Dried Cherry Buttermilk Scones

I was looking for ways to use up some buttermilk and came across this recipe for dried cherry buttermilk scones. I love scones. I had dried cherries. Easy decision.


Need:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick, or 4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and chilled
2/3 cup dried cherries, chopped
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup buttermilk

For the (optional) topping:
2 tablespoons milk or buttermilk
1/4 cup turbinado or demerara sugar


Do:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, baking powder and soda, salt and sugar. Cut in the cold butter using a pastry cutter, a fork, or your fingers until you can see small pea-sized chunks of butter. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, vanilla and buttermilk, then pour into the dry ingredients. Stir with a fork until almost completely mixed, then add in the dried cherries and mix until the dough just starts to come together. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and pat it into a circle, then cut 8-12 wedges, placing them on the baking sheet.

Brush the scones with milk, then sprinkle heavily with the turbinado or demerera sugar and bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes. They should be golden brown on top and feel light inside, or a toothpick inserted in the center will come out clean. Let cool slightly, then enjoy!

Notes: These are a bit drier than the blueberry scones I make, but still delicious. I froze mine and it took about 20 minutes in the oven from frozen.

*For freezing the scones- flash freeze them (put the scones on a parchment/wax paper lined baking sheet and stick in the freezer) for 20 minutes. Remove, wrap individually with aluminum foil, place in a freezer safe bag and store until ready to bake!