Read Baking with Less Sugar for Free Online

might be a little too jarring to your system at first. I know it was for me when I first embarked on this exciting journey to learn to bake with less sugar. We ease into it here. These are my favorite desserts and baked goods made with at most half or even one-third the typical amount of sugar. You’ll find that your taste buds will gradually adjust, and your palate will learn to prefer pastries that are less sweet—especially if they are made with superb ingredients and showcase the delightful flavors of fruits, spices, nuts, and chocolate.

PEAR-CARDAMOM-WALNUT SCONES
    One whiff of these scones baking and I am transported to the Swedish bakery I frequented one summer when I was an exchange student in Stockholm during high school. The intoxicating scent of cardamom filled the air, and my favorite indulgence was a sugar-dusted cardamom brioche roll filled with raisins and walnuts. Cardamom is pretty potent, so you don’t need a lot to make an impact. Here, its warm, aromatic, floral flavors are the perfect foil to juicy sweet pears and toasted walnuts.
    MAKES
12
SCONES
75 g/ 3 / 4 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
385 g/2 3 / 4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 / 2 tsp baking soda
1 / 2 tsp kosher salt
3 / 4 tsp ground cardamom
3 Tbsp sugar
115 g/ 1 / 2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 8 to 10 pieces
3 ripe medium Anjou or Bartlett pears, peeled, cored, and chopped into small dice
180 g/ 3 / 4 cup crème fraîche (see page 24)
2 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 large egg plus 2 egg yolks
    1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F [175°C]. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
    2. Put the walnuts on the prepared baking sheet and toast for 8 to 10 minutes, or until lightly toasted. Remove from the baking sheet and set aside to cool.
    3. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or with an electric hand mixer), briefly mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cardamom, and 2 Tbsp of the sugar on low speed until combined. Add the butter and beat on low speed for 30 seconds to 1 minute, or until the butter is somewhat broken down but there are still pieces about the size of a grape. (Alternatively, use a pastry cutter or two knives to cut the butter into the dry ingredients; proceed as directed.) Add the pears and walnuts and beat on low speed for just a few seconds until the pears and walnuts are mixed into the dry ingredients. (If mixing by hand, use a wooden spoon to mix the pears and walnuts into the dough.)
    4. In a small bowl, whisk together the crème fraîche, vanilla, egg, and one of the egg yolks until thoroughly mixed. With the mixer running on low speed, pour the crème fraîche mixture into the flour-butter mixture and beat for 20 to 30 seconds, or until the dough just comes together. There will probably still be a little loose flour mixture at the bottom of the bowl. (If mixing by hand, use a wooden spoon to mix the wet ingredients into the dry.)
    5. Remove the bowl from the mixer. Gather and lift the dough with your hands and turn it over in the bowl so that it starts to pick up the loose flour at the bottom. Turn the dough over several times until all the loose flour is mixed in. The dough will be soft and somewhat sticky.
    6. Using a 1 / 2 -cup [125-ml] measuring cup, scoop out rounds of dough and place them on the cooled, prepared baking sheet. In a small bowl, whisk the remaining egg yolk with a fork and, using a pastry brush, coat the tops of the scones with the yolk. Sprinkle the scones evenly with the remaining 1 Tbsp sugar. (At this point the unbaked scones can be stored in the freezer, tightly wrapped in plastic wrap, for up to 1 week. If baking directly from the freezer, add 5 to 10 minutes to the baking time and proceed as directed.)
    7. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the scones are golden brown on the edges and pale golden brown in the centers. Let the scones cool on the baking sheet on a wire rack for 30 minutes, then