Meyer Lemon and Ginger Scones

It has been the battle of the two lemon and ginger scones around here the past couple of days.  The first batch (first recipe) came out of the oven yesterday, just before my boys got home from school (Preston wouldn't eat one because he thought the ginger looked like cooked apples, apparently he doesn't liked cooked apples).  The second batch (second recipe) was pulled from the oven this morning, just in time for breakfast.  The decision was not unanimous.  While both scones were delicious, Noah preferred the first batch and Todd and I thought the second batch came in first by just a smidge.  (Stella liked whichever one she was eating at the moment and Preston still seemed uninterested in eating scones with cooked apples/ginger.)  While the flavors were the same in both scones, it was the texture of the second scone (or second recipe) that sealed the deal for me.

Meyer Lemon and Ginger Scones

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter, cold and cut into cubes
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 cup diced crystallized ginger
2 teaspoons Meyer lemon zest (or regular lemon)
1 egg
1/2 cup half-and-half
Cream (to brush the tops of scones with before baking)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.  Cut the butter into small pieces and blend into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives.  The mixture should look like coarse crumbs.  Stir in the diced crystallized ginger, sugar and lemon zest.  In a small bowl, mix the egg and half-and-half.  Add the half-and-half/egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir just until the dough comes together.  Do not over mix the dough.

Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and knead dough gently four or five times.  As soon as the dough holds together, pat the dough into a round about 1 inch thick.  Cut the dough into 8 wedges.  Place the scones on the baking sheet.  Brush the tops of the scones with a little cream.
Bake for 10-14 minutes or until golden brown.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool.  When scones have cooled, drizzle with lemon glaze. (I like to drizzle my scones while they are still warm.  The glaze doesn't set up as nicely, but I love how it melts into the scones.)

Meyer Lemon Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice

Combine the lemon juice and powdered sugar in a small bowl.  Mix until smooth.  Drizzle over scones.

*I used Meyer lemons (it's what I had), but the original recipe calls for regular lemons. 
*If you're afraid you might not like the crystallized ginger (don't be), but if you're not a ginger fan, leave it out.

Recipe barely adapted from A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg

The recipe for the first batch of scones (Noah's favorite) was given to me by my cute neighbor and friend and can be found here.