By Seventy-five copies came back from the printer on Monday and they were right. The cover is matte and the paper inside has the warm tan I wanted and Bernice's photograph reproduced better than I feared — her laugh is clear, her yellow hat is present, and if you look closely you can see the seed pearl earrings she wore almost every day of her life. It looks like something made with care, which is because it was.
I sat at the kitchen table Tuesday morning before Bernice's Table and I signed each one of the seventy-five copies on the title page. Not a scrawl — my full name, and the year, and one sentence that I decided to write in every copy: "Cooked with love. Continue the tradition." It took about an hour. By the end my hand hurt but I was glad. Signing all seventy-five meant touching each one, making them individual rather than a stack, and there is something about that act of contact that I needed to make.
I gave out fifteen copies this week. Cousin Rosemary got hers via priority mail with a card. Sister Odalys got hers at Bernice's Table — she read the first few pages standing in the church kitchen and then pressed it to her chest and said, Loretta. That's all she said. James and Dorothy are getting theirs in a package with a jar of honey and a card I am writing tonight. Kezia got hers on Saturday and sat at my kitchen table reading the headnotes while I made sweet potato biscuits. She was quiet for a long time and then she said, are you in all of these? I said yes, I suppose I am. She said, good. That's what makes it worth reading.
Kezia asked me if I was in all of the recipes, and the honest answer is yes — but I am most present in the scones, which were Bernice’s Sunday-morning staple and the first thing I learned to make by her side. Every copy of Bernice’s Table carries this recipe near the front, because it felt right to open with something warm and simple, something that asks you to use your hands. I made a batch the morning after I finished signing all seventy-five copies, and I sat with my tea and did not rush a single bite.
Scones
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 18 min | Total Time: 33 min | Servings: 8
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
- 2/3 cup cold heavy cream, plus more for brushing
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
- Heat the oven. Preheat your oven to 400°F (205°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, granulated sugar, and salt until evenly mixed.
- Cut in the butter. Add the cold butter cubes to the flour mixture. Using your fingertips or a pastry cutter, work the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces remaining. Work quickly so the butter stays cold.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the heavy cream, egg, and vanilla extract.
- Bring the dough together. Pour the cream mixture over the flour mixture and stir gently with a fork just until a shaggy dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and press it together two or three times — do not overwork it.
- Shape and cut. Pat the dough into a circle about 3/4 inch thick. Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut into 8 equal wedges and transfer them to the prepared baking sheet, spacing them 1 inch apart.
- Finish and bake. Brush the tops lightly with heavy cream and sprinkle with turbinado sugar if using. Bake for 16–18 minutes, until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool and serve. Let the scones rest on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature, with butter, jam, or clotted cream.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 290 | Protein: 5g | Fat: 15g | Carbs: 34g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 220mg