Scones

Have you ever had a baked scone? Worlds different than their deep-fried cousins, baked are, in my opinion, far superior. Soft muffin texture, slight crunch on the outside edges, and filled with any variety of fruits, spices, and chocolate. When made right, they're a hard thing not to love. And, you can even eat it for breakfast! Oh yes. Bring it baby!

I remember the first time I tried one: I was visiting a friend and she took me to the Puyallup Washington State Fair. Amidst racing piglets in colored jerseys (no joke) was a seemingly simple scone stand. A long line snaked its way through the other booths, and we waited our turn. One bite took me to comfort food heaven- they were that good. Warm, fresh scones spread with butter and homemade raspberry jam wrapped in waxed paper. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Yum!

Since then I've sampled plenty of varieties, but have yet to find a recipe I love. . . until now. Leave it to one of my favorite San Francisco bloggers to nail it. I couldn't decide which way to go when I made them the other night so I'll include both variations, and you can take your pick. Each came out equally fantastic!

Buttermilk Scones w/ Dried Cherries & Almonds
16 scones(adapted from "The Baker's Dozen Cookbook")

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

6 ounces (12 tbsp/ 1.5 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

1 cup buttermilk

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp almond extract

2/3 cup dried cherries, chopped coarsely

1/3 cup almonds, chopped coarsely

2 tbsp sugar for sprinkling (optional)

Preheat oven to 425F. Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry blender or your fingertips until the mixture resembles small peas.Stir the buttermilk, vanilla and almond extracts together and add all at once to the mixture. Stir with a fork until the dough becomes sticky and shaggy. Stir in cherries and almonds. Turn your dough out onto a generously floured work surface. Knead the about 10 times. Divide the dough in half and pat each half into an 8-inch circle about 1/2-inch thick. Sprinkle each circle with 1 tbsp sugar (if using) and press the sugar gently into the surface of the dough. Using a sharp knife cut each circle into 8 wedges. Repeat with other half. (Or you can just divide the dough into 16 round patties like I did.) Brush each generously with cream or half-and-half (If you haven't got it, regular milk will work just fine). Bake the scones until light brown and slightly puffy, about 15 to 18 minutes. Cool about 5-10 minutes before serving.

*The real secret here is how much you knead the dough- do more than the 10 times and your scones will be tough and dense. There are some situations where less is more, and this is one of them.

Here are my variations:

Cherry Dark Chocolate Scones:

In place of almonds substitute 2/3 c. chopped dark chocolate

Omit almond extract and add an extra 1/4 tsp vanilla

Cinnamon Scones:

Omit cherries, almonds and almond extract. In place stir in 1 c. cinnamon chips. After brushing tops with cream, sprinkle on cinnamon sugar and give it a good pat to make sure it sticks.

Hope you give it a try and absolute LOVE your results!