In college, one of our favorite hang-outs was a quaint british-inspired Tea room. Tucked between the shops on White Street, it was the appropriately fussy place where we escaped Wayne Grudem and ten thousand Greek flashcards. For four years we solved the world’s problems with a scone in one hand and a teacup in the other and though it seems uber-fancy pants, it really wasn’t. I haven’t been to the Olde English Tea Room since we moved away five years ago, but I hope to take my girls there one day– I think they would love it. Just before we left, I went on a last tea-trip with 18 month old Lucy and she teethed on a butterscotch scone and drank milk from a sippy cup while I took mental snapshots to carry with me.
More than just a sugar bowl brimming with good memories, that little haven gave me a love of good scones. Around here, we often like to get creative with our basic scone recipe (which came from a dusty old copy of Joy of Cooking.) A few of our favorite seasonal scones are Cranberry Orange Scones and Apple Oatmeal with Maple Glaze.
But let’s be real. Sometimes, you need a savory scone, especially after an October of Allume cupcakes and Halloween candy. (Not that I know.)
These Savory Cheddar Scones are just that type of scone– flaky and dense, they would be delicious with a big bowl of vegetable soup or chili. Or Tomato soup! They dress up a normal bowl of tomato soup as well. And they are the kind of recipe you can tweak based on what you have– Chopped Ham and Gruyere or Prosciutto and Fontina with a little bit of fresh Thyme would be perfect. Experiment and let me know what you come up with!
- 2 cups All Purpose Flour
- 1 tbsp. Baking Powder
- ½ tsp. Salt
- ¼ tsp. Dry Mustard
- Several grinds of coarse-ground black pepper
- 6 Tbs. Unsalted Butter, chopped into small cubes
- ¼ cup plus 1 tbsp. thinly sliced green onions
- 1 cup plus 2 tbsp. freshly grated Sharp Cheddar or Gruyere Cheese
- Crumbled cooked Bacon, 4 regular strips worth
- ½ cup Half & Half
- 1 egg, slightly beaten together with Half and Half
- In the large bowl of a food processor, blend together the dry ingredients (flour through pepper.)
- Add butter pieces and pulse together until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Add half of the onions and half of the cheese and then pulse quickly once or twice.
- Add the rest of the onions, cheese, and bacon-- still reserving the extra Tablespoons until the end.
- Add the egg beaten together with the cream and then pulse 2-4 times.
- Take care not to over-mix. You can do this step by hand with a fork or spatula.
- Invert the food processor bowl onto a lightly floured surface.
- Work dough lightly into a rough circle.
- Once the circle is formed, cut into 8 large or 16 small wedges.
- Place wedges onto a sheet of parchment paper on a cookie sheet.
- Just before baking press the reserved cheese and green onions onto the surfaces of the scones.
- Bake at 425' for 12-15 minutes
Leave a Reply