Peach Scones

Fresh scones for breakfast or afternoon tea are one of the baking god's greatest gifts. This peach variation, adapted from SOUR CREAM AND FRUIT SCONES by Dawn Perry, is also lovely with berries. Best fresh, bakers can also make the dough, cut the scones, and freeze them for up to a month to later bake from frozen. I make these with a food processor, but they will work fine in a large bowl with a pastry cutter or your fingers to cut the butter into the flour mixture, if need be. For a softer, airier scone, see Cook's Notes below.

makes 8 large or 16 small scones (Can also cut into bite-sized --makes 32. Do freeze the very small ones briefly before baking.)

Ingredients

2 cups (255 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the counter or board
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling on scones just before baking or freezing
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup (4 oz/113.40 grams) frozen salted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 cup (5oz/140 grams) diced peaches (Pit and chop. No need to peel if they're ripe.)
1/2 cup (190 ml) sour cream or full-fat yogurt
1/4 cup (2 oz/60 ml) milk
1 large egg at room temperature, beaten with 1 teaspoon water (You'll just use a bit of it. Cook the rest for the dog.)

Instructions

PREP: Preheat oven to 400F with a rack in the upper third. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
MIX DRY INGREDIENTS/CUT IN BUTTER: In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, measure in the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Pulse a few times to mix. Add the pieces of butter and pulse carefully only until you have pea-sized and smaller pieces of butter.
TURN FLOUR MIXTURE OUT INTO A LARGE BOWL and gently stir in the peaches. In a small bowl, whisk together the sour cream or yogurt and milk and tip that into the flour mixture. Using a table fork, stir until all the dry bits are incorporated but the dough is still shaggy. (Takes a minute or two; be patient.) Knead a few times until the dough barely holds together, then turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter or board. The dough needn't be uniform or neat. These are rather rustic scones.
PAT DOUGH with floured hands into a 1-inch-thick rectangle, approximately 6"x10". Brush with a bit of the egg mixture and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Using a bench scraper or a knife, cut first into 2, then 4, then 8 (or 16) rectangles. Place on prepared sheet pan as far apart as possible.
BAKE scones until golden, 18-22 minutes. Remove to a rack before serving warm. Scones will keep a day or two, well-covered. To reheat, split in half lengthwise, spread lightly with butter, and grill until toasty and hot in a stove top grill or skillet.
To freeze baked scones, wrap them well and freeze for up to 3 weeks.

Notes

Cook's Notes: If you'd like a wee bit lighter, tender, and larger scone, increase the milk to 1/2 cup. The scones will then spread more while baking and you might need to gently cut them apart for serving.