Black Pepper Scones with Grapefruit Curd

Black Pepper scones may sound more action-packed than one would choose for a scone but it's not the case. These scones are slightly sweet, moist, with the zest of grapefruit setting the flavor. The pepper really stays in the background adding some spice at the end of the bite! Paired with a luscious Grapefruit Curd and you have a unique, seasonal breakfast that will having you coming back for more! Do note the Grapefruit Curd needs to chill for 8 hours after being cooked so that timing should be factored into your planning.

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 25

Total Time 8 30

Servings -8 scones; 4 cups grapefruit curd

Calories 567kcal

Author Toni Dash

Ingredients

Ingredients for Black Pepper Scones:

2 cups gluten-free all purpose flour blend (I used King Arthur’s Gluten-Free Flour)
1/3 cup Granulated Sugar
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
¼ teaspoon Baking Soda
½ teaspoon Kosher Salt
¾ tablespoons Black Pepper , freshly ground to medium coarseness
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted Butter, frozen
1 ½ teaspoons freshly grated Grapefruit Peel , medium coarseness
8 ounce container of Sour Cream
1 large Egg

Ingredients for Grapefruit Curd:

1 cup sugar
¼ cup cornstarch
2 cups freshly squeezed Grapefruit juice (1-2 grapefruits approximately, depending on size and juiciness)
3 large eggs , room temperature
¼ cup unsalted butter (4 tablespoons), cut into small pieces
1 tablespoon grapefruit zest

Instructions

Instructions for Black Pepper scones:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl combine the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and black pepper. Whisk to combine fully.
Using a coarse grater (larger holes), grate the frozen butter into the mixing bowl with the dry ingredients. Gently mix the ingredients together with your hands until the combined ingredients form a coarse granular mixture.
In a separate small mixing bowl, combine the sour cream and egg. Whisk to fully mix together.
Pour the sour cream-egg mixture and the grapefruit peel into the batter and mix with a large mixing spoon to begin to incorporate into the batter. Finish the mixing with your hands, lightly kneading the mixture until it is fully combined into a dough ball.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and pat into a circle approximately 1 inch thick.
Using a knife, dough cutter or the edge of a metal spatula cut the circle into 6-8 triangles. Transfer the triangles of dough onto the prepared baking sheet and bake until slightly golden on top (15-17 minutes).
Remove baking sheet from the oven and allow the scones to sit on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer the scones to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Instructions for Grapefruit Curd (click here for step by step photo of making citrus curd):

Mix sugar, cornstarch with grapefruit juice in a saucepan with lid. Whisk in eggs. Heat on medium to medium high until boiling, stirring constantly.
Boil on medium until mixtures thickens to a custard consistency (about 2 minutes), stirring constantly careful to not let it scorch.
Remove from heat and mix in butter and grapefruit zest. Place plastic wrap directly on the custard, cutting holes for venting (a bamboo skewer works great for this). Cover refrigerate at least 8 hours. Unused curd maybe be stored in the refrigerator, sealed, for two weeks or stored in the freezer for up to six months.

Notes

The majority of the overall time is due to the 8 hours of chilling for the Grapefruit Curd.

Nutrition