Yes, I LOVE scones!

After being together for 3 years or so, David and I were pretty settled into our first home.  Well, it’s actually a condo, but still a home.  We are lucky or unlucky, depending on how you see it, to live above a Starbucks.  On lazy Sunday mornings, when we don’t feel like breaking out the coffee maker or frying pan, we just go downstairs to grab a coffee and pastry or muffin.  One morning, David went by himself and returned with my double (because Starbucks coffee is weak) tall non-fat latte, handed me a bag and said, “you like scones, right?”  And my response was, “yes, I LOVE scones!”  Actually, I don’t, but he does.  You would think we would have had this all important discussion prior to tying the knot.  I suppose we had more important things to deal with like how to blend our two different cultural backgrounds, who does what chores when, who takes care of the finances, who showers first and so on and so forth.

Our opposing views on the subject of the scone may stem from the fact that he’s a savory kind of guy, while I’m more of a sweets girl.  He loves chips, nuts and ham, cheese and onion scones, while I prefer chocolate, cookies and almond croissants.  The scones David likes the best comes from a small coffee shop (Bean Around the World) across from my old apartment, which is too far of a drive from our current place.  And although there are other locations closer to us, they don’t carry this favourite scone of his.  I’m not sure what possessed me, but one day (years after this aforementioned scone incident) I decided I was going to make some scones for breakfast.  The things you do for your loved ones….

Quiche Lorraine Scone (a.k.a. bacon, cheese and onion scone)

To my surprise, I actually like these scones.  They are not dense and dry like the few scones I’ve tried in the past.  It’s a bit crispy on the outside and moist on the inside from the gooey cheese.  And of course anything with bacon in it is good!  The best part of all, David really likes them, maybe even more than the ones at Bean Around the World.

Moral of the story?  It may take years to know everything about your spouse (and vice versa) – how they take our coffee, what kind of condiments they like on their hot dogs and even their political views – but in the process, you may learn something new about yourself, like how much you like scones.

Recipe (adapted from Brown Eyed Baker):

• 2 cups + 1 tsp all-purpose flour, divided
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• pinch of cayenne pepper
• dash of nutmeg
• 1 tsp salt
• 8 tbsp cold butter, diced
• ½ cup half-and-half
• 2 eggs
• 4 ounces Swiss cheese, diced
• 3 green onions, thinly sliced
• 7 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
• egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tsp water)

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
3. Prepare the bacon, onion and cheese.  Toss together with 1 tsp flour; set aside.
4. In a medium sized bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cayenne, nutmeg and salt.  Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or two knives until the butter is pea-size.
5. With a fork, lightly beat the eggs and half-and-half and add to the flour mixture.
6. Add the bacon, onion and cheese mixture.
7. Using a wooden spoon, fold mixture until it begins to come together.
8. Turn out the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead gently for less than 1 minute.
9. Pat dough to ¾ to 1-inch thick and cut using 3-inch biscuit cutter (for large scones) or cut into squares or triangles.
10. Place the scones on the prepared baking sheet.
11. Brush the tops of the scones with the egg wash.
12. Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Notes and Tips:

I’ve used ~1/4 less butter and the scones turned out fine.  For this recipe, I end up with 6 scones.  If you prefer the scones fresh out of the oven like I do, just bake half of them and then store the rest in the fridge for another day.  You can also prepare the night before, refrigerate and bake them in the morning.