Autumn by the bay, the leaves are turning colors and there is a gently rain of large maple leaves softly floating down to the ground. As Halloween approaches and pumpkins are everywhere it is time to start baking and cooking with pumpkin. This year I wanted to make pumpkin scones. I looked at many recipes, before I decided on the recipe below. Let me just start with that this scone is perhaps one of the best if not the best scone I have ever tasted. Yes, I absolutely mean that!  The scones are light and airy not too sweet and a subtle taste of tart from using fresh cranberries over sweet dried cranberries. I loved the technique of grating the cold butter into the dry ingredients and plan to experiment more with this technique since the results were so wonderful. This recipe is really easily , just a few extra steps but the results are worth it. Save some time in the morning, by measuring all your dry ingredients in advance and leave in a zip lock bag until you are ready to bake.

From by the bay , wishing you many delicious pumpkin food memories!

Maryann

Pumpkin Scones with Cinnamon Butter

Recipe by Beauty and Essex as featured in Bon Appetit November 2014

Cinnamon Butter
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure maple syrup
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Scones
½ cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon kosher salt or fine sea salt
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon baking soda
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface
¾ cup (1½ sticks) chilled unsalted butter
½ cup chopped fresh (or frozen, thawed) cranberries
1 large egg
½ cup canned pure pumpkin
¼ cup buttermilk, plus more for brushing
2 tablespoons raw sugar

Preparation
Cinnamon Butter
Mix butter, maple syrup, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl.
Do Ahead: Cinnamon butter can be made 4 days ahead. Cover and chill.
Scones
Whisk granulated sugar, baking powder, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt, cloves, baking soda, and 2 cups flour in a large bowl. Using the large holes on a box grater, grate in butter, tossing to coat in dry ingredients as you go; toss in cranberries. Mix in egg, pumpkin, and ¼ cup buttermilk.
Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and pat into a 1½”-thick disk. Cut into 8 wedges; transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Freeze until firm, 25–30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400°. Brush scones with buttermilk and sprinkle with raw sugar. Bake until golden brown, 25–30 minutes. Serve with cinnamon butter.