scones — Blog — Madeline Hall

Greetings from Vermont! We are here for a long weekend getaway in the gorgeous Vermont countryside. It is absolutely stunning! We are staying at the most incredible renovated barn/loft through airbnb, and last night I saw the most stars I've ever seen in my whole life and felt like crying--it was so breathtaking. I never realize how much I miss seeing a full night sky until I see one again. We also saw alpacas and cows and horses. I'm definitely not in NYC anymore (and that's totally okay with me right now)!

These scones are easy to make, and don't require any complicated ingredients. They are similar to my blueberry scones recipe here. Not too sweet, they are best served warm and with hot coffee or tea!

Cinnamon Sugar Scones (Makes 8)

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup white sugar
5 tablespoons cold butter, cut into chunks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup milk
2 tbl. ground cinnamon
1 egg, beaten, for egg wash
More cinnamon and sugar for dusting

Directions: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Whisk together all the dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Using a pastry cutter or knife, cut in the cold butter. Mixture will resemble course bread crumbs, and it is okay if the butter is not fully blended into the mix. Make a well in the center, and pour in milk. Fold together gently with fork.

Move dough onto a lightly floured surface, and mold into a sphere, about 3/4 inch thick. Using a knife, cut in half vertically then horizontally. Then cut those halves in half again, to make 8 equal sized triangles.

Using a spatula, move the triangles onto a greased baking sheet. Dough should be very sticky. If it loses shape just use fingers to coax back into a triangle once on the baking sheet. Top with egg wash, and dust with more cinnamon and sugar.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the tops are golden. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

P.S. I made a Facebook page for my blog finally! Give it a like to see new posts 😊.

I have always had a weird fascination with sharks-- so when Sharknado 3 aired last night on SyFy, I had to watch it. And it was so awesomely horrible!! Sharks in space? David Hasselhoff on the moon? Kyle and I couldn't turn our eyes away. If you have never seen any of the Sharknados, watch at least this one. There are a ton of celebrity appearances--so apparently everyone and their grandmother wanted to be in it. What a great way to spend an otherwise mundane Wednesday night! : D

I made these scones this past weekend and they are well-worth the effort. Most scones that I've had (like Starbucks ones) are very hard and crumbly. These were the perfect texture - almost cake-like inside and a little crispy on the outside. This texture experience would only happen if you ate a scone made from scratch right as it came out of the oven. I filled these with as many blueberries that would work within the dough, guaranteeing a burst of warm blueberries in every bite. And, not trying to brag, but these were literally perfection. Kyle claimed these were the best scones he had ever had, and he is the first one in our house to have ever made them from scratch! (He makes cinnamon ones.)

I gave half of these away to our neighbors next door, mostly because I knew if I didn't we'd eat them all that day, and because their kids are super cute. But, I immediately regretted it, because the next morning I wanted leftover scones and there were none to be had. So, if you put in the effort to make these, don't tell anyone, and DON'T give them away!!

Blueberry Scones with Vanilla Glaze

adapted from Food Network

Ingredients: for the scones (makes 8):

2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons cold butter, cut into chunks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup milk
1 1/4 cup fresh blueberries
1 egg, beaten, for egg wash

for the vanilla glaze (makes approx. 1/4 cup):

1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon milk

Directions: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Whisk together all the dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Using a pastry cutter or knife, cut in the cold butter. Mixture will resemble course bread crumbs, and it is okay if the butter is not fully blended into the mix. Mix in the blueberries, being careful not to crush them in the mix, or else the colors will run throughout the dough. Make a well in the center, and pour in milk. Fold together gently with fork.

Using a spatula, move the triangles onto a greased baking sheet. Dough should be very sticky and unreasonable to work with. If it loses shape just use fingers to coax back into a triangle once on the baking sheet.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the tops are golden. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

For the glaze: Whisk all ingredients together. Using a fork, drizzle over scones in a zig-zag pattern.