Cherry Scones
I’m a sucker for scones – the actual British kind and the American kind (yes, they’re different!). These amaretto cherry scones certainly fall in the latter category and they are scrumptious!
One thing I love in all scones is dried fruit. And one of my favorite dried fruits are dried cherries – though I don’t enjoy them nearly enough!
And if you’ve never had amaretto with anything cherry, you are missing out – let me tell you! This recipe has become a MUST in my fall recipe collection!
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Cherry Scones
So. Back to that British vs. American scone thing. If you’ve ever had a proper scone (with clotted cream and jam…YUM!), they’re more like a biscuit and they’re much lighter than the American version.
Scones in America are much more dense and can dry out very easily. A fresh scones, however, is delectable in its own way.
Bing vs. Tart Dried Cherries
You can get a few varieties of dried cherries – namely tart cherries and bing cherries. I love the tart variety in any kind of baking, like cherry scones of course, but the bing cherries are delectable in trail mix and for snacking.
They’re a bit tart but much sweeter and a perfect accompaniment to roasted, salted, and even plain nuts.
Infusing Dried Cherries
When you’re making these cherry scones, you’ll use the amaretto to infuse and rehydrate the dried cherries.
If you love this idea, you’ll love tea soaked cherries – one of my favorite ice cream toppings.
Dried fruit is lacking moisture – hence the name – so letting it sit in liquid plumps them up a bit. So in lieu of hot water, we’re using that glorious almond flavor of amaretto.
And then to really bring the whole dish together, we use the leftover liquid from that in the drizzle.
Other Scone Recipes
Love scones as much as I do? You’ll want to try these champagne grape & brie scones. And if you want something savory, these cheese scones are heavenly!
CHERRY SCONES
Ingredients
- ¾ cup dried cherries
- ½ cup amaretto
- 1¾ cups All Purpose flour
- ½ cup whole wheat pastry flour I use Bob's Red Mill
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon lemon zest
- ½ cup chilled butter
- â…“ cup finely chopped pecans
- 1 cup buttermilk can use milk w. 1 Tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon water or buttermilk
icing
- 1½ cups powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons reserved cherry amaretto
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla
- 1-1½ teaspoons milk/cream
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, heat dried cherries in amaretto over medium heat for five minutes. Gently stir to infuse cherries with amaretto. Let cool. Drain cherries, reserving infused amaretto for icing.
- Preheat oven to 400°.
- Combine flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Add lemon zest. Remove butter from refrigerator. Cut into small cubes. Mix butter into flour mixture. Finish combining flour and butter with hands, squeezing butter into flour with fingertips until mixture resembles a coarse meal.
- Add cherries and pecans. Slowly stir in buttermilk and vanilla with rubber spatula. When combined, turn dough onto heavily floured surface. Knead dough to make sure buttermilk is incorporated throughout.
- Pat into 4×12-inch rectangle. Cut into squares and then triangles with large knife.
- Place scones on parchment-lined baking sheet with space between. Beat egg and water/milk in shallow bowl. Brush mixture onto each scone.
- Bake 20-25 minutes, rotating pan after ten minutes. Let cool completely.
drizzle
- Whisk icing ingredients together, adding milk slowly until drizzle consistency is reached. Let iced scones sit at least one hour before serving for best flavor.
At what step do you add the sugar? It doesn’t appear to be in the instructions.
Hi Jessica, The sugar goes in with the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, etc.). My apologies for the omission. I’ll be adding it in shortly. xo Luci