Foodcation #8: Jonesing for Scones
Greta Gerwig’s 2019 adaptation of Little Women lodged a permanent space in my heart for many reasons. The story that I’ve loved since girlhood, Saoirse Ronan and Timothée Chalamet back together again as impossible on-screen lovers, and the illustrious depictions of food. There are two noteworthy scenes in which food is stunningly showcased: the first being the March’s epic Christmas breakfast provided to them by their wealthy neighbor Mr. Laurence (played by Chris Cooper) and the final scene where the sisters (Ronan, Emma Watson, Florence Pugh) present Marmee (Laura Dern) with her rustic pre-pre-pre--Milk-Bar naked birthday cake.
But by far my most obsessed-over food moment in the entire movie is barely a moment at all. It is the scene in which Laurie (Chalamet) visits the March household for the first time and meets Marmee who greets him with a lovely fresh baked scone. “I enjoy baking in the middle of the night and don’t mind the clutter, Mr. Laurence, we don’t" (same girl same) she says seconds before she graces him with a hefty slice of baked butter, flour, and motherly love. I think in that moment of watching, my predisposed obsession for Laura Dern grew stronger and my newfound fascination with what that scone could possibly be like began.
To the point that I would go back that one scene over and over to examine said scone. It looked like your standard slice-and-bake triangular scone shape and a very nice golden brown. The real question was: what did Marmee put inside?? What’s the flavor profile for her night scones? Maybe it’s a classic oatmeal raisin or another dried fruit insert?
For a movie that placed so much attentive detail on food (thanks to the incredibly thoughtful execution by Boston-based food stylist Christine Tobin), I was shocked by how little screen time Marmee’s scone received. Did Louisa May Alcott not mention the pastries in any of the 760 pages of her novel? The last time I read the novel, I was thirteen so I’m thinking it’s high time I revisit it just to see if scones were ever in the narrative. But then again if it wasn’t, why couldn’t have Gerwig written in a reimagined SconeMome (a.k.a. Scone Moment - trademark pending)? She was effortlessly able to shift and reframe the order of events and adjust parts of the original narrative to provide a new cinematic adaptation. I’m a food writer and recipe developer so forgive me as I sway away from my lane for a moment into film critic territory but: couldn’t a quiet moment of Laurie nibbling on his scone while he’s outside the March house added an extra rich layer of his newfound love for these bold ladies?
My qualms about Laurie not immediately indulging in the scone further derive from my firsthand experience with frigid New England winters as someone who grew up in Connecticut. Sure, he lives just across the road but did Marmee think to give him a to-go bag? I mean it will take time for him to he schlep across that gigantic front yard of his; even the best well-hydrated scone with an excellent cream to butter ratio is prone to drying out with Time Temperature Abuse. Whatever the case, I just hope that lavish mansion of his grandfather’s has a nice gas oven to reheat that scone baby up.
SOME SCONE CONTENT
A schooling on the difference between American and British Scones
People in England debate about what goes on their scone first
A scone recipe by the her lordship Ina Garten
An actual song about scones, namely of the peach variety
SOME UNSOLICITED SCONE TIPS
Always cube and chill your butter!!
Power to the baking powder
Err on the side of under-mixing
Folding dough = building layers
Chill even more before baking
Spice it up! Play around with different flavor combos, savory or sweet!
Kimchi Cheddar Scones
makes 10 scones
2 cups (241 grams) all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
5 tablespoons (85 grams) cold unsalted butter
1 cup (113 grams) shredded cheddar cheese
3 tablespoons Everything Bagel seasoning
1/3 cup kimchi, shredded or roughly chopped
2 large eggs
1/3 cup (74 grams) whole milk or heavy cream
1) Preheat oven to 375F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
2) Whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder. Work butter with your fingers until unevenly crumbly.
3) Toss cheese, everything bagel seasoning, and kimchi.
4) Mix together eggs and milk/cream. Add to the dry ingredients, stirring just until everything is evenly moistened. Dough will be quite sticky.
5) Flour the surface and your hands with 1 tablespoon of flour. Dump dough onto the surface and cover with the remaining 1 tablespoon of flour. Pat dough into a 10" x 2” rectangle.
6) Using a bench scraper, cut the rectangle into 5 squares, then cut each square in half diagonally, to yield a total of 10 triangular scones.
7) Place the scones on the prepared baking sheet, leaving a 1 inch gap in between each.
8) Bake scones for 20 - 23 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from oven and serve warm or at room temperature. Store scones well-wrapped at frozen or at room temperature.
Whole Wheat Morning Glory Scones
(that just so happen to be dairy-free)
makes 12-16 scones
