ReadyMade: Instructions for everyday life

Issue 43
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Southern BBQ, City Style
A-Frame House
Bikes of Portland
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Spiced Sconelettes

by Amy Palanjian

Photos by Aya Brackett and Jay Wilde

How a former fashionista launched a bite-size scone business, plus a betcha-can’t-eat-just-one recipe.

WHO
Treasa Ewing, age 27

WHERE
San Francisco

WHAT
Sustainably made “sconelettes” that pack big flavor into their pint size

SITE
kleine.foodzie.com

“I’d like to say that becoming a pastry chef was something that I’d always wanted, but the career found me. I was unsatisfied with my first career in fashion merchandising. I always came home from work feeling like I wasn’t making a difference. At the time, I decided to go to culinary school because I thought it would be a good source of inspiration and an outlet for my creativity. I’d never been much of a baker, though I did take lessons in cake design at the age of 11. My mom would make all of the frostings for me, and I remember our freezer being filled with buttercream flowers and practice cakes.

“I attended the Le Cordon Bleu Pâtisserie and Baking program at the California Culinary Academy, and while there, I was asked to make scones for the Blue Bottle Coffee Company kiosk in Hayes Valley while their baker was on vacation. I changed the recipe to make it my own, and used fairly traded and locally sourced ingredients.

“I started making bite-size ‘sconelettes’ out of leftover scraps of dough to give to friends, and soon I began receiving orders for the little guys. This seemed perfect to me since personal desserts are a great way to introduce people to classic recipes.

“I’m German on both sides, so when I was thinking of a name, I immediately thought of Kleine, which is German for ‘little one’ (or ‘baby,’ depending on the context). My mom used to call me both when I was small, and thinking of my business as connected to my roots really helped me stay grounded as I launched it from my tiny apartment. I love that I’ve found a way to inspire others to seek out products made with fairly traded ingredients, one tiny scone at a time.”­

    1. Preheat oven to 375°F. In a bowl, stir together flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, baking powder, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt.With pastry blender, cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in pear. Stir in buttermilk just until dough holds together.

    2. Transfer dough onto a lightly floured work surface and shape into a rectangle. Roll dough out to ½-inch thickness. Using a 1- to 1½-inch square cutter, cut sconelettes (or use a sharp knife to cut the dough into 1¼- to 1½-inch squares), and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet allowing ½ inch between each sconelette. With a pastry brush, brush tops of each sconelette with whipping cream. Sprinkle with coarse decorating sugar.

    3. Bake 22 to 28 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Serve warm with Ginger Butter.

    4. To Make Ginger Butter: Bring some water to a boil. Put ½ pound (8 ounces) chopped crystallized ginger into a food processor, cover, and puree until a thick paste. With the motor running, slowly add 3 to 4 tablespoons hot water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until a spreadable consistency is achieved, scraping sides as needed. Transfer into bowl or jar and allow to cool slightly. Enjoy with slices of Brie or on your favorite scone (or both). Cover and chill unused portion up to 3 months. (Crystallized ginger, $13 for 16 ounces, kingarthurflour.com)

Spiced Pear Sconelettes With Ginger Butter

ingredients

    • 2½ c all-purpose flour
    • ¼ c granulated sugar
    • ¼ c packed brown sugar
    • 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
    • 1 tbsp ground ginger
    • 2 tsp baking powder
    • 1 tsp ground nutmeg
    • ½ tsp baking soda
    • ½ tsp salt
    • ½ c cold butter
    • 1 c chopped, cored unpeeled Bosc pear
    • ⅔ c buttermilk
    • 2 tbsp whipping cream
    • 1 tbsp coarse decorating sugar or granulated sugar
    • 8 oz crystallized ginger (for ginger butter)