Pumpkin Scones

Well, it’s finally time to bust out the pumpkin recipes for fall! Thank goodness the pumpkin puree shortage is mostly over. As I was looking for canned pumpkin in the grocery store, I started to panic because I couldn’t find it in the usual spots (canned veggies/fruits aisle, and the baking aisle). I ended up asking an employee, and he directed me to a display at the end of an aisle. He indicated that they wouldn’t be getting any more shipments for at least a month. WHAT?!

So, the packrat in me decided I had better stock up. I ended up getting 10 of the large cans, and escaped with only a few weird looks. To be fair, I got a few of the cans for my mom because her grocery store was sold out. So yeah. I mean, I have a food blog to run here! Ten cans isn’t THAT much… right? ….Right?

I absolutely adore pumpkin, and am excited to share this recipe with you. There will be many more pumpkin recipes to come. I also plan to post a how-to guide for making pumpkin puree from an actual pumpkin in case you live in a part of the world still experiencing a canned pumpkin shortage. 😛

Annnnnyway. On to the recipe. It is based on a Starbucks copycat recipe of their pumpkin scones, but seeing as how I have never had one of Starbucks’ pumpkin scones, I can’t attest to whether or not it is authentic. I can, however, attest to it being delicious. 😛 Here is the original if you are curious. I adapted it to use a portion of wheat flour instead of white, and to use turbinado sugar instead of white sugar. I also adjusted the spices slightly to my own taste and added a bit of extra pumpkin and half & half to account for wheat flour’s extra dryness. When I make these again, I will probably use less milk in the glaze so that it will be a little thicker… but that’s also a personal preference.

To make 6 scones, you will need:

For the Scones:

• 1c all-purpose flour
• 1c whole-wheat pastry flour
• 1/4c + 3 tbs raw or turbinado sugar
• 1 Tbs baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 scant tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 scant tsp ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 6 Tbs cold butter, cut into 1/2″ cubes
• 1/2c + 2 tbs canned pumpkin
• 4 Tbs half & half
• 1 large egg

For the Sugar Glaze:

• 1c powdered sugar
• 2 Tbs milk

For the Spice Glaze:

• 1c powdered sugar
• 2 Tbs milk
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp ground ginger
• 1/8 tsp ground cloves

Instructions

Begin by preheating the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Combine all dry scone ingredients in a large bowl.

Add the cubed butter. Use a food processor, a pastry cutter, forks, or your hands (Hi, Nate!) to get all of this to look like coarse corn meal.

Like this! If you use anything other than a food processor, it’s going to take a little bit of effort. 😛 I know, not my usual style… but my food processor was dirty from last night’s Caesar salad dressing. So, the next-least-effort tool, the pastry cutter, prevailed.

In a separate small bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, half & half, and the egg.

Gently fold into the dry ingredients until barely combined, being careful not to overmix. It should look something like this ^.

Dump the dough out onto a floured work surface, and pat it down to form a rectangle of approximately 9 by 3 inches.

Note: if the dough is too sticky to work with, work in a little bit of flour. Make sure your hands are floured, too. I’m so messy when I bake. Good thing I bought the extra accident protection warranty for my camera. 😛

Using a sharp, floured knife, cut the dough into 3 equal sections. Then slice each of the 3 sections diagonally to form 6 triangles of dough.

Carefully transfer each triangle to your prepared baking sheet using a spatula. No, they didn’t magically turn orange once transferred to the baking sheet- they are just under my very yellow stove light in the above photo. 😛 And washed out in the previous photo.

Bake at 425 degrees F for 14-16 minutes, or until puffed and a more golden brown color.

Like so!

Transfer the scones to a wire rack to cool.

To make the sugar glaze: combine the milk and powdered sugar in a bowl; stir. Easy!

To make the spice glaze: combine the milk, powdered sugar, and spices in a bowl; stir. Easy times 2!

Once the baked scones have cooled completely, go ahead and brush on the sugar glaze with a pastry brush.

This is the part where I caved, and six scones became five.

Once the layer of sugar glaze hardens, drizzle on the spice glaze with a whisk. You can use as much or as little as you like!

Five scones became four…. just kidding. The fifth didn’t fit very nicely onto the plate. I swear. It’s off to the side, cheering the other scones on!

Serve with milk! Or tea! Or coffee! Or whatever turns your crank!

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did! 🙂