Buttermilk Raisin Scones

George Hirsch February 23, 2026

A scone is a quick bread, but it is unclear of true origin—be it from the Scots, Brits, or Germans. I like the word scone as it may have derived from the Gaelic term "sgonn," meaning a shapeless mass or large mouthful. Although some are hexagonal, scones are usually round in shape, as this shape provides for space efficiency while baking. Other forms include triangles and squares.

Why Buttermilk? Using Buttermilk instead of cream makes for a lighter, more bread-like scone. The scones are baked at a higher oven temperature, which produces a darker, crispier crust. Using Buttermilk will also result in a more tender, creamy texture with a rich buttery taste and a bit of tang, somewhat similar to a good Greek yogurt. TIP: Not to worry if you are just plum out of Buttermilk; regular milk + vinegar will provide the same results.

Start with the best ingredients, and the results will provide tastier, better results—specifically, use good quality flour. Easily prepared, baked, and enjoyed in under an hour—have a good cup of hot tea and jam with my Irish Scones.

Buttermilk Raisin Scones

Makes 8 scones in a 9-inch round pan

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2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup (1 stick) very cold sweet butter, cut into small pieces

1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons pure cane granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup milk, *made into buttermilk

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup raisins, **plumped

1/4 teaspoon white vinegar for making milk into buttermilk

*Add white vinegar to milk to make the buttermilk. Allow to sit for 5 minutes to sour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add cold butter to the flour and blend in by hand until the butter resembles fine crumbs. Add granulated sugar and mix it into the flour.

Combine beaten egg, vanilla, and milk. Add milk mixture to flour mixture, toss in plumped raisins, and mix by hand until a dough forms. It will take about one minute of kneading until the flour is absorbed. Turn the scone dough onto a floured surface. Form in the shape of a ball; do not over-knead. With a rolling pin, flatten out the dough to one inch thick.

Place the round scone dough into a 9-inch cake pan. With a bench scraper or knife, cut through the dough four times, dividing it into eight equal pieces. Immediately bake for about 16-18 minutes until the dough sounds hollow, a sign it is fully baked.

Serve warm with jam and clotted whipped cream.

**To plump raisins, add 2 tablespoons of water and heat in the microwave for 30 seconds.

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AS SEEN ON PUBLIC TELEVISION & CREATE TV- SEASON ONE
FEATURING CHEF GEORGE HIRSCH DEMONSTRATING HIS SAVORY COOKING, BAKING AND GRILLING RECIPES; WITH HIS EXPERT CULINARY TIPS & TECHNIQUES, ALONG WITH VISITS TO HIS INSPIRING HAMPTON LOCATIONS.

Gather 'Round the Grill Cookbook, Vintage (new)

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From the original Grilling TV Series host, 200 Fabulous Recipe—Celebrating the joyous rituals of sharing food at year-round festivities, the star of PBS's Grilling with Chef George Hirsch provides a wealth of recipes and ideas for great party foods, plus advance preparation tips to ease the strain of last minute chores.

Hardcover: 310 pages
Publisher: Hearst Books-HarperCollins; 1St edition (June 12, 1995)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0688142257
ISBN-13: 978-0688142254
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This easy to live with lifestyle plan; with more than 165 of George's easy-to-prepare gourmet recipes, you can lose weight, maintain energy, look better, and enjoy a longer active life, by eating great food!
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George Starts your year off right!

George Hirsch Living it UP
Recipes for a Healthy Active Life
Product Details
Hardcover: 240 pages; $24.95
Publisher: M. Evans and Company, Inc.; 2000
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0871319241
ISBN-13: 978-0871319241
Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches

Creative Cooking tips
Fast Easy recipes that allow for an active lifestyle
A 30-Day Menu Plan you can adapt throughout the year
Support and motivation for staying on a healthy eating & exercise routine
Tips for easy food shopping & eating healthy on the run

Each book is personally autographed by George Hirsch.

Angel Wings

George Hirsch February 16, 2026

Galani is also known as fried ribbons, bow ties, or angel wings in the U.S. The ribbons of sweet pasta dough are fried and covered with sugar or honey. It takes on different names throughout central Europe, including chrusciki, krusczyk, frappe, frappole, sfrappole, flappe, cenci, crustci, donzelli, crostoli, galani in Veneto, lattughe, nastri delle suore, bugie, and gigi. No matter what you call them, they are addictive.

