Scone 1

My sister is always telling me she can’t do the Tuesdays with Dorie recipes at home. Too many pans, too many steps, weird ingredients.

Jennifer, this one is for you: Apple Cheddar Scones.

You probably have most of the ingredients right now. And if you don’t, this is a great recipe for substitutions. Not feeling the apples? Replace the half-cup of apple juice with water and the half-cup of dried apples with something else (e.g. smoked bacon, country ham, sausage, dried blueberries, dried cranberries). Or trade the cheese for toasted walnuts or pecans.

Seriously, you don’t even need a rolling pin. Stir the ingredients together, sprinkle a little flour on the counter, and pat the dough into a circle or rectangle, 1/2-inch thick. Then cut it into 12 slices. If you’ve patted it into a circle, cut it pizza-style. If you’ve done a rectangle, cut it into 12 smaller rectangles or grab a glass and cut it biscuit-style. Then place the slices on a baking sheet, and bake them for about 15 minutes.

If you don’t want 12 scones, divide the recipe in half.

The apple cheddar scones are great plain or with butter. But if you decide to go with fruit and nuts instead, try making a glaze with powdered sugar, milk (or cream), and a little vanilla. And invite me over.

Apple Cheddar Scones

Adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s “Baking: From My Home to Yours”

  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 cup cold buttermilk
  • 1/4 cup cold apple cider or unsweetened apple juice
  • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup yellow cornmeal, preferably stone-ground
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 stick (8 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
  • 3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese
  • 1/2 cup finely diced dried apples

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.

2. In a small bowl, stir the egg, buttermilk and apple cider together

3. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt together. Drop in the butter and, using your fingers, toss to coat it with flour. Working with your fingertips or a pastry blender, cut and rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is pebbly.

4. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients, and stir with a fork just until the dough, which will be very wet and sticky, comes together. If there are still some dry ingredients in the bottom of the bowl, stir them in, but try not to overdo the mixing.

5. Stir in the grated cheese and dried apple.

6. Still in the bowl, gently knead the dough by hand, or turn it with a rubber spatula 8 to 10 times. Then, because the dough is very sticky, turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface, pat it into a rectangle about 1/2 inch thick and, using a dough scraper or a chef’s knife, cut it into 12 roughly equal pieces; place on the baking sheet. Alternatively, you can just spoon out 12 equal mounds onto the baking sheet. (At this point, the scones can be frozen on the backing sheet, then wrapped airtight. Don’t defrost before baking – just add about 2 minutes to the baking time.)

7. Bake the scones for 20 to 22 minutes, or until their tops are golden and firmish. Transfer them to a rack and cool for 10 minutes before serving, or wait for the scones to cool to room temperature.