Posts Tagged “scones”

It’s been a while since our last savory scone update.  That’s what I was thinking when I popped in at The Biscuit (FKA Toscanini Bakery) not far from Inman Square.  And sure enough, right there in the case was a batch of spinach parmesean scones.

Maybe just slightly undercooked, moist and doughy in the middle (like many of my best friends), this scone scores high for spinach content and crusty cheese flavor.  It had several pockets of green and a good chewy outside.  Needless to say, it could be improved with the addition of bacon, but at the same time, I think just a touch of sea salt would so almost as much good.

I also picked up a sourdough round and gazed fondly at the quiche and pizza.  Be sure to stop in before or after your next visit to EVOO, Dali, and/or the Wine & Cheese Cask.

After catching up with Gibraltarian M at 1369 in Central, I took an errand ramble around the neighborhood and popped into Mariposa Bakery on impulse.  On the counter, unlabeled, was a basket of scones that turned out to be cheddar-scallion, one of my favorites.  The friendly but somewhat overcaffeinated counterman cheerully rang me up.  Smaller than the usual cafe bakery scone, but not so small as to make me feel cheated (see recent oatmeal scone developments at Diesel), Mariposa’s scones were light and moist.  The cheddar flavor was subdued but attended by some tasty cheese crusts at the margins.

Running errands I found myself back at Sherman Cafe in Union square. I’ve liked the place since they opened, but there have been some ups and downs in quality over the years. We’re definitely in an up right now, and have been for a while according to local bakery maven J.

They’ve eliminated the raised platform in the window and created more seating, tidied up the back area and deployed some really excellent sandwiches. Maybe the opening of nearby Bloc 11 lit a fire under them. Less appealing to some is the one hour free internet limit, but I think that’s reasonable, and I’m pretty sure if you ask nicely and keep buying stuff, the staff might slip you an extra hour once in a while.

Today I’m enjoying a fresh orange juice and a sweet potato, goat cheese and rosemary scone. There’s a combo you don’t see too often. It’s tasty, but the goat cheese and rosemary are barely evident, even though the sweet potato is in plentiful chunks. It’s good to know it’s here, but I think I’ll stick with Sherman’s strength, their sandwiches.

Adding the obligatory geek note, this is the first post created entirely on the new mini notebook. I put the SD card from my digital camera into the computer’s media slot, tidied up the photo with GIMP and did the rest in the browser. Mission accomplished. This setup is going to be excellent when I’m on the road.

Not too long ago, I was craving a good savory scone, and when I couldn’t find any in local shops, a good friend went ahead and made some, which were most excellent. Yesterday, I was at the Wine & Cheese Cask, possibly Somerville’s best wine shop, looking for some crisp whites the fried chicken wine pairing. As it turns out, I purchased the winning wine at the cask. But before I did that, I went across the street to The Biscuit (formerly Toscanini, formerly Panini cafe) for a snack, and was pleasantly surprised to find that they had a savory scone, three cheese scallion to be precise.

It’s dangerous business to compare a purchased scone, even one from a neighborhood bakery, to one made pretty much on demand by a friend. But since some of you might not be lucky enough to have such a friend, I offer these observations on The Biscuit’s scone.

There’s lots of cheese.  This is a good thing.  You can even see some rivers of molten cheese oozing out of the scone on the right.  On the other hand, there’s no bacon.  A split decision, but vegetarians win.  Take note, A, J and L.

The shape of these scones is blobular, not the more traditional scone wedge.  No real opinion on that, but at $2 a pop, I’m happy to report that they are good-sized without being unpleasantly huge.

They are moist, perhaps moister than I’d expect from a scone.  Perhaps there’s extra egg in the mix, resulting in a shiny exterior and a generally brioche-y demeanor.  Not a bad thing at all, just not quite the same as other scones I’ve seen and sampled.

I’m happy there’s at least one more savory scone out there, and I recommend you check them out.

If you’ve been following me on twitter (or in person for that matter, but that would be even weirder) you know that I’ve been craving a good savory scone. Heck, I would have settled for a bad one. I stuck out at several local outlets, but my craving was picked up by a good friend and local celebrity chef, <plug> who has a new food blog you absolutely must read. </plug> She made a couple of batches of cheese bacon and scallion scones, and I’ve been lucky enough to stow a few in my freezer. Hint: don’t bake them all unless you’re going to eat them all – freeze them individually and bake them on demand. You can read her side of the story and score the recipe at Grow Cook Eat. Here are some photos from the second (or was it third?) batch this weekend.