Angel Wings

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2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 Tablespoons butter, room temperature

6 egg yolks

pinch of salt

grated zest of 1 lemon

6 Tablespoons sour cream or plain yogurt

2 Tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 Tablespoon Sambuca, whiskey, or rum

frying oil

approximately 3/4 cup confectioners (powdered) sugar to pastries

By Mixer:

Place the flour in a mixing bowl with a dough hook, add all ingredients except the confectioners sugar, blend well at low speed, then mix for fifteen minutes.

By Hand:

If kneading by hand, make a well in the center. Add the egg yolks and rub in with the fingers until combined. Add all the other ingredients except the confectioner's sugar. Blend well and keep kneading by repeating a pattern of folding the dough, flattening it, folding again, and flattening it for at least half an hour.

Divide the dough into four pieces and cover it in plastic wrap. Allow to rest in the refrigerator for one hour or overnight.

When ready to fry, roll out the dough with a rolling stick 1/16th inch thick. Slice into one-and-a-half-inch wide strips. Cut the strips diagonally, preferably with a fluted pastry wheel, into 5-inch lengths. In each strip, cut a one-inch slit the long way in the middle. Pull one end of the strip through the slit so that it looks like a bowtie shape.

Preheat frying oil to 375°F. Test a small piece first; it should become golden in about 45 seconds, then turn over. Fry the strips in small batches until they turn light golden, turning once. Drain on wire screens and allow to cool. When cool, move to a serving platter and dust with confectioners’ sugar.

Tip: The long mixing will create air pockets in the dough; you will want the air pockets to make the pastry puff when frying.

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Language: English
ISBN-10: 0688142257
ISBN-13: 978-0688142254
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Chocolate Sauce, take a dip

George Hirsch February 12, 2026

This is one of those sauces that must be in every chef's repertoire. It's a classic. In a matter of minutes, you can turn a simple sweet into chocolate decadence. So set aside the guilt and go ahead - dip, drizzle, and dunk your way through fresh strawberries, ice cream, and cake.

One study has shown that the smell of chocolate may relax you by increasing theta waves in the brain. Yes, we all have them.

Does chocolate contain any nutrients? Yes, it does, in small amounts. A 1.5-ounce milk chocolate bar contains recommended daily values of the following vitamins and minerals:

• 3 grams of protein • 15% of the Daily Value of riboflavin • 9% of the Daily Value of calcium • 7% of the Daily Value of iron

When choosing chocolate, look for a shiny finish, which is a sign that the chocolate was heated at the right temperature for the right amount of time. Also, look for a crispy snap when chocolate is broken into pieces. Choose a good chocolate for a sauce like Lindt, Callebaut, or Scharffen Berger. In a pinch, chocolate chips will do. This very decadent sauce is ideally served with fresh strawberries. Note: this chocolate sauce recipe is not ideal for coating dipped strawberries. Chocolate Sauce Recipe Below

***Dip or Drizzle Chocolate Sauce On Your Favorite Cookies***

George's Chocolate Sauce

Recipe by Chef George Hirsch | George Hirsch Lifestyle TV Series

Makes about two cups

8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

3 Tablespoons pure cane granulated sugar

3/4 cup cream

3 Tablespoons corn syrup

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Optional: 1 Tablespoon Brandy or Grand Marnier

Place chopped chocolate in a bowl and set aside.

Place cream, sugar, and corn syrup in a small pot. Heat to a boil, stirring constantly. When it reaches a boil, pour directly over the chocolate and stir until all chocolate has melted. Add vanilla and brandy.

Use immediately or cool, cover, and refrigerate for up to two weeks. To reheat, heat the amount you need over a double boiler and stir until just melted.

