Cherry Pecan Scones

 

Hello friends– The last few weeks my sis-in-law has been helping Larry’s parents clean out cupboards and drawers all over the house.  It’s been fun to drop in and help turn up ancient family photos and beautiful old dishes and Christmas ornaments from the 1940’s.

So last week I baked up these scones for some snacking while we worked.  Bright fresh cherries and that sweet little crunch of the pecans. With a dab of whipped cream & cherry jam, all the better.  Delish!

CHERRY PECAN SCONES
1 cup fresh cherries, pitted and cut in quarters
1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
3 tab. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
2 eggs
1/2 cup half & half (or whole milk)

Pit & cut up the cherries. Chop the pecans. Set aside

In a mixing bowl stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder & salt. With a pastry blender (or two forks) cut in the butter.  In a separate bowl beat together the eggs and half & half until it’s blended and then mix the liquid into the four mixture until it’s all combined.

Gently fold in the cherries and pecans. (Don’t over mix them of the cherries will turn the dough pink!)

On a floured counter, turn out the dough and flatten it to disc about an 1 1/2″ thick.  Cut out the scones with a round cookie cutter and set them on a baking pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray.

Bake them up at 400 degrees for 14 to 16 minutes until they are golden brown around the edges.  Best eaten hot from the oven with a mug of tea.

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Strawberry Scones

Hello all– It’s starting to be strawberry season here!! That’s great news!  When we were married at the end of March, a hundred years ago (more or less), my Mom and I scoured the town for beautiful ripe strawberries to cascade down our wedding cake.  We finally found them jut in time in a small market couple cities over!!

But now we’ve got these sweet red berries and they are just right to be folded into buttery, crispy scones. With a smear of butter and maybe just a dot of jam.  Perfect.

STRAWBERRY SCONES
2 cups strawberries, stemmed & cut to bits
1 tab. sugar
2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
2/3 cup whole milk (or half & half)
1 egg
coarse sugar*

Stem and cut the strawberries to small bits until yo have 2 full cups.  Mix them with 1 tablespoon of sugar.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder and salt.  With a pastry blender (or a food processor if you don’t mind cleaning that big thing), cut in the butter until it is cut to the size of peas in the mixture.

With a soft spatula, sit the strawberries into the flour mixture.

In a separate bowl whisk together the milk and egg.  Then stir them into the flour mixture as well until it’s all moist and combined.

Onto a counter dusted with flour, dump the dough out.  Cut it into 2 halves.  Take the first half and form it into a thick disc.  Cut it into 6 triangular pieces (like a pizza!) and set them onto a baking sheet lined with a piece of parchment.  Repeat with the second half of the dough for 12 medium sized scones.

Sprinkle the coarse sugar onto the tops of the scones and pop them into a 400 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until they are golden and crispy around the edges.  Super delicious hot from the oven!!

*the recipe I worked from called for turbinado sugar.  I used some coarse sugar crystals I had from a cake decorating shop.

Raspberry Scones

Hello Friends– Hope you had a marvelous 4th of July.  Happily we had Ani & Brian down from San Francisco for the weekend.  We spent one good long morning in the huge M&L Fabric store rustling up ingredients for a new baby quilt (loved that!)  and yelped up a new favorite mom & pop Mexican place for lunch. We sat over long breakfasts and cups of coffee and on the 4th we all made the trek up to Ojai for the local Independence Day parade with Micah, Jodi and the grand-girls.  It was just great.

Sunday morning breakfast included hot raspberry scones.  I think you’d like them too…

RASPBERRY SCONES
2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tab. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
2 eggs
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 cup (about 6 oz.) raspberries

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2-3 tab. cream

In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or with 2 forks until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Then mix in the eggs and whipping cream.  Finally carefully fold in the raspberries (they will break up a bit).

Turn the dough out onto a floured counter and shape it into a disc about 2″ thick.  Cut about 20 small circles with a cookie cutter and set them on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.

Bake the scones at 400 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes until they are nicely browned around the edges. While they are baking, whisk together the powered sugar & 2 tablespoons of the cream to make the glaze. If it seems a little dry, add the 3rd tablespoon of cream.  When the scones are all baked,drizzle on the glaze and they are ready to eat still warm from the oven!!

Parade watchers in Ojai, our post parade picnic– and 3 enthusiastic flag wavers!

