The Scone Lady Visits

The Scone Lady, aka my mom, came down for a few days last week to help me with baby Bert and things around the house. Can I just say she's the best? She spent a lot of time in the kitchen making meals and putting together zucchini bread for the freezer and cucumber and onion pickles for the fridge. I wish I could say I had more of a hand in things, but mostly I held the baby and directed her to pans and ingredients in the kitchen.

I also got her to make a batch of scones I saw in a magazine. Because I was holding the baby, I don't have pictures of the process but here's the recipe.

Savory Double-Walnut Scones (Better Homes and Gardens, August 2011)

1 1/4 c. walnuts
2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. cold butter
4 oz. Gruyere cheese, shredded (1 cup)
1/2 tsp. dried thyme, crushed or 1 1/2 tsp. snipped fresh thyme
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 c. buttermilk
1 Tbsp. honey
1 Tbsp. Dijon-style mustard
Shredded Gruyere cheese, chopped walnuts, and snipped fresh thyme (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place 1 1/4 c. walnuts on a baking sheet. Bake for 7 minutes or until toasted. Coarsely chop 1 c. of the walnuts. Finely grind remaining walnuts; set aside. (We skipped grinding the walnuts and just used the 1 cup.) Increase oven temp to 375 degrees.

2. In a large bowl combine flour, finely ground walnuts, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles a coarse meal. Stir in the 4 ounces Gruyere, 1 cup chopped walnuts, and thyme. Make a well in center of flour mixture. In a small bowl, combine egg, buttermilk, honey, and mustard; add all at once to flour mixture. Using a fork, stir just until moistened. (Mom prefers to mix scones with her hands rather than the pastry blender and fork.)


3. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead dough by folding and gently pressing it for 10 to 12 strokes or until nearly smooth. Divide in half. Pat or lightly roll each half to a 3/4-inch thick circle, about 6 inches in diameter. Cut each circle in 8 triangles. Place triangles 2 inches apart on greased baking sheet. (Mom bakes scones on parchment paper.) Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until golden.

4. Transfer to cooling rack. If desired, top with additional cheese, walnuts, and thyme. Serve warm. Makes 16 scones.

They were delicious. Perfect for lunch. Or breakfast. Or a snack.

I think any hard, sharp cheese (like an extra sharp cheddar) would work just fine so you don't have to shell out the extra dough for the Gruyere.