So I really love the Pumpkin Scones that are available this time of year at Starbucks – I do not however like the impact they have on my wallet.  A few bucks every time I pick up an afternoon coffee really starts to add up!  This year I set out to find a Pumpkin Scone recipe that would be delicious, yet not cause me to drop those extra few dollars every time I go for a coffee run this fall.  This recipe is a winner.  It’s quite easy and the scones come out light and fluffy.  I cannot vouch for healthiness – but really, doesn’t one mostly eat scones because they are good for the soul?  These ones are particularly good for enjoying with afternoon tea by a warm fire. 

The first time I made these, I assembled the dough entirely in my food processor – which worked quite well indeed, particularly for ensuring even butter distribution.  The second time just for kicks I tried making it in my stand mixer, which also came out quite well although I did have a few larger chunks of butter left over.  It didn’t seem to affect the scones in any way though.  I can honestly recommend both manners of constructing these scones.  I also will emphasize the importance of baking on parchment – this prevented the scones from caramelizing on the bottom. 

I really didn’t make any major substitutions the first time, except for leaving out cloves and ginger again (darn it, I really need to pick up ground ginger!), and also completely eliminating the glaze as I prefer my scones to be not quite so sugary.  I also added chocolate chips, because who does not like chocolate chips!  The second time, I realized I didn’t have any half and half, milk, or cream on hand – so I ended up using non-dairy flavored coffee creamer (this one happened to be caramel) which added a little extra something to the flavor.  The texture still was perfect.  Also, I was going for more of a breakfasty treat this time, so left out the chocolate chips.  Don’t be afraid to experiment!  We would love to hear about a modification you try to one of these recipes.

Pumpkin Scones – adapted from Sweet Pea’s Kitchen

For the Scones:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 3 tablespoons milk/half and half/non-dairy coffee creamer (flavored is fine!)
• 1 large egg
• Additional milk and sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Mix dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and spices) together the bowl of your stand mixer (or food processor – or really any large bowl if you would rather do this by hand!)   Mix dry ingredients well.  Add cubed cold butter to the dry ingredients and turn on your stand mixer/food processor (or use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the dry ingrediends by hand) until the butter is broken into small pieces and the mixture resembles the texture of cornmeal.  In a separate bowl, whisk together pumpkin, egg, and milk (or whatever substitute you pick).  Gently fold the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients. (The key to flaky light scones is not overworking the dough; I used the food processor for this step the first time and they came out fine, and I used the stand mixer on low for this step the second time.)  Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and pat into a 2 x 6-8inch diameter circles of dough, about 1 inch thick.  Cut each circle of dough into 8 pieces.  Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Brush each scone with a light coating of milk (or whatever substitute you pick) and sprinkle lightly with sugar.  Bake at 425 degrees F for about 12-14 minutes, or until the tops are lightly browned.  Enjoy!

My 31st birthday is less than a week away and I haven’t made too much of a dent in my 30-While-30 list.  While there are a few things that I’ve made, but not photographed, the vast majority of items have remained untouched.  So, I haven’t tried my hand at homemade fondant or whipped up English muffins just for the heck of it, but I did leave my corporate job, take a handful of classes and start a company.  That has to count for something, right?  I still want to finish my list, but there’s no way it’s happening with less than a week to go.  I’ll come up with something.

But in the meantime, I want to share this recipe with my readers.  I added scones and shortbread (coming soon!) to my list because they pair beautifully with tea.  While I certainly enjoy a cup of tea on the go, selecting a tea from my growing collection, brewing a pot  and savoring it slowly with tasty treats has become a favorite past time.  I first made these scones for an afternoon tea party Lisa’s (my fellow blogger!) house.  We whiled away the afternoon in her dining room chatting, sipping icewine tea and nibbling on scones, shortbread, lemon bars, raspberry kuchen and tiny sandwiches.

Thanks to the dark chocolate, orange zest and heavy cream, these scones are soft and rich with warm orange undertones.  They’re delicious warm out of the oven or room temperature the next day.  Pair with a piping hot cup of tea for a sublime breakfast or afternoon snack.

Orange Chocolate Chip Scones

Yields 8 scones

1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons orange zest
1 1/2 cups + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1/2 – 3/4 cup dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup heavy cream

1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
Granulated sugar, for sprinkling

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F andline a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
2. Place the granulated sugar in a large bowl and add the orange zest and.  Using your fingers, rub the orange zest and the granulated sugar together until the sugar is uniformly moistened.
3. Add the flour, baking powder and salt, whisking to combine. Stir in the chocolate chips.
4. Pour in the cream and, using your fingers or a fork, stir together until combined.
5. Pour dough onto a lightly floured surface and lightly knead to bring dough together. Pat into an 8-inch circle and cut into 8 triangles.
6. Place triangles on prepared baking sheet, brush with the melted butter and sprinkle with the granulated sugar.
7. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the scones are just lightly browned. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. Store at room temperature.

Source: Adapted from Brown Eyed Baker

I love scones.  I love the crunchy tops, the soft fluffy middles, and the fact that they taste good in practically any flavor, from savory to sweet.  The one thing I don’t particularly like, however, is the fat and calorie content of most commercially available scones (Now that I’m 30 I find I need to pay more attention to these things, or else buy a new wardrobe when my clothes won’t fit anymore!)  So rather than give into my recent scone craving by munching on a premium pastry from my local coffee shop, in the interests of my wallet and waistline, I decided to set off making my own. 

Given that we’re in prime blueberry season around here, I decided my healthy scone would contain some tasty ripe blueberries.  From past healthy scone baking attempts, I’ve found that if you decrease scone fat very much you also decrease the moisture, and need to drink an extra cup of coffee or 3 to wash it down.  I based my scones around this recipe I found during my search, which incorporated low-fat ingredients like yogurt; from past experiences, I find this tends to keep baked goods moist without the fat.  These scones truly came out GREAT – toasty brown and crisp on the top, moist and fluffy on the inside.  The tart lemon glaze was a fantastic complement to the sweet blueberries: they taste like summer, even now as the sun starts setting earlier and the nights are getting cooler…

Low-Fat Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze – adapted from Anneliese, via What Matters Most

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, and coat a cookie sheet with cooking spray.  Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and lemon zest in a large bowl.  Cut butter into small pieces.  Using a pastry cutter (or a fork) cut the butter into the dry ingredients until mixture appears uniformly crumbly.  In a stand mixer, beat together the yogurt, egg, and vanilla until well combined.  Slowly mix in the dry ingredients, mixing until incorporated.  Gently fold in the blueberries to the mixture.  Form 2 inch balls of dough and flatten each to about 1 inch thickness on the cookie sheet.  Bake for 18 minutes, or until tops appear golden brown.  Cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then cool completely on a wire rack.  To make the glaze, mix the juice of your lemon with the confectioners’ sugar – you may need to add more sugar depending on exactly how much juice your lemon yields, and how thick you want your glaze.  When scones are completely cooled, drizzle with glaze.  Enjoy!