     

Orange Pecan Scones

Hello all–  I wonder if you are have been an avid Downton Abbey watcher, like my friends around here.  We all showed up at Becky’s house last week to watch the final installment.  Everyone walked in the door with a plateful of something tea party-ish.  We poured glasses of wine and cups of tea and settled in to find out what finally happened to Edith and Mary, Daisy, Mr. Carson and all the rest…

These citrusy nutty scones were my contribution to the evening.  Served up with sweet butter and orange marmalade, they were just right with a cup of tea.

ORANGE PECAN SCONES
2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tab. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 large orange
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
2 eggs
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream*
2/3 cup pecans, chopped fine

for the glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2-3 tab. orange juice

First grate the peel of of the orange.  In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and orange peel.  Then use a pastry blender (or food processor) to cut in the butter. Work it in until it resembles coarse crumbs.

In a smaller bowl beat together the eggs and cream.  Then stir it in to the flour mixture.  Finally mix in the pecans to make a sticky dough.

Turn the dough out onto the counter that has been dusted with flour.  Flatten it to a disk about an inch thick.  Cut the scones out with a round cookies cutter than has been dipped in flour to prevent sticking.

Lay the scones onto a baking sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray and pop it all into a 400 degree oven for 15 or 16 minutes, until the scones are nicely browned.

While they are cooking thoroughly blend the powdered sugar and 2 tablespoon of the orange juice together with a fork.  If it seems a bit dry, add the 3rd tablespoon of orange juice and keep mixing.

When the scones come out of the oven, dribble the glaze over the tops of the scones.  Very best eaten hot from the oven with a bit more butter and a bright spoonful of orange marmalade.

*If you have cream left, you could whip it to serve with the scones…

Lemon Scones

Hello– Are your friends handing you bags of lemons these days?  We have a generous teacher at school that brings them in from her tree– fresh and bright. So when the Monday night study buddies were coming a couple weeks ago, I put on the tea kettle and put these in the oven.  Easy, sweet and tart.

LEMON SCONES
1/3 cup sugar
grated zest of 1 large lemon
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1  1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1 egg
2/3 cup heavy cream

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tab. freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 tab. melted butter
!/2 tsp. vanilla extract

In a mixing bowl, stir together the sugar, lemon zest, flour, salt, and baking powder.  Use a pastry blender (or a food processor) to cut in the butter until it resembles coarse crumbs.  Then stir in the egg and cream until it’s all blended.

Turn the dough out onto a floured counter.  Cut it into 2 halves.  Shape the first half into a disk, about 7″ in diameter.  Cut the disk into 6 wedges and set them on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.  Repeat with the remaining dough for 12 medium sized scones.

Put the scones into a 400 degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes, until the scones are beautifully browned.

Whisk together the powdered sugar, lemon juice, melted butter and vanilla until it is smooth.  Drizzle it over the scones when you’re ready to serve them– best warm from the oven!   Add tea, a a little jam, perfect.

Pumpkin Pecan Scones with Maple Glaze

Hello all– We’re pretending it’s autumn around here.  Today is suppose to be cooling down to 85 degrees today.  But I looked at the 10 day forecast and next week we’re up into the mid 90’s again.  yikes!  I’m afraid kids will be wearing bathing suits for Halloween costumes.

But it the kitchen (with the air conditioning all on) I’m baking with pumpkin and just pretending it’s a bit chilly outside.  Here’s a batch of scones I made for the Monday Bible study friends who come in every week. The recipe comes from a bakery and makes 18 fine large scones, so you may want to cut it in half.

But no matter how many you bake up or what the weather is outside your door, I think you’ll love the warm, friendly taste of this fall baking.

PUMPKIN PECAN SCONES WITH MAPLE GLAZE

Scones:
3 cups flour
1 cup brown sugar
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice*
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 cup buttermilk
1 tab. vanilla
1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup currants

Glaze:
4 tab. butter. melted
1  1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tab. maple syrup
1 to 2 tab. whole milk (0r half & half)

In a large mixing bowl stir together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and pumpkin pie spice.

Then cut in the butter with a pastry blender (0r two forks) until it’s broken up in bits the size of small peas.

Stir in the pumpkin puree, buttermilk, vanilla, pecans and currants all at the same time until it’s thoroughly blended.  (please don’t over beat the dough!)

Flour the counter and take out 1/3 of the dough and form it into a round disk about 1 ” thick.  The dough will be sticky.  You may need to flour the top and bottom.  Cut the circle shape into 6 pie shaped wedges and set them on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray.

Repeat twice with the remains 2/3 of the dough– so you have 18 scones.

Bake them 15 to 18 minutes in a 400 degree oven until they are crispy around the edges and nicely browned.

