I Love a Lazy Sconeday, Er... Sunday

I love breakfast on the weekend. Breakfast on the weekend is so much better, simply due to the fact that you can take a little more time to enjoy it. Weekend breakfast is doubly wonderful when you can take the time to bake something warm and comforting. As these scones are baking, you can smell toasted almonds through your entire house. These toasted almond scones dotted with butter and drizzled with a bit of organic honey are the perfect partner to a hot cup of black coffee or earl grey tea.


Toasted Almond Scones

1 Cup Blanched Almonds (whole, slivered, or sliced), toasted
1 Tbsp Sugar
1 Lg Egg
1/3 Cup Cold Heavy Cream
1/4 Cup Cold Whole Milk (I used 2%)
1/8 Tsp Pure Almond Extract
1 3/4 Cups All-Purpose Flour
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
1/4 Tsp Salt
1/2 Cup Cold Butter, cut into smaller pieces
1/4 Cup Sliced Almonds (optional)

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.

Divide the toasted almonds in half. Finely grind 1/2 cup in a food processor or blender with the sugar until the mixture resembles a coarse flour. Finely chop the other 1/2 cup.

Stir the egg, cream, milk and almond extract together.

Whisk the flour, ground almonds and sugar, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl. Drop in the butter. Cut and rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles pebbles, or at least something close.

Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and stir with a fork until the dough just starts coming together. Stir in the chopped almonds.

With the dough still in the bowl, fold the dough over itself 8 to 10 times. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide it in half. Shape each half into a 5 inch round. Cut each round into six equal pieces and top each piece with some sliced almonds, if you're using them. Place the scones on your baking sheet. (If you'd like to bake them later (although I'm not sure how you'll be able to wait), you can freeze them on the baking sheet, then put them in an airtight container. When you bake them from frozen, don't defrost them, just add 2 minutes to the baking time.)

Bake the scones for 20-22 minutes, or until their tops are golden. Transfer to a cooling rack and allow them to cool for the longest 10 minutes of your life before eating.