Welcome to The Storied Recipe! I host a unique podcast where every guest gives me a recipe that’s significant to their culture, life, and memories. I make, photograph, and share the recipe with you. I invite you to listen to Carilyn's story as you learn how to make her Easy Soft Scones with Buttermilk - (and her quick mixed berry jam)!
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If you're looking for a dense scone that breaks cleanly in half, this isn't the recipe for you. BUT! If you're looking for a light, springy scone with a little fluff inside and a slighly sweet sprinkle of sugar on top - this IS the recipe for you!
This is also a recipe for a quick "pan jam" with a much lower added sugar than canned jams. The result is a perfectly spreadable jam just bursting with fresh berry flavor (even if you make it from frozen berries!)
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This Recipe in Carilyn's Words
I chose this recipe because foraging for berries, namely blackberries, reminds me of summer visits to my Grampa Ben's farm in MN. But in Kitsap County, this time of year we can find Salmon berries, Thimbleberries, Blackberries, Currants, and Strawberries on our one acre homestead.
My latest victory is that I successfully rooted a whole bunch of black currants from hardwood cuttings. Propagation is definitely one of my passions in horticulture.
The recipe is simple. But I mean really, baking biscuits is something I learned when I was a kid, so adding a bit more moisture and topping it with a quick jam seems simple to me.
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A Few Questions I Asked Carilyn About Her Scones & Jam
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What's the difference between a scone and a biscuit? (in American terms)
Not too much - although small differences in ingredients make a huge difference in texture! The dry ingredients are almost identical in most biscuit and scone recipes, although scones are a tad sweeter. Biscuits tend to include baking soda, while scones tend to rely on only baking powder. The bigger difference comes in the wet ingredients. Scones, which historically developed more in the North, rely on heavier ingredients like cream, eggs, and more butter. Biscuits, the pride of the South, rely more on acidity for lift. They omit the egg, replace cream with buttermilk, and often use less butter.
The differences can be more nuanced as well - true Southern biscuits would generally use a finer flour (like White Lily flour).
According to this definition, Carilyn's scones, which call for buttermilk and just ¼ teaspoon of baking soda, really straddle that line between biscuits and scones. Carilyn calls them a fluffy scone, which I think is just the right definition 😉
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Why do you call this a quick jam (or a "pan jam")?
This jam recipe has just 3 ingredients - berries, a relatively small amount of sugar, and lemon. It's made in a pan in just 30-45 minutes and, because of it's lower sugar content, it won't last on a shelf for long periods of time (unlike preserves or jellies, which will last longer). The thickening agent, pectin, is contained in the fruit itself, and no additional pectin is added. It holds its shape on a spoon, but is slighly looser than a jelly, for instance, which you can almost cut.
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How long will this quick jam last?
This quick jam (or "pan jam") will last up to a month, refrigerated. It's not preserved, so don't leave it on the shelf. And honestly, if you make it with these soft scones, it won't last anyway! 😉
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Can you make a quick jam with frozen berries?
Yes! Absolutely! The outcome is exactly the same.
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Do you have to strain the seeds out of a quick jam?
Nope, there's definitely no rule that you have to strain seeds out of this quick jam! Personally, I prefer to keep them in. I like the texture, I like feeling like I'm a little closer to the whole berry, and I like that any nutrient in any part of the berry is going straight into my body. Of course, there's no rule against straining seeds either - total personal preference on this one!
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Episodes Related to These Soft Scones with Buttermilk and Summer Berry Jam
Visit the episode post: A Nomad Puts Down Roots with Garden Coach Carilyn Mae
Follow The Storied Recipe in Your Favorite Player
How to Contact Carilyn Fukura (Check out her Garden Coaching!)
Website: www.kitsaproots.life/
Instagram: @mykitsaproots
YouTube: Kitsap Roots
Facebook: KitsapRoots
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Easy Soft Scones with Buttermilk {Plus a Quick Jam}
Difficulty: Easy12
servings10
minutes15
minutes30
minutesA soft, fluffy buttermilk scone with a sprinkle of sweet, crunchy sugar on top.
Keep the screen of your device on
Ingredients
- Buttermilk Scones
2 ½ cups 2 ½ (13 oz/370g) all-purpose flour
¼ cup ¼ (1 ¾ oz/49g) sugar, plus more for sprinkling
1 ½ teaspoon 1 ½ baking powder
¾ teaspoon ¾ kosher salt
¼ teaspoon ¼ baking soda
8 tablespoon 8 (one stick/4 oz/114g) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½ inch pieces.
1 cup 1 (8 ¾ oz/239g) buttermilk
2 tablespoon 2 milk or cream to brush scones
1 cup 1 jam (SEE BELOW)
- Small Batch of Jam
4 cups 4 (28 oz/790g) mixed berries: I used blackberry, raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, currants, salmonberry, and thimbleberry.
½ cup ½ (3.55 oz/100g) sugar
1 tablespoon 1 fresh lemon juice
Directions
- Buttermilk Scones
- Preheat the oven to 425F. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, kosher salt, and baking soda. Wisk to make sure everything is fully incorporated.
- Cut the butter into the dry mixture, using a pastry blender or fingertips, until the mixture looks like course cornmeal.
- Gradually pour in the buttermilk and mix with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until the dough just comes together.
- Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly and quickly with your hands until the dough is smooth, and the buttermilk is evenly incorporated. Do not overwork! We don’t want gluten.
- Pat the dough to a thickness of 1-inch. Use a wide mouth mason jar, or pastry cutter, dusted in flour to cut out 8-9 round scones. When cutting press straight down. Don’t twist. This will help the scones get an even rise as they bake.
- Flip the scones over and place them on a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet. Make a dimple in the center of a scone to house the jam. I found my mortar to be a perfect tool for the job!
- Brush the tops with the milk/cream, and sprinkle with sugar to get a good crunchy top. Bake for 10 minutes.
- Remove the scones from the oven and place a dollop of jam on each scone. Lower the oven temp to 350F and continue baking 12-15 minutes, until the scones are golden and cooked through.
- Serve the scones while they’re still warm with a delicious cup of coffee or tea.
- Making the Jam
- Place a clean plate in the refrigerator. Mix berries in a saucepan with ½ cup sugar. Allow the berries to macerate in the sugar for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to coax the juice from the berries.
- Bring fruit to a strong simmer over medium heat until the berries burst and release their juices.
- Increase the heat to medium-high and stir the berries with a wooden spoon or spatula, occasionally at first, and then more frequently as the juices thicken. Cook until most of the liquid has evaporated and the fruit has mostly broken down. The time really depends on the ripeness and fruit type, but this could take 20-45 minutes before it will jam. Once the liquid goes from a rapid, rolling boil, with smaller bubbles, to a slow, thick tar like boil with big bubbles you are close. Stir constantly at this stage to prevent scorching. Be careful because it can splatter at this point.
- Add the lemon juice and continue cooking, stirring constantly, until the jam returns to it’s previous consistency, about 5 minutes. Test your jam by spooning a small amount onto the plate you chilled. Return the plate to the refrigerator and wait for two minutes. Drag your finger through it. Finished jam will leave a clean line without jagged edges or be runny. If the line isn’t clean, continue cooking the jam for a few minutes, and repeat the plate test.
- Ladle the hot jam into a clean jar and allow to cool completely before placing in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Make sure to listen to Carilyn Mae on The Storied Recipe Podcast, A Nomad Puts Down Roots with Garden Coach Carilyn Mae {Summer Scones Recipe} while you make her Scone and Jam recipe!
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