Mix and Match: Orange-Almond-Strawberry Scones

Years ago, my mom sent me a word (remember, she does this) that I could never quite shake. Portmanteau: the combining of two or more words into something new.

I apply the portmanteau concept to many facets of my life. In school, I was am a chronic multi-tasker, constantly doing and combining as many things as possible; at last week’s brunch, I merged all my friend groups so that they could discover someone new over a good meal.

And then there are these scones – orange zest, almond flour, and fresh strawberries combine into a new and delicious breakfast item.

Citrus has the ability to zest up nearly anything savory or sweet. For brunch, I wanted something that packs a punch and wakes people up, so I used an entire orange to add as much flavor as possible. If you make these in winter, you can still add some orange zing, but strawberries won’t be in season, so swap them out for apples, pears, or frozen berries if you absolutely must.

Since I’m also about flour equality, or flour-power, as it were, I substituted some of the all-purpose in my recipe for almond meal, which adds a subtle nutty flavor to the dough. Since there is no gluten in almond meal, you can’t sub in too much or else your scones will fall apart into delicious nothingness. Fun to eat, not so fun to serve at a 20-person brunch.

I’m off to Las Vega$ this weekend for more birthday celliez with a portmanteau of people from all over the country. I’ll probably be having a hefty combination of drinks as well, but I’ll be back on Tuesday with some eats and treats. In the meanwhile, if you have any dessert hangover cures you want to throw my way, please do – I’ll need them.

Scone-dalous.

Orange-Strawberry-Almond Scones (makes about 18 round scones)

1 large egg
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup almond meal
1/3 cup brown sugar
2.5 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
6 Tbsp butter, chilled and cut into chunks
1 cup strawberries, roughly chopped
Zest from 1 orange

1 egg yolk mixed with 1 tsp milk (for egg wash)

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking pan with parchment paper or a Silpat. Whisk together the egg and cream in a small bowl and set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine flour, almond meal, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the butter chunks and mix on medium speed until the butter is the size of large peas. Add the egg mixture, stirring until the dough is moist. Add in the strawberries and orange zest. Do not overmix it, as you’ll be working with the dough a lot.
• Spread some almond meal on the counter you’ll be working on. Place the dough on top and pat into a large circle about 1/4-inch thick. Using a round cookie cutter, cut out rounds and place on Silpat. The dough is pretty sticky, so continue to LIGHTLY spread with flour or almond meal. Re-roll out the scraps until you have cut out all the rounds you can.

(At this point, you can freeze the rounds until you want to bake them off. They keep in the freezer for up to 1 month.)

• Brush the tops with the egg wash and bake for 23 minutes or until the tops are golden-brown, rotating the pan halfway through baking. Serve warm or at room temperature.