Sunday Bake of the Week: Apple-filled Scones

Every Friday I go to our local cafe to knit, chat, and enjoy the delicious coffees and baked goods. One such goodie is a scone they make that has a strawberry-rhubarb filling. It is divine.

But being advernterous, I thought it couldn't be too difficult to mimic, and gave it a try!

Due to lack of either strawberries or rhubarb, I had to go with what I had, which was apples. Lots, and lots of apples. Yet the scones turned out brilliant, and you could easily substitute other fruits for the filling. As I try other combinations, I post the variations used.

Fruit-Filled Scones



Preheat oven to 425 F

Filling:

2 medium sized cooking apples; peeled, cored, and diced

1 tbsp plus 1 tsp flour

1/8 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

2 tbsp brown sugar

(1/4 cup raisins)

Combine the apples with the dry ingredients in a saucepan, and mix until the apples are thoroughly coated.

Add:

2/3 cup water

1 tsp lemon juice

Put over low heat and stirring frequently, bring just to a boil. Turn off the heat, cover, and let sit while you prepare the dough.

Dough:

2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1 tsp salt

8-12 tbsp of butter, shortening, or a combination of both

Using your fingers, two knives, or a pastry cutter, mix together until it resembles course meal. Make a well in the centre, and add:

1 1/4 cup milk

Quickly blend the milk into the dry ingredients, adding more if the dough is too stiff. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface, and knead for about 2 minutes. At this time, I divide the dough in half to make it easier to work with.

Taking one half of the dough, roll it out into a square about 1/4 - 1/2 inch thick. Take half of the apple filling, and spread it out over the rolled dough, carefully leaving about 2 inches without filling at one end (that will be the outside of the roll). Starting at the opposite end, start rolling the dough into a pinwheel; trapping the filling on the inside. When you get to the end, place a few drops of water along the edge to seal it.

Cut the roll into 12 pieces, and repeat for the second half of the dough.

Now transfer each piece, with the pinwheel visible from the top, to a greased muffin tin. Each piece should sit inside one muffin cup to bake.

Bake for about 20-25 minutes, until the tops are nice and golden, and the apple filling has become caramel in colour.

Let rest for 5 minutes in the pan before transferring to cooling racks. These are best served fresh and still warm, but can be reheated for 20 seconds in the microwave as well.

Makes 24 scones.