Fresh Cherry Almond Scones
Makes: 16 Scones
Things you need…
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp ginger
- 2/3 cup cold butter, cubed
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 1 cup fresh cherries, (pitted & halved/quartered)
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
- 2 tbsp butter, melted
- 2 tbsp coarse sugar
Almond Glaze
- 1-2 tbsp milk
- 1 cup icing sugar
- 1/4 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
Scones Preheat your oven to 400 degrees; Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
Pit the cherries, leave half of the cherries in halves and cut the rest into quarters. (I like to do this just for blending purposes, but you don’t have to do this)
Next, spread your cut cherries onto a baking sheet and place them into the freezer to flash freeze them until you are ready to work them into your dough. This will help to ensure your dough doesn’t turn pink from the fresh cherry juices - super useful.
Meanwhile, prepare your scone dough. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together buttermilk, cream, egg, vanilla, almond extract and lemon zest; Place in the refrigerator until ready to use.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and ginger until evenly combined.
Cut in your cubes of cold butter and lightly toss to coat each of the butter cubes with the flour mixture. Work the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingers or with a pastry cutter until most of the butter chunks are the size of peas.
Drizzle the cream & buttermilk mixture over the dry ingredients and use a fork to gently fold the wet into the dry ingredients until a ragged dough forms.
Turn the ragged dough out onto a cool lightly flour work surface. Now it is time to begin folding the cherries into the dough.
Dust the dough with some additional flour and sprinkle with 1/4 cup of your prepared frozen cherries. Gently fold the dough sprinkle with additional flour and cherries.
Gently pat/shape your dough into a 3/4-1 inch thick disk, and use a sharp knife to cut the disk into serving pieces. Place the scones onto a prepared baking sheet; Sprinkle with coarse sugar and sliced almonds.
Place the tray into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the tops are golden brown and the tops spring back to your touch. Note – your scones will cook a bit faster if you are using a convection oven.
Almond Glaze While your scones are baking, prepare your almond glaze. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together milk, icing sugar, vanilla and almond extract until a thick yet still fluid glaze forms. You may need to add additional icing sugar or milk to achieve the desired consistency.
Once your scones are ready to take out of the oven, remove them and place the tray onto a wired cooling rack. Allow the Scones to cool for 10 minutes and drizzle the glaze over the tops. Allow the scones to cool with the glaze on top for about another 5 minutes before serving.