Dan Leader, The James Beard Award-winning visionary behind the iconic East coast bakery Bread Alone shares decades of wisdom and techniques for soul-fulfilling baking, with 60+ bread and pastry recipes in his latest book, A Slow Rise: Favorite Recipes from Four Decades of Baking with Heart.  We recently featured Dan as our Guest Foodie.

These roasted veggie scones are one example of his detailed recipes!  In his book, Dan provides the ingredients in both metric and imperial (American) measurements for both 6 scones and 12. I’ve adapted his recipe to show the ingredients in Imperial, what we use in the US, measurements for only 6.

Roasted Red Pepper, Onion, and Asparagus Scones

These roasted vegetable scones, studded with a mixture of red pepper, onion, asparagus, and crumbled goat cheese, are wonderfully savory, with just a hint of sweetness. A little bit of rye flour contributes some earthy flavor, but you can use 100 percent all-purpose flour if you’d like. We sometimes offer these savory scones with soup, for a light but warming meal at our cafes.

 

Ingredients:

3 ounces /6 tablespoons  unsalted butter, cold
2 teaspoons egg yolk
2 1/2 teaspoons  whole egg
¼ cup plus 3 tablespoons heavy cream
1 1/2 ounces goat cheese, preferably chèvre
About 3 ounces roasted vegetables**
1 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
1/3 cup rye flour
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons sugar
1½ teaspoons faking powder
12 teaspoon fine sea salt
flaky sea salt, for sprinkling (optional)

Egg Wash  

1 large whole egg
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons heavy cream

 

Sprinkle a large sheet of parchment paper lightly with flour.

Cut the butter into 1/4-inch (6 mm) cubes and return to the refrigerator. In a large spouted measuring cup, whisk together the egg yolk, egg, and cream. Gently combine the cheese and vegetables.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the all-purpose flour, rye flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Toss together or mix on the lowest setting for 1 minute. Add the cubed butter. Pulse on the lowest speed to begin to incorporate the butter and keep the flour in the bowl. Increase the speed to low, then increase to medium-low to continue to mix and break the butter into smaller pieces until the mixture resembles a coarse meal, about 3 minutes total.

With the mixer running on low speed, stream in the cream mixture and mix until combined and beginning to come together around the paddle, 1 to 2 minutes. Stop the mixer, add the roasted vegetable and goat cheese mixture, pulse, and then mix on medium-low speed until combined and the roasted vegetables are distributed, about 1 minute more.

Transfer the dough to the prepared parchment paper and press evenly into a 7-inch (18 cm) round for six scones or a 10 by 6-inch (25 by 15 cm) rectangle for twelve scones. The dough should be 1/2 to 3/4 inch (1.25 to 2 cm) thick. Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours, until firm

For the round, cut the round in half and then cut each half into three equal triangles, for a total of six triangular scones. For the rectangle, cut the block in half lengthwise and then cut each half into six equal pieces, for a total of twelve rectangular scones. Alternatively, for round scones, cut with a round cookie cutter. Any trimmings can be pushed together one time and used.

The scones can be baked at this point, refrigerated for a day, or frozen for up to 3 weeks.

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

Set the scones on the baking sheet, leaving about an inch (2.5 cm) between each.

MAKE THE EGG WASH: Whisk together the egg, yolk, and cream in a small bowl. Brush the scones with the egg wash and sprinkle with flaky sea salt, if using. Bake until the scones are a rich golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes, depending on whether baking from cold or frozen.

Transfer the scones to a wire rack. Serve warm.

**Roasted Vegetables 

Depending on the size of the vegetables, the weight may vary slightly. It is okay if there is slightly more or less for this recipe.

When roasting the vegetables, it is best to keep the asparagus whole

Depending on its thickness, it may finish roasting before the other vegetables and should be removed from the oven once tender. It will be easiest to peel the bell pepper if it is left in one large piece with any seeds and stem removed.

If you’d like, use jarred roasted red peppers, rinsed, patted dry, and roughly chopped, to save a little time

Ingredients 

1½ ounces onion, cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) chunks
1½ ounces asparagus, peeled
1¼ ounces red bell pepper, stemmed and seeded but whole
Extra-virgin olive oil, for tossing
Fine sea salt, for sprinkling

 

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).

Toss the vegetables in enough oil to coat, sprinkle with salt, and spread on a baking Roast until the vegetables are tender and the skin from the pepper is charred, 30 to 35 minutes.

Remove from the oven. Once cool enough to handle, peel the skin from the pepper and discard. Let the vegetables cool completely. Roughly chop and then refrigerate until cold.

Makes 6 or 12 scones, about 90 grams  (3.2 ounces) each

Start to finish: about 4 1/2 hours
Preparing and cooling the roasted vegetables: 1 1/2 hours
Gathering ingredients and preparing the dough: 30 minutes

Shaping, refrigerating and/or freezing: at least 2 hours but up to 3 weeks
Baking: 20 to 30 minutes

Variations:
Seasonally, substitute cubed butternut squash or sweet potato for the asparagus,
or use all peppers and onion.

In the summertime, we like to add chopped fresh basil and cherry
tomatoes. Cut 1 pound (453 g) of cherry tomatoes in half and dry in a 200°F (95°C) oven until they are a little bit moist but not crisp, about 4 hours. Mix into the scone dough along with 2 tablespoons (3 g) of chopped basil. Depending on the moistness of the tomatoes, the dough will be a little sticky. Refrigerate as needed before cutting into individual scones, then refrigerate or freeze again before baking.