Pride and Lemon Raspberry Scones

“Her father, captivated by youth and beauty, and that appearance of good humour, which youth and beauty generally give, had married a woman whose weak understanding and illiberal mind, had very early in their marriage put an end to all real affection for her.”

— Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, page 155

They always tell you not to judge a book by its cover, but people spend hours upon hours designing book covers with the sole purpose of trying to get you to pick the book up. Even picking out a title for the book can take days (mine took several weeks, but I struggle with titles)... after all, you need a title that will make people want to pick the book up.

The title of Pride and Prejudice tells you enough about what the book is about to make you want to read it. The movies and t.v. shows based off of the book certainly help, too.

I wanted to make scones because they're a very English treat, much like the book. And scones, just like the book, have earned the reputation of being dry and boring. They're anything but.

I decided to use raspberries because they're tart and surprising, just like so much of the humor throughout the book. If you aren't at least smiling while you're reading this book, then you aren't reading it close enough. Elizabeth Bennet is a refreshing protagonist in classic literature, if a bit sour at times, so lemons had to be added to the scones as well.

But none of that really has to do with the book. I mean, it does, but what about the theme of prejudice? That's what the whole book's about....

White chocolate.

I have a thing about white chocolate. I only like it in small doses, and it has to be paired with something else. But that's not what gets me so annoyed with it. It's the audacity it has to pretend it's chocolate.

Because it's not—there isn't a single piece of cocoa in white chocolate.

It's pretty much just all sugar.

And as someone that adores chocolate, especially dark chocolate, I have a problem with white chocolate pretending to be something so amazing, when it's really just okay (I have a lot of feelings about this subject, and will rant at anyone who brings it up to me in conversation, you've all been warned). 

But white chocolate goes with raspberries and lemons. It adds some sweetness to the bright fruit flavors, as well as some creaminess, and it really balances everything out. (All of the pieces that touch your baking tray will burn and turn black, because white chocolate is stupid, but you can just wiggle those pieces right out, and the rest of your scone will be beautiful.) There are also multiple characters in the book that prove that looks and titles can be deceiving, and that things that may seem nice are really anything but nice. And vice versa.

Lemon Raspberry Scones

-2 sticks  unsalted butter, really cold

-5 c  all-purpose flour

-2 tbsp baking powder

-1/2 c  white sugar

-1 tsp  salt

-2 lemons, zested and juiced (about 2 tsp of zest and 1/4c juice)

-3/4 c  heavy cream

-2 eggs

-10 oz  raspberries

-1 (12oz) bag  white chocolate chips

1. Cut the butter into small cubes and stick the back in the fridge.
2. Combine the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, and lemon zest in a bowl, and mix.
3. Add the butter in, and coat them in flour.
4. Using your fingers, squish the butter into the flour, and continue rubbing until the mixture looks like coarse powder.
5. Add the lemon juice and eggs, and squish them into the mixture until they're completely incorporated.
6. Add the heavy cream and knead it into the dough.
7. Knead the white chocolate chips and the raspberries into the dough. (if your dough is still sticking to your fingers, add a bit more flour. If it's cracking and crumbling, add a bit more cream. You want it to be soft, but not sticky.)
8. On a lightly floured surface, form the dough into a large square, about 3/4 inch thick.
9. Cut the square into about 18 smaller squares.
10. Cut those squares diagonally to form the classic triangles. 
11. Place them on a prepared cookie sheet. Make sure to give them a bit of room to grow, but don't worry about giving them too much room—they grow up, not out.
12. Bake them at 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes.
13. Let them cool (then pick off all of the burnt white chocolate chips).

You can either eat them plain, with clotted cream (which I couldn't find anywhere), with whipped butter, or with a sweet lemon butter, which is how I chose to eat mine. The sweet lemon butter was really easy to make. You just whip together half a stick of butter (room temperature), 1 cup of confectioners sugar, 1/6 teaspoon of lemon extract, and 3 tablespoons of heavy cream. And it's ready!