We’ve been making scones quite a bit lately. For some reason, we had put them in the “they’re a bit complicated, so save them for special occasions” baking category, but once we started delving into different recipes for scones, we found they aren’t much of a challenge at all. Who knew!?
Below is our June recipe, for scones, adapted from Southern Living. {What’s cool is when they come out just like the picture in the magazine — December 2010 issue by the way. Thanks once again, Southern Living!}
Brown Sugar Pecan Mini Scones
from the Inn on Mill Creek Bed & Breakfast
Prep time: 20 minutes / Bake time: 15 minutes / Serves 8-10
from the Inn on Mill Creek Bed & Breakfast
Prep time: 20 minutes / Bake time: 15 minutes / Serves 8-10
Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour, sifted
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) cold butter
1 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans (we use the sugar coated kind)
Directions
- Preheat oven to 450.
- Stir together sifted flour, brown sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.
- Cut butter into small cubes and mix into the dry ingredients (clean hands work well if you don’t have a pastry mixer). You want the mixture to look crumbly, like small peas. If you mix it too much, the scones will be too dense.
- Freeze mixture for 10 minutes
- Take out of the freezer and add 3/4 cup + 2 Tbsp whipping cream and pecans to the mixture, stirring just until the mixture is moistened.
- Divide the dough into two halves, onto separate sheets of wax paper {If you leave one piece of dought, that’s OK, too. Your scones will be “regular size”.)
- Cut each half into eight wedges (so you’ll have 16 mini’s) and place on baking sheet.
- Brush the remaining whipping cream over the scones.
- Bake 15 minutes or until golden.
- Let cool to room temperature and enjoy!
To mix things up a little, try a savory version of these scones — omit the brown sugar and pecans, stir in 1 cup of chopped pear, 1/2 cup grated Asiago cheese and 1 tsp of chopped fresh or crushed dried rosemary with the whipping cream to make Asiago Pear and Rosemary Scones (that’s the version we made in the photo above).