The perfect apple scones are fresh from the oven….a truly scrumptious breakfast treat…deliciously spiced with the perfect amounts of cinnamon and sugar…buttery and moist with crisp crumbly edges…consisting of soft flaky centers and crunchy golden brown exteriors.
These perfect apple scones are a great reminder that fall and cooler weather are right around the corner.
The perfect apples scones are also very easy to make…so let’s get started…
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Apples
To make the scones you will need about one heaping cup of apples. If you use too many apples, the scones will not maintain their shape because they will contain too many apple chunks and juices.
As far as which variety of apple to use, either use your favorite apple variety or whatever you happen to have on hand.
If you’re buying apples specifically for making the scones, good apple varieties to try include Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, or Fuji.
Another thing to keep in ind when you are choosing which variety of apples to use is whether or not you will be glazing your scones. If you will be glazing your scones, you will want to use a tart apple, such as a Granny Smith. If not, you will want to use a sweeter apple, such as a MacIntosh.
You will need to peel, core and shred the apple before aking the scone.
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Other Ingredients
- 1/2C brown sugar
- 3/4tsp salt
- 1Tbsp baking powder
- ½tsp baking soda
- 2½tsp cinnamon
- 2C flour
- ¼C butter, chilled
- ½C heavy cream or buttermilk
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Topping
3Tbsp sugar
1/2tsp cinnamon
water or milk, as needeed for prope4r consistency
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Prep Work
Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
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Making the Batter
Whisk together the dry ingredients—flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and cinnamon—in a large bowl Now stir together the liquid ingredients…Shred your apple. Add the shredded apple, then the milk. Mix until they form a soft dough. Add more flour if the dough gets too sticky, Combine the two. Knead a few times, working some extra flour into it until it is barely sticky.
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Shaping the SconesScrape the dough onto a floured parchment or pan.
Divide into two balls of dough….
Flatten until both circles are about 6″ in diameter and 3/4″ thick, using a knife or bench knife that you’ve run under cold water,
Place them on a well greased baking sheet.
Carefully separate the wedges away from the center until there is about 1/2″ space between their outer edges.Sprinkle with brown sugar and/or cinnamon.
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Making the Topping
Stir the sugar and cinnamon.together. Brush each circle with a bit of water or milk. Sprinkle onto circles.
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Freezing the Scones
Now place the scones in the freezer for about thirty minutes. This serves several purposes, including…
- allowing them to rise higher
- giving the the best texture and highest rise
- making the scones a bit flakier
- making the scones more tender
- relaxing the gluten in the flour
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Baking the Scones
- Bake for 15- 20 minutes until they are golden brown. Remove and cool….When the scones are cooled,, whisk together the glaze ingredients until they are smooth. Drizzle over the scones then let harden completely…
- Bake the scones for 18 to 22 minutes, or until they’re golden brown. When you pull one away from the others, it should look baked all the way through; the edge shouldn’t look wet or unbaked…Remove the scones from the oven, and cool briefly on the pan. Serve warm. When they’re completely cool, wrap in plastic and store at room temperature for up to several days…
- Bake the scones in a preheated 375°F oven for about 30 minutes…Scones are best served warm. They’re delicious as is, but add butter and/or jam (or apple butter), if you like. To reheat room-temperature scones, place on a baking sheet, tent lightly with foil, and warm in a preheated 350°F oven for about 10 minutes.
Use a 1/4C measuring cup…or pour the batter from the Mason jar depending on which method you used earlier…to shape the batter into medium-sized circles….about 3-1/2″ wide.
Cook your pancakes for a couple of minutes…until little bubbles appear and the edges start to get firm.
Be sure to avoid squishing the pancakes with your spatula.
Flip. Once you flip the pancake over, don’t press down on it with your spatula. Let the pancake cook naturally so you do not end up with flat, boring pancakes.
Cook your pancakes for a couple of minutes on the other side…until both sides are lightly golden.
Keep pancakes warm while you’finish cooking the rest by covering the pancakes with aluminum foil and then sticking them in an oven that has been preheated to about 200.°
If you find that your pancakes are browning too quickly, turn down the heat down and let the pan cool down for a minute or so before starting the next batch.
If you find that your pancakes are sticking to the pan, add more butter or oil.
Wipe out the pan between batches…especially if you are using butter instead of oil.
Finish cooking any remaining batter.
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Storing
Obviously most of us know what to do with the pancakes once you finish cooking them, but did you know that you can also make them ahead of time…instead of resorting to buying already frozen pancakes from the grocery store…
I was kinda shocked to find pancakes stored by the frozen biscuits and frozen breakfast burritos and frozen waffles…wonder how many preservatives are in all of these products, right?
To refrigerate…put the pancakes in an airtight container…will stay fresh for up to 5 days
To freeze…flash freeze them and store in large ziplocs…will stay fresh up to 2 m