Cranberry Pecan Cornmeal Scones
I have always been a firm believer in doing as the Romans do, so naturally, when I moved to England, I embraced Tea and Scones like any other island dweller. Let's face it, few things are as delicious as a good old flaky and tender scone slathered with clotted cream and jam.
But the Holidays got me thinking about giving my tried and tested scone recipe a festive revamp, and that's how these Cranberry Pecan Cornmeal Scones were born.
I added cornmeal to my scone dough for a bit of added nuttiness, dried cranberries for sweetness and a tart punch, and some pecans for a little bite.
But I didn't stop there. I generously frosted the baked scones with maple icing and sprinkled extra pecans on top. The holidays are all about being a little bit extra are they not?
And yet these scrumptious scones take exactly 30 minutes to make from start to finish. That means you can even whip up a batch on Christmas morning while everyone is busily opening presents. Serve them with some freshly made coffee to dunk them in and I'd say you have the makings of a perfect Christmas Breakfast.
As a word of caution, I will warn you that Cranberry Pecan Scones will most likely ruin all other scones for you. In fact, I will go so far as to say that you will be most likely be making this recipe on repeat.
To put in perspective, I have already made them 5 times in less than a month, that's how good these scones are. They're almost like the love child of a scone and piece of buttery cake, which also makes them the perfect treat for an elegant cream tea.
Regular scones have always been a staple of Afternoon Tea. Ever since Anna Russell 7th Duchess of Bedford came up with the idea of having a little nibble at 4 o'clock.
With the advent of Industrialization, British eating patterns shifted. Aristocrats who would lunch around noon would dine around 8pm as opposed to the working classes who would eat as soon as they got home from work.
During the first half of the 19th-century, people from all walks of life would have only two square meals a day. The wealthy enjoyed a light lunch, called luncheon, and heavier dinner, while the working class had a heavier breakfast around lunchtime and a light, and fairly early, supper.
Soon food carts swarmed around factories to deliver prepared food to the hungry masses.
The wealthy, for obvious reasons, did not get their snacks from street vendors. But that didn't mean that their stomachs didn't grumble just as much.
The Duchess of Bedford, in particular, found that she felt faint and starving between the long hours that stretched between 12 and 8 pm.
One afternoon, she ordered her servants to bring her a cup of her favorite tea, Darjeeling, some bread, and some cakes. They came back with sandwiches, tea cakes, and you guessed it, some scones with clotted cream and jam.
The Duchess was more than delighted. As a matter of fact, she was so pleased with her tea and scones that she started ordering the same thing every day at around 4pm.
Pretty soon she was having her friends over for a cup of tea some scones, cucumber sandwiches, and of course the latest bit of gossip. Let's not forget that one of the Duchess' closest friends was non-other than Queen Victoria herself.
In a few years, everyone who was anyone was enjoying Afternoon Tea, from the Queen to the growing bourgeoisie.
The only problem was nobody could agree on the correct pronunciation of the baked good.
Was it scone as in gone or scone as in tone?
Before you answer, I would like you to read the following poem.
I asked the maid in a dulcet tone
To order me a buttered scone;
The silly girl has been and gone
And ordered me a buttered scone.
Are you doubting yet? I admit it's so bad I prefer to point at scones when I order them at a coffee shop. I feel like an idiot no matter if I say scone as in tone or scone as in gone.
Luckily for me, I live in an area that is mostly team "tone", but the further north you move in the UK the more the "gone" scone becomes predominant.
If you take into account that scones probably are of Scottish origin, I imagine that probably the correct pronunciation rhymes with gone but I have trouble bringing myself to say it.
Read more about the scone divide here. https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/scone-with-the-wind-an-irishman-s-diary-about-a-pronounced-difference-of-opinion-1.3061139
Scones are most likely to have originated in the town of Scone, a Medieval village closely linked to the Scottish throne ever since Kenneth MacAlpin defeated his opponents and established his new kingdom and dynasty.
The new King understood the importance of establishing a new tradition, one that would secure his power. He chose the Augustinian abbey nestled in Scone to be the inauguration site of his new reign.
The Abbey was complete with a large sandstone called the Stone of Scone or the Stone of Destiny. Legend has it that said stone is the same one the same stone that Jacob used as a pillow when the Lord blessed him in his sleep. Not surprisingly Kenneth MacAlpin chose to be coronated sitting on Jacob’s Pillow in a coronation ceremony that lasted two days and was rife with both Christian and pagan symbols.
There is nothing particularly special about this block of red sandstone, and yet it is a symbol of national identity and regal power. The likes of Macbeth, Robert the Bruce, and all the other 36 kings of Scotland were crowned while sitting on it.
It was precisely that symbol that motivated Edward I Hammer of Scots to remove the Stone of Scone in 1296 as a spoil of war. Being intent on turning Scotland into a vassal state he had a wooden chair built in Westminster Abbey. From then on all Scottish Kings would have to travel to London to be crowned in Westminster Abbey while sitting on King Edward's Chair.
But Edward’s Chair was not only reserved for Scottish kings. Ever since it was built all British monarchs have been crowned on the Stone of Scone in Westminster Abbey as well.
I imagine that more than one was thinking about having tea and scones during the Coronation Ceremony. And let me tell you that Cranberry Pecan Cornmeal Scones with Maple Icing are definitely fit for a Queen (or King).
Cranberry Pecan Maple Scones
ingredients:
- 125 g (1 cup) all-purpose flour
- 100 g (1/2 cup + 2 tbsp) cornmeal or fine semolina
- 75 g (1/3 cups) sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 90 g (6 tbsp) cold butter cut in small cubes
- 90 g (3/4 cups) dried cranberries
- 100 g (3/4 cup) pecans
- 1 large orange, juiced and zested
- 145 g (1/2 cup) full-fat Greek yogurt
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 30 g (2 tbsp) unsalted butter
- 80 ml (1/3 cup) maple syrup
- 1 cup (112 g ) powdered sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp crushed pecans
- 2 tbsp dried cranberries
instructions:
How to cook Cranberry Pecan Maple Scones
- Heat the orange juice and pour over the dried cranberries. Add the orange zest and mix.
- Crush pecans until they are roughly a quarter of their original size.
- Preheat oven to 200 ° C (400°F).
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl (or in a food processor) mix the flour, semolina, baking, powder, baking soda, and the 75 g (1/3 cup) sugar until well combined.
- Add butter to the flour and with the help of a pastry cutter, with your hands or with a food processor cut the butter until the largest pieces are pea-sized.
- Add the cranberries, pecans, and yogurt and mix with a fork or wooden spoon until the dough just comes together.
- Dump the mixture onto a floured surface, press the dough together and fold it over twice. this makes the scones extra flaky.
- Pat the dough into a circle and cut into 8 pieces.
- Brush each scone with the cream and sprinkle with the remaining sugar.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.
- Melt the butter.
- Pour maple syrup, butter, and salt into a medium-sized bowl.
- Sift powdered sugar into the maple syrup and stir vigorously until well combined.
- Pour maple glaze over scones and decorate with extra pecans and cranberries.
- Enjoy!
