Prune Walnut Scones Recipes

MAPLE WALNUT SCONES

Steps:

• Set oven rack to lower center of oven. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Toast walnuts on a baking sheet in the preheated oven for 3 to 5 minutes. Cool.
• Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Toss butter pieces in the flour mixture to coat. Use a pastry blender to cut in the butter until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in toasted walnuts. Beat egg in a large bowl. Mix in the half-and-half, 1 teaspoon maple extract, and vanilla extract. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, mixing just until blended, switching from a spoon to your hands as the mixture comes together. Place dough in refrigerator for 10 minutes.
• Roll chilled dough into a ball on a lightly floured surface. Flatten dough into a 3/4 inch circle. Cut into 8 wedges.
• Bake scones on a parchment lined baking sheet just until firm and the bottoms are lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool for 3 minutes before transferring to cooling racks.
• Stir together the confectioners' sugar, hot water, and 1/8 teaspoon maple extract. Drizzle on scones to glaze.

SPICED WALNUT SCONES

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine milk and lemon juice; let stand for 2 minutes. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, orange zest, baking soda, nutmeg, baking powder, cloves and mace; cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add walnuts and milk mixture; stir just until moistened., Turn onto a floured surface; knead 10 times. Divide dough in half. Roll each portion into a 7-in. circle; cut each into six wedges. Separate wedges and place 1-in. apart on greased baking sheets. , Bake at 400° for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks. Combine glaze ingredients until smooth; drizzle over warm scones.

WALNUT RAISIN SCONES

Steps:

• In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon peel.
• With a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Mix in all but 2 tablespoons of the nuts and the raisins. Mix in buttermilk with fork.
• Gather the dough into a ball and knead for about 2 minutes on lightly floured board.
• Roll or pat out 3/4 inch thick. With a chef's knife cut into 3 inch triangles. Place, spaced 1inch apart, on a greased baking sheet. Brush tops with remaining 1 tablespoon buttermilk; sprinkle with the remaining sugar and the nuts.
• Bake in center of 425 degree F (220 degrees C) oven about 15 minutes or until nicely browned. Serve warm with butter or jam.

PRUNE AND WALNUT CRECENTS

Steps:

• Make pastry dough:
• Pulse butter, cream cheese, sugar, salt, and flour in a food processor just until a dough forms. (Do not overwork dough, or pastry will be tough.)
• Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 6 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice in a forward motion to help distribute fat. Gather dough and form into 2 balls, then flatten each ball into a 6-inch disk. Chill disks, each wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.
• Make filling:
• Pulse walnuts, prunes, sugar, cinnamon, and Sherry in food processor until nuts are finely chopped and filling forms a thick paste.
• Form and bake crescents:
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Roll out 1 disk of dough (keep the other chilled) into a roughly 14-inch round (about 1/8 inch thick) on a lightly floured surface with a floured rolling pin. Cut out rounds with floured cookie cutter. Chill scraps.
• Put 1/2 teaspoon of filling in center of 1 dough round. Brush some of egg wash halfway around pastry, near edge, then fold dough over filling, forming a half-moon shape. Pinch edges to seal. Make more crescents in same manner, rerolling scraps (but only once).
• Arrange crescents 1/2 inch apart on 2 buttered large baking sheets and lightly brush tops with egg wash. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, in middle of oven until tops are pale golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer to racks to cool.

PRUNE & ALMOND SCONES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Put the flour, salt and butter in a food processor and pulse until you can't feel any lumps of butter (or rub in any remaining lumps with your fingers).
• Halve and stone 100g prunes and add them to the pulsed dry flour mixture along with 40g chopped flaked almonds. Add a few drops vanilla extract to the buttermilk before combining with the flour mixture.
• Use a knife to quickly combine everything together to form a dough - stop when it has just combined and don't overmix it.
• Tip the dough onto a floured surface and lightly bring it together with your hands a couple of times. Press out gently until about 4cm thick, then stamp out 6-7cm roundsor cut into squares or triangles (pat the dough into a neat rectangle first to ensure straight edges). Re-shape any trimmings until all the dough is used. Brush the tops with a beaten egg before baking. Spread out on a lightly floured baking sheet and bake for 10-12 mins or until well risen and golden.

CARDAMOM PRUNE DROP SCONES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 F.
• Put flour, soda, powder, salt and cardamom into large bowl, mix well.
• In another bowl, beat together sour cream, egg, lemon peel and sugar.
• Cut butter into flour mixture until it resembles coarse sand.
• Add prunes to flour/butter and toss to distribute evenly.
• Add sour cream mixture and stir with a spoon until a sticky dough forms.
• Drop by 1/3 cupfuls of dough 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.
• Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown.
• Cool, loosely covered with a dish towel, on a wire rack.