Apple Cinnamon Scones

      It's the end of the year already, can you believe it?! It seems that whenever I look ahead things seem to take forever, but when I look back time has flown by. But such is life. I guess that just is another reason to appreciate the times that you're in and not wish it away. Anyway, I hope that everyone has passed a great year, remembering the good times and learning from the not-so-good. I made three resolutions this year: one, learn how to french braid my hair, two, use an entire tube of chapstick, and three, lose weight. Well I made 2/3 of those resolutions basically come true so I guess it's a technical success. I succeeded in french braiding my hair twice, but I'm not good at it enough to say I know how to do it. However, I am really good at fishtailing my hair now so I'm going to call this reslution a success. I also used an entire tube of chapstick without washing it or losing it! That is a huge success for me because I always lose or was them. So that's my two out of three. Admittedly, I didn't lose any net weight. I gained a little, but I also re-lost that bit so in the end I'm the same. So, like everybody else, I'm going to try it again next year. Here's to being healthy! Maybe I'll make some more apple-cinnamon scones. I liked these ones better than the pumpkin scones I made earlier, though those were good as well. They're filled with flour, but the apples and cinnamon make them healtheir, right? But I'm not one to care too much about flour in things--it's all about moderation for everything. And in this next year, that's what I'll be practicing again. =)


Apple Cinnamon Scones
recipe slightly adapted from kingarthurflour.com


Ingredients

• 2 3/4 cups flour
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 cup cold butter
• 2 cups apple chunks (about two medium apples chopped into 1/2" or so pieces)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 cup applesauce (I used homemade stuff which was already very cinnamon-y)
• extra sugar and cinnamon, plus a little bit of milk for brushing

Directions
--In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and spice.

--Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter. Having some large chunks is okay.

--Stir in the apple chunks.

--In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla, and applesauce. Stir the wet mixture in to the dry mixture until everything is moistened and everything is evenly incorporated.

--Separate the dough into two equal parts, forming each into circles, about 3/4" thick and 5" or so in diameter.

Note: The above picture shows a scone made from one large circle instead of two smaller ones. It still tasted great and baked fine, but when I lifted the scones up they wanted to break in half from the extra weight, probably because of the large apple chunks I made. So I would definitely recommend making two small circles.

--Place the circles on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

--Brush the top of the circles with milk and then sprinkle with some coarse sugar and cinnamon.

--Using a cold knife, slice each circle into 6 wedges, then gently pull the wedges away from each other, about 1/2" between each side.

--Place the pan of scones in the freezer for about 30  minutes. This allows for a flakier texture after baking because the butter rehardens, then melts in the oven to create pockets in the scones.

--Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425°F.

--Bake the scones for 18-22 minutes until they're golden brown. The edges of the scones shouldn't look "wet" still.

--Let cool a minute or two and then serve the scones warm. They're good completely cooled too, but best when fresh. They can be stored in a Tupperware for several days.






Happy Baking and Happy New Year!
--H