Flour Fool Baking: the art of scones
Jody Fleit and her inventive scones for people who don’t like scones
Faced with choices of baked snacks, a scone is usually not my first pick. They can be heavy and kind of boring. But I was spurred on by my friend Victoria whose taste I trust and who told me about these boldly flavored, flaky treats. Research for this story required me to try nearly all of Flour Fool’s scones, and I can tell you: They are delicious!
I was introduced to corn chili cheddar, pear bleu cheese, and tomato curry asiago scones as a cocktail snack accompanying a dry rosé. Since then, I’ve enjoyed breakfasts of tahini lemon date scones dusted with nigella seeds, pumpernickel raisin scones made richer with rye flour and molasses, and cornmeal lemon blueberry scones that go nicely with a side of cantaloupe and berries.
And now for the story about these scones.
Jody Fleit has been cooking and baking for most of her life, but always as a hobby or as a brief business stint. In between her nursing and healthcare executive jobs she worked as a personal chef and launched a gourmet meal service (pre-internet with menus on paper!) along with a friend.
She initially started by selling her scones locally through word of mouth, and now she ships them all over the U.S. and further afield. Read on to find out what goes into these uncommonly flavored scones, whether turning a hobby into a job lessens the enjoyment, and where to find the best chocolate cake recipe.
What led to Flour Fool?
Cooking and baking always called to me. My husband Steve would say, “I hate scones, but I love those scones and those are scones you could sell.” I would flirt with the idea but never did it. Finally upon retirement, I said what the heck, I’ll do it. I realized I could bake out of my home and get a permit from the town to do so.
How did you come up with the name?
I had all these ideas for names, and I was reviewing them with a guy helping me with naming. He rejected my names and at one point said, “Oh you flour fool!” And I said, that’s it!
How did you come up with your menu of scones and go from small batches to production mode?
I refined my recipes before launch to standardize them and get the size of the batch, which is two dozen scones. Because a lot of what I do is by hand, I was limited in the number I could make. I developed a standard recipe for both sweet and savory, with different flavorings. The oat scone is a different recipe because I wanted to use more oats to get the crunch, and it’s the only one with egg in the body of the scone.
I made field trips to places that made scones. I looked to see if anybody was better than I was. A lot of places that do their own scones do drop scones—you mix a big bowl of dough, take a scoop, and you drop it [on the baking sheet]. it’s a round blob.
How are your scones different from drop scones?
I roll out the dough and weigh out four equal portions per batch. Then I form each of those into a slightly larger than six-inch disc, cut six wedges from each disc by hand, then chill the wedges for two to 24 hours before baking them.
How did you come up with your flavor combinations? Did you have a group of tasters?
I experimented a lot. I used The Flavor Thesaurus to get ideas, such as what’s great with lemon or pecans. I don’t know that I’ve seen scones with the combinations such as pear bleu cheese and pineapple rosemary Parmesan. On some, like the corn chile cheddar and cheddar bacon scallion, I would keep adding more alliums—roasted garlic, shallots, or scallions. I use different kinds of chiles, such as urfa chiles. I was afraid of overdoing it but found that a bit more chile was better.
I would get friends to taste something new. I tried many experiments with the tahini lemon date scones to get the right amounts of tahini and dates. I usually put a pound of cut-up fruit into my fruited scones and I ended up using a pound and a half of dates.
I also took a baking intensive class at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education. I knew how to bake but learned some pearls, such as how to laminate dough.
Can you explain lamination?
Once you cut the butter into the flour, you pat out the dough into a big rectangle and fold it like an envelope. Then you roll it out, and fold it like an envelope. I do three “turns.” You are creating layers of butter and that makes the scones flaky. It’s the method that is used to make croissants. But using it with non-yeast dough [for scones] gives you a more layered effect.
Lamination makes it more work. There’s only so much dough that I’m strong enough to manage. You can’t have your dough too wet, and it can be different each time. When I add citrus zest, I use fresh zest. I will always use the [orange, lemon, or lime] pulp, and the sizes of those fruits are different. I have a feel for the dough and I know when it’s too wet. If it’s slightly too dry, it’s a flaky scone but hard work.
It sounds like a physically demanding process.
It is. I start at noon and will go until 5 pm and then I’m done.
How many batches do you make in a day?
Sometimes I make five batches of dough, put them in the fridge and bake them the next day. If I make the dough and chill it and bake them the same day, four batches is my max.
Do you have preferred suppliers for the chiles and other ingredients?
I buy a lot from Common Crow, nuts.com, and Burlap and Barrel, which I love. Their cinnamon is unbelievable. You sprinkle it on an apple slice and it tastes like cinnamon sugar. I also get ingredients from various shops in Watertown [Massachusetts].
