Baby zucchini and walnut scones
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 15-17 minutes
Keywords: bake breakfast snack butter flour kefir walnut
Ingredients (14-15 scones)
- 3 1/2 tablespoons / 1.75 oz. / 50 g unsalted browned butter OR 4 tablespoons unsalted butter and no ricotta (see later)
- 2 tablespoons buckwheat flour + 2 tablespoons millet flour + enough all-purpose flour to make 1 cup OR 1 cup / 130 g all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup / 60 g whole-wheat pastry flour
- 1/2 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/8 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ultra-fine or granulated sugar
- 3 oz. / 85 g baby zucchini
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme leaves
- 2 large basil leaves, finely chopped
- 1/2 tablespoon ricotta or cream cheese or plain kefir cheese
- 1/2 cup / 120 ml homemade kefir OR buttermilk OR plain yogurt (low-fat or non-fat is fine)
- 1/4 cup / 1 oz. chopped toasted walnuts (the way I prepare walnuts for use is described in the post on walnut cake)
- 1 tablespoon petals of calendula flowers (optional)
Instructions
Take the browned butter out of the fridge and let it soften slightly while you prepare the other ingredients. Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or a piece of parchment paper and dust the surface lightly with flour.
Grate zucchini using the medium side of your grater. Measure flours and sift into a bowl. Place ingredients number 2 through 7 into the food processor fitted with steel blade. Cut butter into pieces and add to the food processor. Pulse a few times for several seconds until the flour mix resembles coarse meal.
Empty the food processor bowl into a bowl, add zucchini and herbs. In a small bowl, whisk together ricotta (if using) and kefir, then add them to the drier mix. Stir with a spatula a couple of times, then add the walnuts and petals. Stir briefly until ingredients are just combined.
Turn dough onto the lined sheet and shape into a 1/2-inch thick square. Dust surface of dough lightly with flour. With a bench scrape, cut into four lengthwise and then crosswise to get 16 small squares. With the help of the bench scrape, separate the pieces, so that they are at least one inch apart. If the corner pieces are much smaller than the rest, join them, so you'll end up with 14-15 scones of comparable size.
Bake for 15 minutes, then check the bottom of one scone: if it is golden brown, they are ready, otherwise, bake for another two minutes and check again. When ready, move them onto a rack and serve warm or at room temperature.
Once cooled completely, the scones can be frozen. When I want to serve them, I put them straight in a 350 F oven for 8-10 minutes.