Let them cool before you add on the glaze.

To make the glaze, whisk together the melted butter, powdered sugar, maple syrup and 1 tablespoons of the milk.  If it seems too thick add the second tablespoon and mix it in.

Drizzle the glaze over the scones either with the tines of a fork, or using a pastry bag fitted with a tip with a small opening.

Orange Cranberry Scones

Hello friends– I think it’s likely some of you may be as enthusiastic watchers of Downton Abbey as I am.  So I was just wondering if you needed a little snack on Sunday nights for your Downtown Abbey viewing– Maybe these scones would be perfect with a very British pot of tea.  So rich, with a citrusy glaze– I think even the Dowager Countess Violet would approve.

ORANGE CRANBERRY SCONES
2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tab. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tab. orange zest (one orange)
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
2 eggs
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup powdered sugar
3-4 tsp. orange juice (from that orange you just zested)

Stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and orange zest.

Then with a pastry blender (or in a regular blender), cut in the butter until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs.

Mix together the eggs and cream in a separate cup and then site the eggs/cream and the cranberries into the flour mixture to make a sticky dough.

Turn out the batter onto a counter dusted with a bit of flour and cut into circles with a round cookie/biscuit cutter.  It helps to dip the cutter in flour each time so the dough won’t stick.

Place the scones onto a cookie sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray.  And pop it into a 400 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes until the the scones are nicely browned around the edges.

I ended up with 15 smallish scones.  So beautiful coming out of the oven!

While they are baking whisk together the powdered sugar and orange juice– start with just 3 teaspoons of juice to make it a good consistency to drizzle over the scones.  If it’s too thick another teaspoon of juice.

Serve them warm with pots of tea– and butter and jam. Perfect.

Cinnamon Roll Scones

Good morning breakfast lovers– Made these yummy little guys when the kids were down from SF a couple weeks ago– but in my perennially scatterbrain sort of way I put in 1/3 the amount of baking powder called for.  They were edible (sort of) but not near good enough to pass them along to you.

So this week when friends came by, I put the tea kettle on and made a new batch– reading the recipe a little more carefully this time.  And they came out just fine, hot from the oven with a a mug of tea.  I think they’ll be a new favorite stand-by this fall.

and P.S.– thanks Jenny for pinning the recipe on Pinterest so I could find it!

CINNAMON ROLL SCONES
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup currants (optional)*
1/4 cup brown sugar
4 tsp. cinnamon
2 cups flour
1 cup rolled oats (old fashioned oatmeal)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tab. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
3/4 cup milk
1 egg
2 tsp. vanilla

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 to 2 tab. milk

In  small bowl mix together the pecans, currants, brown sugar and cinnamon.  Set aside.

Then in a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, oatmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt.

Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or two forks until it looks like coarse crumbs.

Next stir in the milk, egg and vanilla until it forms a thick dough.

Then dump in the pecan mixture and swirl it into the batter until it’s all incorporated.

Drop the dough in mounds onto a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
Bake it up at 425 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.  Makes 16 scones.

Glaze:  Whisk together the powdered sugar and 1 tab milk til there are no lumps– Add the second tab. of milk if it seems too thick to drizzle onto the scones.

*I used currants, but raisins or any dried fruit would be just fine.

 

Cherry Pecan Scones

Hello all– My dear buddy Debbie has a daughter getting married soon.  So last Friday we spent the morning making jars of blackberry jam to give all the friends who come celebrate together at the wedding.  The kitchen was awash in crushed berries and and sterilizing jars…  After a bit, we got into the rhythm of bubbling up that jam and filling those jars and we had a table full by the end of the morning.

So when I showed up at her door that morning for the jam-fest, I thought it was important to have a plate of scones to pair with a sampling of that luscious jam!  A little taste test…

CHERRY PECAN SCONES
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1  1/2 sticks butter (3/4 cup)
1/2 cup whole milk
2 eggs*
2/3 cup fresh cherries, pitted & quartered
1/2 cup pecan, chopped fine

In a large mixing bowl stir together the flour sugar, baking powder and salt.

Then with a pastry blender cut in the butter (if the butter is cold from the fridge, microwave it just a few seconds to soften a bit).

Stir in the eggs and milk.  And finally fold in the cherries and pecans.

Cut the dough in half.  Then drop half the dough on to a well floured counter.  Shape it into a circle and cut into 6 pie shaped scones.  Repeat with the second half of the dough.

Put them at least 1 inch apart (they do spread!) on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.  Bake them up at 375 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes.  Until they are golden and firm to the touch.

