Cinnamon Scones Recipe

What are Scones?

I think I had my very first scone in Puyallup Washington at the Puyallup State Fair. Their trademark strawberry scones are things to dream of. Fresh from the oven, smeared with a bit of strawberry jam, people waited every year to gobble them up during fair time.

Scones are similar to biscuits or shortcakes in the United States. They are more prevalent in England, Ireland and Scotland and are said to be of Scottish origin.

Before there were things like baking powder, they were baked on a griddle and made of unleavened oats.

When baking powder and other leavening agents were discovered, scones began to be a baked good. Their texture and sweet or savoury nature varies from country to country and recipe to recipe different localities.

I've always found scones to be a challenging quick bread because with too much handling, too much flour or just a fraction of over-baking, they can be hard and dry.

To combat this, I prefer using at least half pastry flour for the flour in the recipe. Minimal handling helps them to stay springy and light.

The best way to enjoy scones in this author's opinion is fresh from the oven before they have a chance to dry out. You can serve them with an icing on top (drizzle while still hot), smeared with butter or jams depending on their type, or sprinkled with a cinnamon sugar mixture.

Enjoy by themselves or with coffee or tea--they make a fantastic brunch or breakfast item and can come in just about any flavor under the sun.

This is a delightful low fat version but you can bake them the traditional way as well. You pat the dough out into a flat round and then cut the dough into slices and bake in wedges.

You can also cut them into any shape you want and bake them as rectangles, squares or circles. The important thing is to keep handling the dough down to a minimum and not to add more flour to pat out the dough if you can help it.

For an even more scrumptious alternative, leave out the cinnamon and almonds and add 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup or so of cinnamon chips!

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Serves 12---12 scones

INGREDIENTS FOR CINNAMON SCONES

• 2 cups wheat flour--or 1 cup wheat and 1 cup wheat pastry flour
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt - optional
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/8 to 1/4 cup slivered almonds
• 3 tablespoons applesauce - unsweetened
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1/2 cup low fat almond milk
• 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon--or substitute 1/4-1/2 cup cinnamon chips

DIRECTIONS

Step 1: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease two baking sheets with cooking spray or use parchment paper instead to line two cookie sheets.

Step 2: In large bowl, mix flour, cream of tartar, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

Step 3: Add slivered almonds to dry mixture and stir a bit to combine.

Step 4: Mix applesauce, water and almond milk.

Step 5: Pour applesauce mixture over the dry mixture in the bowl.

Step 6: Mix delicately, just until all the flour is absorbed and the mixture sticks together. Do not over-mix.

Dough will be firm but should be nicely moistened throughout.

Step 7: Drop large rounded spoons of the scone batter onto the prepared cookie sheets.

Use two spoons to gently mold into more uniform shapes if desired or leave as "ragged" scones.

Step 8: Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven. Let cool and enjoy!

Drizzle with a cinnamon sugar mixture or light powdered sugar icing if desired, or just serve warm with a smear of butter or jam.