These scones were my attempt to try and recreate saag panner in a scone. It didn’t quite taste like saag paneer, but the savory and spicy elements hit the spot with a cup of hot tea or coffee on a cold snowy day.

You can assemble the dough in advance, slice the scones and freeze them. Thaw the scones while the oven is preheating and bake for two minutes more than the recommended baking time. You could also thaw in the refrigerator for an hour or two before baking it in the oven. Do not thaw the dough at room temperature because it will melt the butter in the dough which was so carefully put together.

Ingredients
Qty Ingredient
14 oz. all purpose flour
2 oz. sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 stick unsalted butter, frozen and grated
2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic
1 teaspoon lime zest
2 1/2 cups finely chopped baby spinach
1 cup grated paneer or ricotta salata or hard cheese of your choice
5 stalks (white portion) of scallions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon finely chopped green chilies
3/4 cup whisked yogurt or butter milk
1 large lightly beaten egg
  • Pulse all the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda) in a food processor a few times. Be careful not to pulse for too long. We want to try to avoid overheating the ingredients.
  • Grate the butter over the dry ingredients and keep it in the fridge (keep the food processor container in the fridge or freezer to keep the butter cold) while the savory ingredients are prepared.
  • Chop the spinach and scallion in thin strips. Zest the lime and grate the paneer.
  • Get the food processor container out of the freezer and add the spinach, scallions, lime zest and paneer and pulse for a few times and return to freezer for about 20  minutes.
  • Measure the cold buttermilk or whisked yogurt (make sure there are no lumps)
  • Tip the flour mixture from the food processor bowl into a large mixing bowl. Working very quickly and lightly with a spoon mix the buttermilk in the flour mixture until the dough barely comes together. It is not supposed to look smooth and shiny but scraggly and rough. You can add a tablespoon of yogurt or buttermilk at a time.
  • Put a piece of parchment paper into a rectangular tray and shape the loose dough around the edges of the tray. I line the tray with parchment to help with shaping the dough.
  • The size of the shaped dough should be around 12 inches by 5 inches and about an inch thick. Do not pat the dough down to less than inch thick. If prefer you can pat it into a circle as well for the traditional sized scones.
  • Keep the formed dough in the fridge for about 20 – 30 minutes to make it easier to cut the scones.
  • Remove it from the fridge and cut down the middle of the rectangle to make two rectangles. Make vertical cuts in dough to make 8 squares and then cut across the diagonals to make mini scones.
  • At this stage, you can keep the shaped scones in the fridge for a day or so or in the freezer for longer.
  • Preheat the oven to 400º F.
  • While the oven is preheating, brush the scones with the lightly beaten egg for a nice shiny surface. You can also add some grated paneer on top.
  • Bake at 400º F for 7 minutes and then lower the temperature to 350º F and bake for 8-10 minutes more based on your oven.
  • Cool the scones for a few minutes before eating. I like to slice mine horizontally and spread a generous serving of harissa in between.
Mix-ins options
Kale Ricotta Salata Basil Za'atar
Swiss chard Tofu Parsley Ras el hanout
Broccolli Cheddar Mint Dukkah
Chives Gruyere Dill Tandoori spice
Green Onions   Thyme Curry powder
    Oregano BBQ spice
Notes
  • Do not overwork the dough. The less you handle the dough the flakier the scones will be.
  • Over handling the dough will melt the frozen butter in the dough. The pockets of frozen butter are essential to create the fluffy and crumbly texture of the scone.
  • Experiment with the different flavors, za’atar, harissa, taco seasoning, tex mex. They all work very well with a savory scone.
  • Keep the proportions intact and you cannot go wrong.

     

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