Words Joan Saunders
Photos Sarah Hartley Photography
I’ve never been a pumpkin spice latte kind of person. Don’t get me wrong, I do like pumpkin; I like pumpkin pie (with lots of whipped cream), pumpkin loaf (with some orange zest to amp up the flavour), and I especially like pumpkin scones topped with a gorgeous maple glaze. This is the season to indulge in all things pumpkin.
I have found that baking a pie pumpkin, or sweet pumpkin, as they’re also known as, to make my own puree is a flavourful addition to any recipe. And it’s very easy to do. You can find them at local farmers’ markets or stands and, after cutting the little pumpkin in half, scooping out the seeds and baking, you’ll have some delicious homemade puree. Or keep it even simpler and just buy a can at the grocery store.
One of the secrets to help create fluffy scones is to use cold, grated butter. When cold butter is mixed into the dough, it creates small pockets of fat that melt during baking; this results in layers of air and a light, flaky texture. The contrast of cold butter with the heat of the oven creates steam, which in turn helps the scones rise and gives them the consistency that you want.
I plan on indulging in some pumpkin treats this month, and this will definitely include some pumpkin scones. How can you resist this flaky, sweet, gorgeous coffee or teatime treat, especially when they’re full of sugar, spice and everything nice?
Everything Nice Pumpkin Scones
2 cups all purpose flour
2 ½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground allspice
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp salt
½ cup frozen unsalted butter
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 egg
½ cup cooked pumpkin, or canned pumpkin puree
½ cup light brown sugar
1 ¼ tsp vanilla
2 tbsp whipping cream
Glaze:
1/3 cup maple syrup
1 cup icing sugar (or to desired thickness of glaze)
pinch of salt
Preheat oven to 400°. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Whisk the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg, cloves and salt together in a large bowl.
Grate frozen butter with a box grater. Add butter to the flour mixture and, using a pastry cutter, a fork or your hands, combine butter into the flour until it resembles pea-sized bits.
Whisk the buttermilk, egg, pumpkin puree, brown sugar and vanilla together in another bowl. Add wet mixture to dry mixture, then combine together with fork or wooden spoon until everything appears to be moistened well.
With floured hands, work dough into a ball as much as you can, then put it onto a floured work surface. Press dough into a disc about 8 inches in diameter. With a sharp knife, cut it into 8 equal wedges. If you’d prefer smaller scones, divide the dough in half, then press into two 5-inch discs. Then cut into 8 wedges.
Place scones a few inches apart on prepared baking sheet.
Brush whipping cream on top of scones to give a nice shine.
If you don’t want to add the maple glaze, sprinkle on some coarse sugar before baking.
Bake bigger scones about 19-22 minutes, or until lightly browned. For the 16 smaller scones, bake for about 15-17 minutes, or also until lightly browned. Watch carefully, as every oven is different.
After removing scones from oven, let cool for a few minutes while making glaze.
Mix together icing sugar and syrup; add a pinch of salt. If glaze is too thick, add a bit of whipping cream. If it’s too thin, add more icing sugar.
Drizzle as desired over baked scones.
To cook pie pumpkin:
I like to cook a small pie pumpkin to use in baking. You can get them at local farmers’ markets. Just cut it in half, scoop out the seeds, then place each half, skin side up, in a foil or parchment lined baking dish. Bake in 350° oven until the flesh is tender (about 45 minutes or more). You should be able to pierce the skin/flesh easily with a fork. Remove from oven and let cool. Scoop out the flesh. Puree in blender or food processer to create the consistency you prefer. Store, sealed, in fridge. Use as you would canned pumpkin puree. Blot off any excess moisture with some paper towels, so it’s
not too wet.
Or keep it simple and buy a tin of puree at the grocery store.