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Gather 'Round the Grill Cookbook, Vintage (new)

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Hardcover: 310 pages
Publisher: Hearst Books-HarperCollins; 1St edition (June 12, 1995)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0688142257
ISBN-13: 978-0688142254
Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 8.1 x 1.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds

George Hirsch Living it UP! cooking & lifestyle book

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Order Today to receive by Valentine's Day LIMITED EDITON HBC Valentine Classic Brownie Cookies

Classic Brownie Cookies as seen on George Hirsch Lifestyle

George Hirsch February 10, 2026

a Classic, cookies, and milk on George Hirsch Lifestyle

Chocolate treat, under 30 minutes - mixing and baking. But can you wait 24 hours? Probably not, but just save a few because these cookies actually taste even better a few days after baking. Eyes go wide open on the first bite. Try my recipe for yourself, and you'll agree. For best results, use a good-quality cocoa powder.

Classic Brownie Cookies

Makes 3 dozen large or 6 dozen small

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1 1/3 cups butter

1 cup sugar

2/3 cup brown sugar

1 Tablespoon vanilla

2 eggs

2 1/4 cups flour

2/3 cup cocoa

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2teaspoon salt

3 Tablespoons milk

1 1/2 cups pecans, chopped

1 cup mini chocolate chips, semi-sweet, or chopped chocolate

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar one minute, or until creamy.

Add eggs, one at a time, beating lightly after each.

Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating at low speed about 1 minute, or just until blended.

Stir in nuts and chocolate chips.

Drop dough with cookie scoop (heaping 2 Tablespoons) on parchment paper-lined baking sheet.

Bake at 350°F for 10 to 12 minutes. Cookies will still appear soft and moist when baked, but firm up on cooling.

Cool slightly, then remove to a cooling rack. About 3 dozen cookies.

Tip: Smaller cookies can be made using 1 Tablespoon of dough for each cookie, baking for 8 to 10 minutes.

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Gather 'Round the Grill Cookbook, Vintage (new)

$50.00

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Hardcover: 310 pages
Publisher: Hearst Books-HarperCollins; 1St edition (June 12, 1995)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0688142257
ISBN-13: 978-0688142254
Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 8.1 x 1.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds

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George’s Double Chocolate Brownies

George Hirsch January 26, 2026

Know Your Cookie:

A brownie is a sheet cookie, as its soft batter spreads across a sheet-like pan to bake. Other types of sheet cookies include blondies and rainbow cookies. After sheet cookies are baked, they can be cut into squares, rectangles, or any other shape when cool.

This is an often-requested recipe from George Hirsch Lifestyle. It is ideal for every occasion. Enjoy it as is, or upgrade it by topping it with your favorite ice cream. The brownie derives its character from a deep, rich cocoa base for the chocolate flavor.

Did you know chocolate is a winter mood booster? Dark chocolate contains the amino acid tryptophan, a well-recognized serotonin producer. It’s also one of the best food sources of magnesium, an essential mineral that allows the body to relax.

A one-ounce serving of dark chocolate contains 64 mg of magnesium. That’s 16% of the recommended daily intake. Add to that an abundance of other essential minerals, antioxidants, flavanols, and prebiotic fiber—all of which make us feel better in more ways than one.

Double Chocolate Brownies

chefgeorgehirsch.com | George Hirsch Lifestyle

Makes 12-18 Brownies

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 pound (2 sticks) of sweet butter, softened at room temperature

2 cups granulated sugar

4 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans or walnuts

1 1/2 cups semisweet chopped chocolate pieces or chocolate or butterscotch chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Grease and flour an 8 x 12 x 2-inch baking pan and line it with a parchment paper baking sheet.

In a small bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt well. Set aside.

Cream butter in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add granulated sugar and cream on high speed for 2 minutes, until light and fluffy.

On a low speed, add vanilla and eggs, one at a time, stopping the machine from scraping down the bowl well after each addition. At low speed, add flour and cocoa powder to the butter mixture and mix until flour is absorbed. Do not over-mix.

By hand, fold the pecans and chocolate in with a rubber spatula.

Optional: if using coconut, mix 3/4 of coconut with pecans and chocolate.

Using a spatula, spread the batter into a baking pan, making sure the batter is spread evenly and smooth.

Bake for 25-30 minutes. Be careful not to overbake. Brownies are baked when pressed. The cake springs back when pressed lightly with your finger, or a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 2 hours, and cut the brownies into rectangle or square pieces.

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