BRUNCH Part II: Jalapeno Pepper Jack Scones

This was another delicious feature of Joy the Baker. Usually, we make sweet scones...but not today! I really like this change of pace and making savory scones and I would definitely want to experiment along these lines again. Maybe even do a sweet + savory scone?!?! The options are endless.

I will say that scones are a fair amount of work and I actually made the dough the night before and refrigerated it to cut down on prep time the morning of brunch. I definitely recommend this.

Adapted from the Joy the Baker

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons cornmeal

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small cubes

2 large eggs

1/2 cup heavy cream (plus more for brushing the tops of the scones)

1/4 pound pepper jack cheese, cut into small cubes

2 medium jalapenos, some seeds removed, diced small

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Directions

1) Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.

2) Heat 2 teaspoons of olive oil in a small saute pan and cook diced jalapenos until softened, about 3 to 5 minutes. DON'T TOUCH YOUR EYESSSSS.

3) Let the diced peppers cool and them mix with the diced cheese.

4) Toss mixture in 1 tablespoon of flour and set aside.

5) In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt.

6) Work in the cold butter with your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse meal.

7) Whisk together 2 eggs and heavy cream.

8) Add the wet ingredients all at once to the dry ingredients, fold together with a fork until almost fully incorporated.

9) Add the jalapeno and cheese mixture to the shaggy dough and work together.

10) Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 30 seconds.

11) Form into a disk about 8 inches around and 2 inches thick. Cut disk into six wedges and refrigerate for 10 minutes before baking (yeah I did it the night before to cut down on time).

12) When ready to bake, place chilled scones onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

13) Brush with heavy cream and sprinkle with coarse sea salt.

14) Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown and making your kitchen smell like Paula Dean's kitchen...imagine that.

As I said before, these are delicious. Make them. It doesn't even have to be for brunch...but I also reckon that this would be delicious with a large bowl of Veggie Chili. Just sayin...

Made: 02/04/11

"Posted": 02/04/11

Posted: 06/02/11

Oatmeal Blueberry Scones

Well my secret is out. Breakfast is my favorite. If I could eat breakfast for every meal of the day, I probably would be tempted to do so. That being said, I think it makes complete sense that muffins and now scones have been a recent popular item on BOOF. However, making scones have always scared me. I realized that I needed to conquer this fear so gathered up my courage and made some scones. They were good. They had blueberries. They also had oatmeal. I really like those things. I like them even more together in the scone form.

Adapted from Epicurious

Ingredients

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups plus 2 tablespoons old-fashioned rolled oats
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon pieces
1 Cup of Blueberries
2/3 cup buttermilk plus additional for brushing

Directions

1) Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 425°F.

2) Sift together flour, 1/4 cup brown sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

3) Add 1 1/3 cups oats and mix together with your hands.

4) Add butter and and work until mixture resembles coarse meal with some small lumps.

5) Transfer to a bowl and add buttermilk and stir with a fork until a dough just forms.

6) Gently knead on a floured surface a few times.

7) Pat into a 9-inch square (1/2 inch thick). Cut into 9 (3-inch) squares. Cut each square diagonally to form 2 triangles. (Or just make approximately 18 two inch blobs.

8) Transfer to an ungreased baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

9) Brush with buttermilk and bake until golden brown, about 16 minutes.

10) Share and Enjoy!

These were raved about. I will make scones again. They are the best when the just come out of the oven and still have a little warmth to them. Ugh, I want these with coffee right now. Like this second. Sigh.

Made: 12/09/10
"Posted": 12/09/10
Posted: 06/01/11