This is the special recipe that acquainted me with Chef Mark Reinfeld, guest on today’s Main Street Vegan show on Unity Online Radio.

 

Currant Scones

© 2012 Mark Reinfeld

from 30-Minute Vegan’s Taste of Europe

Da Capo Press, all rights reserved

The sun never sets on Britain’s culinary empire. Originating in Scotland in the fifteenth century, scones are the poster child for British teatime that has taken the world by storm. Have fun creating many variations using this recipe as a base. Serve on their own with tea or as part of a Fusion breakfast alongside a Spanish Omelet (page 116).

Makes 8 scones

Ingredients

Dry

2 ½ cups of white spelt flour

¾ cup cane sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

¼ cup dried currants

¼ cup chopped walnuts

Wet

4 tablespoons melted vegan butter

½ cup soy milk

2 tablespoons ground flaxseeds mixed with 6 tablespoons water

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 425 deg. F. Oil a baking sheet well or line with parchment paper. Place the dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk well. Place the wet ingredients in another bowl and mix well. Add the wet to the dry and mix well.
2. Scoop out about ¾ cup batter for each scone onto the prepared baking sheet.
3. Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from the oven. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack or serving plate. Serve warm with vegan butter and jam or tahini.

Variations

• Replace the walnuts with pistachios, almonds, macadamia nuts, or hazelnuts. Replace the currants with raisins or chopped dried fruit, such as apricots, dates, or papaya.
• For a Welsh cake: pour the batter onto a well-oiled griddle pan, then cook for about 4 minutes on each side, pressing down with the spatula to help cook the inside.
• For Vanilla Peach: replace the walnuts and currants with chopped peaches and add another 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract or the seeds of one vanilla bean.
• For Cacao Goji: replace the walnuts with cacao nibs or vegan chocolate chips, and replace the currants with goji berries.
• For a savory scone: add ¼ cup of grated vegan Cheddar- or mozzarella-style cheese, 1 tablespoon of minced fresh chives, and 2 teaspoons of minced fresh dill.
• Other savory variations include adding ¼ cup of chopped sun-dried tomatoes and 1 tablespoon of minced fresh rosemary, or ¼ cup of diced olives and ¼ cup of thinly sliced green onions.