Classic British Scones with Currants

Classic British Scones with Currants (adapted slightly from Cooks Illustrated)

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 Tb baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

8 Tb unsalted butter, cut into pieces and softened

2/3 cup dried currants

1 cup whole milk

2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in food processor and pulse a few times until combined. Add butter and pulse until fully incorporated and mixture looks like very fine crumbs with no larger chunks. Transfer mixture to large bowl and stir in currants. (You can also do this without a food processor. Cut the butter in by hand, with a pastry cutter or two knives until there are no chunks left larger than small peas, then transfer the mixture to a mixer with the whisk attachment, and mix until the small chunks are broken up and the mixture looks like fine crumbs.)

Whisk milk and eggs together in second bowl. Remove 2 tablespoons of this mixture and set aside. Add remaining liquid ingredients to flour and butter and fold together until almost no dry bits of flour remain.

Transfer dough to a floured work surface and gather into a ball. (This dough will be sticky, so flour your hands!) Knead dough until surface is smooth no longer cracking. Gently form/roll into a disk, about 9 inches across and an inch thick. Use a floured 2 1/2-inch round cutter, stamp out 8 round, making sure not to twist the cutter, only pressing straight down and pulling straight back up. (This keeps the scones from falling over while baking) Arrange scones on prepared sheet. Knead the scraps back together a few times. Roll dough back out to 1-inch thickness cut as many rounds as will fit. Repeat one more time with remaining scraps.

Brush tops of scones with the reserved milk mixture and place in the oven. Immediately reduce temperature to 425 degrees and bake until risen and golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking. Transfer scones to wire rack and let cool for at least 10 minutes. Serve scones warm or at room temperature.