Pumpkin Spice Scones @ Common Sense Common Sense Homesteading My root cellar is overflowing with Sugar Pie Pumpkins and assorted squash, so I need to kick our pumpkin eating into high gear. I’ve been making up regular batches of pumpkin leather, and some pumpkin pie, pumpkin muffins and pumpkin pancakes. I even made some pumpkin spice kombucha. (I know, it sounds a little crazy, but initial taste test was pretty good.) Scones always struck me as a little bit “mysterious”, because we certainly never had them when I was growing up, and some of the recipes I’ve seen were more than a little fussy. Not this one. The key to successful scones is keeping everything nicely chilled. Chilled dough means less sticking, less mess and a lighter, flakier product. If you’ve got extra pumpkin on hand, I hope you give these a try. Pumpkin Spice Scones Recipe 4 cups sifted all-purpose flour (I used Gold and White. Avoid flours that are bleached and bromated.) 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 6 tablespoon COLD butter (do not soften) 1/2 cup raisins or dried cranberries (optional) 1/3 cup pumpkin puree 1/3 cup heavy cream 6 tablespoons brown sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla Directions Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prepare baking sheet by greasing well with lard, lining with parchment paper or reusable parchment paper. In a medium bowl, sift together flours, baking powder, salt, and spices. Cut butter into flour using a pastry blender or two butter knives, until it resembles a course meal with chunks of butter no larger than pea sized. scone-dough Add raisins or dried cranberries if you are using them. Place bowl in fridge or freezer while you prepare the liquids. In a separate bowl, combine pumpkin, heavy cream, brown sugar, and vanilla. Combine liquids mixture with flour mixture. Stir with a wooden spoon until just blended – don’t overwork the dough. Treat these like biscuits, not bread. Finish kneading with your hands until mixture forms a ball. If you feel your dough is getting warm at this point, you may want to stick it in the fridge or freezer for 10-15 minutes to make it easier to shape the scones. Shape the dough out into a rough circle, 3/4 to 1 inch thick. Cut it like a pie into 8 pieces. I like to use my scraper/chopper for cutting dough, because I find it easier to give a big, even slice. The scraper chopper also makes it easy to move the scones to the baking sheet, especially if they do get a little sticky. cut-scones See the little bits of butter still intact in the dough? That’s what you’re looking for. Those will melt during baking and give you moisture and little, fluffy air pockets. Place pieces on the baking sheet so that they are not touching with about an inch between them. I like to alternate them top to bottom. scones-ready-for-baking Bake scones for about 15 minutes at 425 degrees. They should be light brown on the bottom, the tops will darken as they cool. I prefer so use air bake pans for this type of baking, because they are more forgiving than standard pans. You’re less likely to end up with scorched bottoms. (Who wants a scorched bottom?) Cool on a wire rack. fresh-baked-scones This batch got a hair overdone (the phone rang at the same time the oven buzzer went off). The boys still inhaled them. :-) Icing(optional) Cinnamon Icing 1/2 cup powdered sugar 1 tablespoon milk 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon Mix all ingredients together and drizzle over scones. Alternatively, you can make a coconut oil glaze like the one Jenny at Nourished Kitchen used on her sprouted grain doughnuts. Coconut Oil Glaze 1/2 Cup Coconut Oil, melted 1 1/2 Tablespoons Honey 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla or Cinnamon Glazed-scones I like to arrange the scones in an alternating pattern and just drizzle across the entire line. The boys are more than happy to clean up any drips. And there you have it – easy spiced pumpkin scones. I like to serve these up with a warm drink like tea or coffee, even eggnog. I hope you give these a try and share the recipe if you’ve enjoyed it. What are use favorite ways to use pumpkin and squash?
Posted on: Sun, 15 Sep 2013 22:42:31 +0000
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