Dreamy Creamy Scones

Some time ago, one of the ladies I work with bought a house with a meyer lemon tree.  With the abundance of lemons, she's made plain and blueberry lemon marmalades.  So that we could all try the marmalades (which are delicious) at work, it was decided I would make scones.  Since lemon (and blueberry lemon) is a strong flavor, I decided to just bake some plain scones.  I found a recipe from America's Test Kitchen on SmittenKitchen and knew it would be a good one because a) America's Test Kitchen, and b) Smitten Kitchen.  The recipe is quite easy and the result is a perfect scone, which could be dressed up any which way you'd like or could dream of.   

Sorry, I don't have a picture.  I forgot to snap one before I brought the scones to work. 


Dreamy Cream Scones
America’s Test Kitchen Cookbook

• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
•  3 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5 tablespoons chilled, unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
• 1/2 cup currants (I omitted this)
• 1 cup heavy cream

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425F.

 Place flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in large bowl or work bowl of food processor fitted with steel blade. Whisk together or pulse six times.

If making by hand, use two knives, a pastry blender or your fingertips and quickly cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few slightly larger butter lumps. Stir in currants. If using food processor, remove cover and distribute butter evenly over dry ingredients. Cover and pulse 12 times, each pulse lasting 1 second. Add currants and pulse one more time. Transfer dough to large bowl.

Stir in heavy cream with a rubber spatula or fork until dough begins to form, about 30 seconds.

Transfer dough and all dry, floury bits to countertop and knead dough by hand just until it comes together into a rough, sticky ball, 5 to 10 seconds. Form scones by pressing the dough into an 8-inch cake pan, then turning the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, cutting the dough into 8 wedges with either a knife or bench scraper.  (I didn't bother pressing the dough into a pan; I just formed it into a circle.  I like the rustic, uneven look).

Place wedges on ungreased baking sheet and bake until scone are light brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool on wire rack for at least 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Snickerdoodle Scones

Lately it seems that snickerdoodle recipes have caught my eye.  I had decided that this weekend I would either try a pumpkin snickerdoodle cookie recipe or one for snickerdoodle scones.  When I woke up hungry for something sweet this morning, the decision was made: scones would be had.  

I'm a fan of scones; to be honest, who isn't?  They are easy enough to make for breakfast without having to be up for hours before anyone else (cinnamon rolls, I'm looking at you) and when done right have a nice somewhat dense texture that makes them satisfying.  You can have just about any variety of flavor combinations.  What isn't to love?

Snickerdoodle Scones

(original recipe found over at Craving Comfort)

• 1/2 cup sour cream*
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp cream of tartar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup cinnamon chips. (optional)
• cinnamon sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350º. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray. 

Combine sour cream and baking soda in a small bowl; set aside.  Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, cream of tartar, and salt in another bowl.  Cut in butter until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
 

Mix egg and cinnamon into sour cream mixture.  Gently stir sour cream mixture into flour mixture until moist.  If using, gently mix in cinnamon chips.
 

Place on baking sheet and pat into a 3/4 inch thick circle. Cut into 8 wedges.  Move slightly so they are not touching. Dust with cinnamon-sugar.
 

Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. 

* I didn't have sour cream and wasn't willing to run to the store.  Instead, I substituted 1/2 cup Greek yogurt and added an additional 1/4 tsp baking soda.  This seemed to be a common substitute on many websites.  When I was combining all of the ingredients, it was a bit too dry to incorporate all of the flour, so I added in some cream until the mix was moist enough to incorporate it all.  Milk would have been fine; I used the cream because I had it and it needed to be used.   It all worked out in the end.  Hubby and I both really enjoyed them. 

Cheese Scones

The other day, I made some soup and wanted to make biscuits or something to go along with it.  Unfortunately, I had no milk, so I got to play the game of "what recipe needs ingredients that I have" which is an interesting game.  I found a recipe for country scones in my Taste of Home Cookbook.  They're more like biscuits in texture, but they are beyond delicious.  So tantalizingly scrumptious that I made them again two nights later.  

 Cheese Scones
(The Taste of Home Cookbook, page 442)

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 5 tbsp cold butter, cut into squares
• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 egg white

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.  Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Combine sour cream and egg yolks; add to crumb mixture.  Stir in cheese until just blended.

Turn onto a floured surface; knead gently  8-10 times.  Divide into four portions.  On ungreased baking sheets, pat dough into 4 inch circles. 

Cut each into four wedges, but do not separate.  Beat egg white; brush over dough.  

Bake at 425F for 15 to 18 minutes, or until golden.  Serve warm.


Note: when I made these, I halved the recipe.  Also, I didn't divide the dough into halves or quarters; I just patted it into an inch thick circle and cut it into 8 wedges.

Chocolate Drizzle Pumpkin Scones

Oh, impulse buys.  You know it's happened to you: you're standing in line at the grocery store, wait-wait-waiting for the old man in front of you to fish his 63 cents out of his pocket.  Your eyes wander from the faces around you to the tabloids, bubble gum, and candy bars.  Those damn candy bars!  And then your eyes meet the vanilla-speckled cheesecake with chocolate ganache tantalizingly draped across one of the food magazines and you are instantly seduced.  You - barely - resist the urge to abandon your items and spot in line to grab all the ingredients and rush home.  But you'll compromise by buying the magazine and promising yourself the cheesecake will be your weekend reward.

....flash forward three weeks.  I still haven't made that sinful cheesecake, but I have made some Chocolate Drizzle Pumpkin Scones which, while probably not as delicious as the cheesecake, are pretty darn good.  I made them for breakfast a weekend or two ago, hesitant of hubby's reception of them.  My fear was just wasted time; he loved them so much in fact that he would not let me bring the leftovers to work!

Oh, by the way, the magazine was Better Homes and Garden's MixingBowl.com  'The Baking Issue. "

Chocolate Drizzle Pumpkin Scones
(page 24)

• 6 tbsp butter
• 4 oz of cream cheese
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• 1/3 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup maple syrup (I used honey as I have yet to buy maple syrup)
• 1 tsp vanlila
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cake flour
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger

Chocolate Drizzle

• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1 tbsp butter

Cut butter and cream cheese into small pieces; freeze until chilled.  In a bowl, stir together pumpkin, buttermilk, maple syrup, and vanilla.  Chill.

Preheat oven to 375F.  In a bowl, whisk together flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, allspice, and ginger.  Cut in butter and cream cheese until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Add pumpkin mixture to the flour  mixture.  Using a fork, stir until moistened.  Tough dough onto a lightly floured surface.  Knead dough for 10 to 12 strokes or until nearly smooth.  Pat into a 7 inch circle.  Cut into 8 wedges.  Place wedges 2 inches  apart on an ungreased baking sheet.  Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.  Transfer to a wire  rack; let cool.  

For the drizzle, place chocolate chips in a heatproof bowl.  Heat the cream to a boil, then pour over the chocolate chips.  Stir until smooth.  Stir in butter until melted.

Drizzle chocolate atop the scones. 

*Funny story: when I made the scones, my batter was SUPER moist.  It was so moist there was no way I could knead it.  I thought "what the hell??" and added flour until I had a kneadable consistency.  Now, as I typed up the ingredients I realized I used the WHOLE CAN of pumpkin puree, not just a 1/2 cup.  (forehead slap).  Good job, Sarah, good job.  They were still tasty though!