

freezing, but the hands-on time in the kitchen is next to nothing, allowing you plenty of time to watch the next World cup match. Homemade cookies, such as my Pistachio Shortbread Cookies, 

are a natural accompaniment. The cookies, by the way, are also great with very finely chopped dried cherries added to the dough for some color and a pop of flavor. 

Go U.S.A!

Raspberry Sorbet

Makes about 1 quart

4 cups (466 g) fresh raspberries

3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar

1 cup water

1 ½ teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1. Process the raspberries, sugar, water and lemon juice in a food processor or blender until smooth. Pass the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, until well chilled.

2. Process in an ice cream machine according to manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze for at least 3 hours before serving.

Lemon-Mint Sorbet

Makes about 1 quart

2 ½ cups water

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (225 g) granulated sugar

1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest

1 cup packed fresh mint leaves

1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1. Combine the water and sugar in a medium saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, just until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the lemon zest and mint, cover, and let infuse for 30 minutes. Strain into a bowl and stir in the lemon juice. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, until well chilled.

2. Process in an ice cream machine according to manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze for at least 3 hours before serving.

Pistachio Shortbread Cookies

From The Good Cookie (Wiley, 2002)

Makes 46 cookies

Storage: in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Special Equipment: 2-inch fluted or scalloped round cookie cutter

1/2 cup shelled unsalted pistachio nuts*

3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 large egg yolk

*Note: If you can only find salted nuts, place the shelled nuts in a sieve and rinse them in running water. Dry the nuts thoroughly with absorbant paper towels.

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or foil.

2. Place the pistachios and 1/4 cup of the sugar in the bowl of a food processor and process until the nuts are finely ground, about 30 seconds. Add the flour, cornstarch, and salt and pulse until blended. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, using the paddle attachment, beat the butter and remaining 1/2 cup of sugar at medium-high speed until light, about 2 minutes. Add the egg yolk at low speed and mix until blended, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Add the dry ingredients at low speed, mixing until combined.

4. Scrape the dough out onto a work surface and knead it a few times until it is smooth. Divide it in half and shape each half into a disc. Place one of the discs on a large piece of waxed paper. Place another piece of waxed paper over it and, using a rolling pin, roll it out to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Carefully peel off the top piece of waxed paper. Replace it loosely and flip over the dough. Peel off the top piece of waxed paper. Using a 2-inch fluted or scalloped round cookie cutter, cut out as many cookies as possible from the dough. Gather up the scraps and reroll them between sheets of waxed paper.

5. Arrange the cookies, 1/2 inch apart, on the prepared baking sheets. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, for 10 to 15 minutes, until just lightly colored around edges. (Watch the cookies carefully as their color changes very quickly.) Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and cool completely.  Repeat with the remaining dough.