Have you tried any flavor combinations that didn’t work?
There’s a peach crumble that’s ok, but it doesn’t pop.
So there was no pickle and peanut butter scone?
No. I’m thinking of trying cheddar kimchi. [Yes, please.] I had one at Tandem Coffee. They have a bodacious bakery counter overseen by Briana Holt: Pies, scones, and “loaded biscuits” that she splits and puts jam or cheese in.
I also did try a peanut butter and jelly scone at the prompting of my friend Victoria. They were sinful, but so rich to get the peanut butter taste and I had a hard time keeping the jelly inside! [Yes, please, again.]
Do you have a best seller?
I have a following for the orange almond chocolate nib. Some people love the tahini date. Many people always include the orange pecan and lemon poppy in their orders.
Do you have a philosophy about cooking or baking?
I would never sell something I didn’t love. My baking teacher said, “I always fight with my weight so it’s really important that it be calorie worthy.” I want to make certain that what I’m making is worth it. My husband says, “it’s so much work. You must be able to get a machine to do this.” Part of the charm of it is that everything isn’t quite the same size. They are made by hand, not by a machine. It should be a real treat. It is my art form and worth the manual effort.
Have you thought about keto, gluten-free, or other types of scones?
I have a gluten-sensitive friend. I tried using a number of different flours, but the scones tasted like sawdust. As for keto, I don’t know how you a make a scone without flour. For me it’s a philosophical thing, if you are not dealing with a food allergy and if you are going to eat a scone, you should really enjoy it!
Who are the chefs, bakers, artists, creative people you admire?
The person who got me into baking is Maida Heatter. I have every one of her books. I don’t consider myself a fancy baker, but I want to have the very best. My very favorite chocolate cake is out of the Silver Palate, the decadent chocolate cake. You must not overbake it or it will taste like dirt!
My favorite carrot cake comes from an adorable cookbook, Heirloom Baking with the Brass Sisters. Their carrot cake has a whole orange, including the peel. I have a million cookbooks. I like Dorie Greenspan’s cookies, and some unusual cookies from Cookie Love, such as smoked chocolate sables, smoky bacon chocolate bar cookies, and oatmeal scotchies with homemade toffee instead of store-bought butterscotch chips.
A lot of people wonder: If you do something you love as your business, will you still love it?
Yes. That was my big question. I found that I liked it way more than I thought I would because I was able to do it on my terms. I don’t feel like baking everyday, and I would hate it if someone said, you must bake for eight hours tomorrow and I didn’t feel like it. I was surprised about things I thought I would hate, such as packing the scones for shipping—75% of the orders are gifts. I have a system for that and it’s easy.
Lightning-round questions: People often bond over food and art, and here are quick questions about both.
Favorite breakfast (that is not scones).
A truffle cheese omelet, and if I can have carbs [she follows the keto diet some of the time], I would have a really good baguette with that.
What would be your go-to scone?
I like the rye caraway raisin. It’s like a buttery Irish soda bread.
Most memorable meal.
Lunch at Le Bistro du Paradou in Provence. I read about it in Sarah Leah Chase’s book Pedaling through Provence. It was prix fix with one entrée on the menu. We had vegetable soup, bread, big bottles of red and white wine on the table, lamb with vegetables, a cheese platter this big [stretches her arms as wide as they will go] that they passed around after dinner, and a choice of two desserts. The food was very, very good.
The best part was it was all French people there for the weekend, and this is how they spend their Saturday afternoon. They are chatting, relaxing, and having this sumptuous meal while their children are rolling around on the floor. It was a lifestyle that I envied.
You are hosting a dinner party and get to invite six people living or dead. Who is coming and what are you serving?
Stanley Tucci and his wife, Mandy Patinkin and his wife, and a couple I know from my past who are no longer alive but would be wonderful company at this meal. I would serve tapas, grilled seafood paella, green salad, and decadent chocolate cake.
Favorite piece of art you own.
One of my husband’s Morning in Venice paintings.
Most captivating museum visit.
The Museum of Jewish Heritage that’s on the waterfront in New York City.
Palate & Palette menu
This is what the Palate & Palette chefs would serve if Jody and her husband painter Steven Fleit came to dinner (which they are encouraged to do)!
Shrimp cocktail
Spinach salad with bacon vinaigrette
Chicken chili verde over cauliflower rice
Chocolate mousse
Where you can find Flour Fool (and you should!):
Such a fun interview! I love the innovative approach to turning scones into an extravaganza. And I so admire the creativity!
Brava! My mouth s watering! I plan to place an order!