I am tired of my usual breakfast items! I have had it with oatmeal (it’s usually cold by the time I get to it), scrambled eggs and especially of yogurt and granola. It was time for a special breakfast treat, so I decided to make the Buttermilk Scones from “Baking with Julia.” I often use the gluten-free flour blend recipe below for muffins and quick breads, but you could also use a store-bought flour blend such as Pamela’s or King Arthur Flour.
Gluten-Free Flour Mix
- 1 1/2 cups White rice flour
- 1/2 cup Sorghum flour
- 2/3 cup Potato flour
- 1/3 cup Tapioca flour
- 1 tsp. xanthan gum
Mix all the ingredients with a whisk. Store in an air tight container.
Gluten Free Cranberry Chocolate Scones
Makes 8 large scones
Ingredients:
- 2 cups Gluten-free flour blend
- 1/3 cup cane sugar
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. grated orange zest
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into cubes
- 3/4 cup buttermilk (or less)
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup chocolate chips (dark, milk or white chocolate)
- 1 tbs. unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tbs. coarse sanding sugar (for the tops)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and orange zest in a bowl. Cut in butter cubes with a pastry blender or fork until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. It is fine to have a few bigger pieces of butter remaining as they will give the scones their flaky texture. Stir in the buttermilk, using only as much as you need to create a soft dough that holds together. Add the cranberries and chocolate chips. Pour out onto lightly floured surface (using rice flour) and knead a few times, until the dough is smooth. Divide the dough into four equal pieces. Cut each piece in half and shape that portion into a triangle. Place triangles on a greased or parchment lined baking sheet and brush the tops of each scone with melted butter. Sprinkle the tops with coarse sugar. Bake 9-12 minutes or until golden brown on the edges. These are best served warm but are also delicious at room temperature. If you are not going to eat them the day they are baked, freeze the scones in air tight bags. To thaw, unwrap and place in a 350 F. oven for 5 minutes.
Adapted from the recipe for Buttermilk Scones (page 210) (contributing baker, Marion Cunningham), “Baking With Julia” by Dorie Greenspan