Serve them hot with butter or whipped cream–and pots of your best jam.  Perfect.

* I know– it’s weird to put eggs in scones!  But I got this recipe (with slight variations) from the Empress Hotel in British Columbia– famous for their scones. Trust me.

Orange Currant Scones

Hello one and all– Have you been watching Downton Abbey?  I have to admit, a few people I know (myself included) are totally taken with that show.  So when the first new episode aired a couple weeks back, there was a crowd around the coffee table in our family room.  And the table was overflowing with tea cups and cream and scones and pots of hot tea…  We sipped our way back into the threads of stories upstairs and down.  We were charmed.

And I found this recipe from from Butchart Gardens in British Columbia.  These scones seemed just the thing to nibble on with our tea.  And they were as good as I had hoped– tender and slightly sweet.  Just right with piles of whipped cream and marmalade and berries.

ORANGE CURRANT SCONES
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 sticks butter (3/4 cup)
1/2 cup whole milk
2 eggs*
1/2 cup dried currants
grated peel from 1 orange

Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Cut in the butter with a pastry blender (or in a food processor, if you don’t mind cleaning it all up afterwards).  Stir in the milk and eggs.  And finally mix in the currants and orange peel.

Stir just until it all sticks together in a big clump and turn it out onto your counter.  Cut into scones with a cookie cutter and set them onto an ungreased baking sheet at least an inch apart.

Bake at 375 degrees for 15 to 17 minutes until they are golden.  Serve them warm from the oven with lots of jam or berries or butter or whipped cream— or any combination of those yummy toppings.

Scones with Orange and Dark Chocolate

Hi there–  I’m happy to say it’s turning into “pot of tea weather” here.  A big mug of tea and one of these scones it just right. Orange chocolate ice cream is one of my favorites– So imagine that combination in an buttery, flakey crust of a scone.  With a dab of orange marmalade, it’s scrumptious.

SCONES WITH ORANGE AND DARK CHOCOLATE
1 1/2 cups flour
2 tab. sugar (plus a bit more)
1 tab. grated orange peel (about 1 orange)
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
6 tab. cool butter
1 egg yolk
3/8 cup buttermilk*
1/2 cup dark chocolate, chopped to small bits

Mix together the flour, sugar, orange peel, baking powder and salt.  Then cut in the butter with a pastry blender or food processor.  Stir in the egg yolk and buttermilk at the same time.  Then fold in the chocolate bits.

Shape the dough into a flat circle about 1″ tall.  Cut it into 8 pie shape pieces**.  Sprinkle a little sugar over the scones to give them a sweet sparkly top.  Separate them and set them on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Pop them into a 400 degree oven for 12 to15 minutes until they come out browned and fragrant.  Serve them up hot with butter and jam.  Heavenly!

*In place of buttermilk, I use regular milk with a tablespoon or so of cider vinegar.  Let it sit a couple minutes to thicken.
**I divided the dough into two flat circles and cut 8 mini scones from each one.  You know how 60 year old ladies can be.  They like just a small site of something sweet.  Cut the baking time by 2 minutes.

I did heat up leftovers in the toaster oven a couple days later and was surprised how delish they still were!

Blackberry Scones

Hello friends–I’ve been to a few tea parties at Sue’s house.  Her scones are the tenderest, the butteriest– just begging for a slathering of lemon curd.  So when the kid’s were home last weekend, I pulled out her recipe for Saturday morning breakfast. And I thought you might like to try them too…

BLACKBERRY SCONES
2 3/4 cups flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 cubes of butter (room temp.)
rind of 1 lemon (or orange)
1 1/2 cups of firm blackberries
1 cup buttermilk*

Stir together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar.  With a pastry blender, cut in the butter.  Mix in the lemon rind and blackberries.  Then gently stir in the buttermilk.  Divide the dough into two balls and flatten a bit.  Then cut each into 6 wedges.  Dust them with a sprinkle of sugar.  Put them on a cookie sheet sprayed with Pam and bake them at 450 degrees for 10 minutes.

Best to each these crumbly things with spoonfuls of jam and a mug of hot tea when the first come hot out of the oven.  But they were good toasted up in the toaster later in the day as well.  Enjoy!

Sue’s original recipe called for 3/4 cup of currants in place of the blackberries.  You could also use dried cranberries, blueberries, fresh peach…

*In place of buttermilk, I use a a couple tablespoons of cider vinegar added to regular milk to make one cup.  Let it sit 5 minutes or so until the milk thickens.