Pumpkin Scones #2

 The first time I made pumpkin scones, it was a Starbucks copycat recipe.  It did taste a lot like them, but I'm not overly fond of dense scones.  This new recipe I found from Taste of Home promised moist and fluffy.

These do hold up as advertised.  They are just slightly denser than a layer cake, enough to hold their shape on a baking sheet.  I don't know if I'd call them scones, though.  They're more like hand cakes.  Oh well, the quest continues.

The primary gripe on the original site is that they aren't "flavorful".  What those comments really mean is that they aren't sweet.  Sugar brings out the taste of both pumpkin and pumpkin spice.  All of the comments say that once the glaze is applied, the flavor improves.

One comment mentioned that the glaze gets weird after a day.  Powdered sugar glaze does that.  Since I was going to be freezing most of these for another time, I decided to do a white chocolate ganache drizzle instead.  I swiped some micro-chips from work when they were being discontinued.  They tend to disappear in baked goods, but are excellent for melting.  Ended up piping out of a sandwich bag when I couldn't get exactly the consistency I wanted for drizzling, but it ended up looking even better than a rustic drizzle.

The original recipe has you making really big scones.  I made a half-recipe and cut 12 out of it instead of 8.  They were still big, so that's what you're getting here.  Excuse the odd measurements; they make more sense in the 2-egg version.

2-1/4 C flour
1/4 C brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1-1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 C (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 egg, room temperature
1/2 C + 2 Tb pumpkin purée
1/4 C + 2 Tb milk

for glaze

2 Tb white chocolate chips
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp milk

1.  Sift together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, spices, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl.  In a small bowl, whisk together egg, pumpkin purée, and 1/4 C of the milk.

2.  Start preheating oven to 400º.  Line a baking sheet with a silpat or parchment.

3.  Cut cold butter into chunks.  Cut into flour with a pastry cutter or your fingers until mixture resembles coarse oatmeal.  Stir in liquid ingredients.  It's going to be a wet mixture.

4.  Form dough into a log 12" x 4".  With a bench scraper, cut into 4" squares, then each square into triangles.  They're going to be more scored than cut.  Brush with reserved milk.

5.  Bake 15 minutes.  Remove from oven, cut pieces apart along the scored lines, and return to oven for 5-10 minutes, until done.  Cool in pan 10 minutes, then move to a rack.  Set the baking sheet under the rack.

6.  Once scones are cooled, melt glaze ingredients under half power in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time until they can be stirred smooth.  Either drizzle or place in a plastic sandwich bag and snip off a tiny corner to use as a #1 tip.  Allow glaze to harden and serve.

Makes 12

Difficulty rating  :)