Brown Butter Cornmeal Scones

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Light-colored saucepan for browning butter
• •Pastry cutter or two forks
• •Rimmed baking sheet
• •Bench scraper or sharp knife

Instructions

1. 1

   Brown the butter

   Cut the butter into tablespoon-sized pieces and place in a light-colored saucepan over medium heat. The light pan lets you watch the color change, which is everything here. Swirl occasionally as the butter melts, foams, and begins to spit. After about five minutes, the foam subsides and you'll see golden flecks at the bottom. The kitchen fills with a fragrance like toasting hazelnuts. That's your brown butter. The moment it turns amber and smells nutty, pour it into a heatproof bowl. It can go from perfect to burned in seconds.

   Scrape every last brown bit from the pan into your bowl. Those milk solids are pure flavor, the whole reason we're doing this.
2. 2

   Chill the brown butter

   Refrigerate the brown butter until it solidifies but remains scoopable, about 30 to 40 minutes. You can speed this up in the freezer, checking every ten minutes. The butter should be firm like cold cream cheese. Scone success depends on cold fat creating steam pockets as it bakes. Soft butter makes dense, sad scones.

   While the butter chills, measure out your other ingredients and let them come to room temperature. This is a good time to preheat your oven too.
3. 3

   Combine dry ingredients

   Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl. Make sure everything is evenly distributed. The cornmeal should look like little flecks of sunshine scattered through the flour. Use a fine yellow cornmeal here, not the coarse grind you'd use for polenta. We want texture, not grit.

4. 4

   Cut in the brown butter

   Drop the chilled brown butter by spoonfuls into the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter or two forks, work the butter into the flour until you have irregular pieces ranging from pea-sized to small lima beans. Some flat, shaggy bits are perfect. This unevenness creates those tender, flaky layers. Don't aim for uniformity. Work quickly so your hands don't warm the butter.

   If the butter starts softening from the heat of your hands, slide the bowl into the freezer for five minutes and then continue.
5. 5

   Mix wet ingredients

   Whisk together the cold buttermilk, egg, and vanilla in a small bowl until the egg is completely incorporated. The buttermilk's tang will balance the sweetness and react with the baking soda for extra lift. Make sure your buttermilk is genuinely cold, straight from the refrigerator.

6. 6

   Form the dough

   Pour the wet ingredients over the flour mixture. Using a fork, stir gently until the dough just comes together in shaggy clumps. You'll see dry spots. That's fine. Turn everything onto a lightly floured surface and press the dough together with your hands, folding it over itself three or four times to bring it together. The dough should look rough and barely cohesive. Overworking develops gluten, which gives you tough hockey pucks instead of tender scones.

7. 7

   Shape and cut

   Pat the dough into a circle about one inch thick and seven inches across. The edges should look craggy and imperfect. Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut the round into eight even wedges. Transfer the wedges to a parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing them about two inches apart. Slide the pan into the freezer for fifteen minutes while your oven finishes preheating to 400 degrees.

   This final chill firms the butter one last time, ensuring maximum rise and flakiness in the hot oven.
8. 8

   Brush and top

   Remove scones from the freezer. Brush the tops generously with heavy cream, which promotes browning and gives a beautiful golden finish. Sprinkle each wedge with turbinado sugar. The coarse crystals add sparkle and a gentle crunch that contrasts with the tender interior.

9. 9

   Bake until golden

   Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, until the tops are deeply golden and the edges look set and slightly darker. The scones should feel firm when gently pressed but still give slightly in the center. A toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. Let them cool on the pan for five minutes before transferring to a wire rack. They're best warm, split open with a pat of butter or a drizzle of good honey.

Chef Tips

• •Use fine yellow cornmeal, not coarse-ground polenta or white cornmeal. The fine grind gives you that pleasant texture without grittiness, and the yellow adds warmth to the color.
• •If you don't have buttermilk, stir one tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice into regular milk and let it sit for five minutes. It's not quite the same, but it works.
• •These scones are best the day they're made, but they freeze beautifully. Wrap individually and freeze up to two months. Reheat in a 350-degree oven for eight minutes.
• •For a Louisiana twist, drizzle the warm scones with cane syrup instead of honey. The darker, more complex sweetness pairs beautifully with the brown butter.

Advance Preparation

• •Brown butter can be made up to one week ahead and refrigerated. Bring to cool room temperature, then re-chill until firm before using.
• •Unbaked scone wedges can be frozen solid on the baking sheet, then transferred to a freezer bag for up to two months. Bake directly from frozen, adding three to four minutes to the baking time.
• •The dry ingredients can be whisked together the night before and stored covered at room temperature.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 95g)