Cheesy Scones taste great as an afterthought

As I mentioned in my previous post, I attended an Irish Potluck last weekend.  I wish I could say I went to great lengths to make these Cheesy Scones, but they were sort of an afterthought.

The chocolate chip scones were so easy and tasted so good, but I only made one batch. I decided I should bring some savory scones to balance things out. The recipe for the cheesy scones happened to be right underneath the Buttermilk Scones recipe so nothing magical about how I came to make these, but the flavor, oh the flavor… that’s the special part. Maybe not magical, but delicious nonetheless.

These scones remind me of the cheese biscuits you get at some restaurants. The flavor is exceptional!  Although I think almost anything with cheese tastes great, there is a special ingredient in these scones that adds to the flavor and makes them delightful. For an afterthought, I was quite pleased with these scones.

The main problem I have with these scones is it’s hard to eat just one. Of course I had to try one (or two) to make sure they tasted okay before I brought them to the luncheon. They were so good. I had to stop myself from taste testing too many or there wouldn’t have been any left for the luncheon.

 

Cheesy Scones with spelt

Makes: 8-10 Large Scones or 16 Small Scones

Adapted from: The Best of Irish Breads & Baking from Georgina Campbell

These scones have a higher fat content (cheese and butter) so you’ll need a little more baking powder to make sure you get a good rise out of them.  I used all-purpose Spelt flour, but you can use regular all-purpose flour if you prefer.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups (8 oz/225g) all-purpose Spelt flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 stick (2oz/50g) butter
• 1 1/2 cups – 1 3/4 cups grated cheddar cheese or other hard cheese
• 1 1/4 teaspoon mustard powder or crushed mustard seeds
• a little salt
• grinding of fresh black pepper
• 1/2 cup (4oz/100mL) almond milk, approx.

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Grease a baking sheet.

1) Sift the flour and baking powder in a mixing bowl.  Cut in the butter and rub it until the mixture is crumbly.

 

2) Add the grated cheese, ground mustard and seasoning and mix with a whisk or wooden spoon.

 

3) Make a well in the center of the mixture and add the milk. Mix to form a soft dough. You may need to add more or less milk.

 

4) Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead it gently.

 

5) Roll the dough out into 3/4” thick circle and mark into triangles. You can make 8-10 large triangles or smaller triangles.  Or, if you prefer, cut the dough into rounds and make cheese biscuits.  I rolled my dough out a little thinner than 3/4” so I ended up with more wedges.

 

6) Brush the wedges lightly with milk and place them on the greased baking sheet.

 

7) Bake the scones in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, until they are well-risen and golden-brown in color. Remove to a wire rack to cool slightly before serving.

 

These scones were received really well at the luncheon.  They were gone in a flash.  They are best eaten the day you make them, but they are still good the next day. I don’t know about after that because they didn’t last that long. I’ve been fighting the urge to make more all week. I may have to give in soon.

 

Happy Baking!

Cathy

 

Chocolate Chip Scones for an Irish Luncheon

I attended an Irish Potluck this past weekend. I wanted to bring something different so I searched through all of my bread books and even went on Pinterest to find inspiration. The luncheon was on Sunday, and I was down to the wire Saturday afternoon when I finally found my inspiration on the Irish Breads Board on Pinterest. 

I saw so many wonderful Irish breads, but I wasn’t in the mood to make Irish Soda Bread or Irish Freckle Bread or Barm Brack. I didn’t have any potatoes to make potato bread so my options were dwindling. I finally happened upon these Skinny Chocolate Chip Buttermilk Scones from Gina of SkinnyTaste.com. Chocolate chips and scones; what a great idea! 

 

Although I used her idea as my inspiration to make scones, I didn’t use the recipe. I adapted a different Buttermilk Scones recipe to suit my tastes. My version is made with soured almond milk instead of buttermilk and includes a mixture of Spelt and Einkorn flours instead of all-purpose flour.

If you prefer, you can substitute all-purpose flour for the Spelt and whole wheat flour for the Einkorn pastry flour. Or you can do half all-purpose and half whole-wheat. You can also add raisins instead of the chocolate chips.

 

Chocolate Chip Scones with Spelt & Einkorn

Makes: 12 Large Scones or 18 Smaller Scones

Adapted from: The Best of Irish Breads & Baking from Georgina Campbell

Ingredients:

• 3 cups white all-purpose Spelt flour
• 1 cup Einkorn pastry flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 stick butter, room temperature
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1 cup (approx.) almond milk, soured with 1 tablespoon lemon juice

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Grease two baking sheets.

1) Sift the flours, salt, and baking soda in a mixing bowl.  Cut in the butter and rub it until the mixture is crumbly. Add the sugar and mix well.  Make a well in the center and add the egg and the sour milk or buttermilk and mix to form a soft dough.  You may need to add more or less milk so adjust accordingly.

 

2) Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and mix in the chocolate chips while kneading it gently.  Roll it out to about 1/2” thick. Cut out 12 large or 18 small scones.  I used a pizza wheel to cut my scones. I ended up with 16.

 

3) Arrange the scones on the baking sheets. Be sure to leave space between the scones so they have room to rise while baking. Brush them with almond milk.

 

4) Bake the scones for 15-20 minutes, until they are well risen and golden-brown in color.  Turn the baking sheet partway through baking to ensure even baking.

5) Remove the scones to a wire rack to cool slightly before serving. 

6) Cool completely before storing. I wrapped them in plastic wrap and transported them the next day to the luncheon. I served them at room temperature because there wasn’t anyway to heat them up. These scones definitely taste better warm, but they were actually pretty good at room temperature. 

 

I really liked these scones and they went over well at the luncheon.  I forgot to mention that these scones were made with Spelt and Einkorn flour, but nobody seemed to notice. Someone commented that they liked the texture of these scones better than some others that they had tasted because these weren’t as dry. All I know is that I liked them and I’m glad there was a couple left over for me to enjoy.

 

Happy Baking!

Cathy