Musical pairing – I’m on Fire by Bruce Springsteen
Pssst . . . not to be the bearer of bad news but (deep breath) . . . . Thanksgiving is less than two weeks away. I don’t know about you, but this time of year gets super busy in our house and since we love hosting Thanksgiving, I look for recipes that can be made a day or two ahead or things I can make ahead and freeze – like these Jalapeno-Cheddar scones. I made these for last year’s Thanksgiving dinner and there wasn’t a single crumb left . . . not a creature was stirring, not even a . . . oh wait . . . wrong holiday . . .
I’ve lost count as to how many times I’ve made these scones: Sunday morning brunch, weekday breakfast with a scrambled egg, sausage patty in the middle – left over turkey in the middle – you get the picture. They’re quite versatile not to mention quite delicious and aren’t too spicy – honest, pinky swear.
I found the recipe over at Smitten Kitchen, you know her, right? A total rawk star and her name is Deb, so of course I love her! The recipe uses both cream and eggs for a wonderfully light, tender and nearly impossible to mess up scone – but if you have a scone-phobia, the tips listed here will apply to this recipe.
Scones are best eaten the day they’re made; however, as I’ve already said, I make the dough ahead, cut them into the size I want, and freeze to bake later – just add 5-10 minutes extra baking time coming straight out of the freezer.
JALAPENO-CHEDDAR SCONES
Very slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick or 4 ounces) cold butter, diced
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 3 eggs, divided
- 1/4 pound sharp Cheddar cheese, diced (I used 3 ounces sharp cheddar AND 1 ounce pepper jack cheese + ONE jalapeno pepper)
- 2 small jalapeños pepper, minced OR omit the jalapenos altogether and just use all pepper jack cheese (which I have done as well)
METHOD:
- Preheat oven to 400°F. In a small skillet, melt 1/2 tablespoon of butter and sauté the jalapeños in it until soft, about two minutes. Let them cool, then place them in a small bowl with the cheddar cheese and coat them with one tablespoon of the flour (from the original 2 cups listed above).
- Combine the remaining flour with the baking powder and salt.
- Cut in the remaining butter with a pastry blender, fork or two knives, until the butter bits are pea sized. (I tossed the dry ingredients in my food processor, pulsed a couple times to blend and then added the diced butter; pulse, pulse, pulse until the mixture resembles small peas – DON’T OVERMIX or the dough becomes tough! I transferred the flour/butter mixture to another bowl and proceeded with the recipe.)
- Lightly whip two of the eggs and cream and add to the flour-butter mixture. Using a wooden spoon, fold mixture until it begins to come together. Add the cheddar-jalapeño mixture to the dough and mix until everything is incorporated.
- Turn out the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead gently for less than one minute. Pat dough out to a 3/4- to 1-inch thickness and either cut into 8 triangles or the shape of your choice with a biscuit cutter.
- Make an egg wash by beating the remaining egg with a teaspoon of water. Brush the scones with egg wash and place on a parchment-lined (or well-oiled) baking sheet.
- Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.
SMITH BITES NOTE: When I make these for Thanksgiving, I use a smaller biscuit cutter (approx 1-1/2 to 2-inch size) which my family appreciates because there’s always so much to enjoy – you want a little taste of everything!
When we make it home, we’re definitely going to utilize the “freeze ahead” trick for scones. Delicious!
[K]
I can’t get over how good these look/sound.. I absolutely love scones and love finding new ingredients for the wonderful little breakfast treats.. I can’t wait to try this- they’ll be perfect for a Texas thanksgiving!
I love scones & cheese… husband loves Jalapenos… I am all over these like a RASH!! 😉
I just bit the screen! These look fantastic….my staple recipe is with goat cheese and scallions. I have never made these with jalepeno…you just inspired me! Thanks for the recipe!
Ahhh, I’m late to the party! Is there any scones left? 😉 Cuz they sure look purdy!
Oh yes please! Savoury scones are awesome.
I’m loving these!! Your photos are making my mouth water…that crunchy outside with the hot bite inside. YUM!
I just made mine and have them in the freezer. I’ll take pics of everything Thankgsgiving day. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe.
Ohhh I ? how you have the music on your post. I need to learn how to do that.
Mija
This sound so tasty and look great. I love love jalapeno and cheddar togehter.
This sound wonderful. I’ve been cooking lots of soup lately and these would be great with a nice hot bowl!
I’ll be in London during Thanksgiving celebrating is a different way ;o) I love savory scones and jalepeno is right up my road. These look spectacular
Debra – can I please come to your house for Thanksgiving? These look delicious!
I LOVE scones and these savory scones look amazing! I think I have everything in the fridge and will make these tomorrow 🙂
I absolutely love the flavor of jalepeno. If only I could get my family converted. These look easy to veganize and super delicious. Love your pics!
I could really go for one of these right now.
These look amazing! I love how you could serve these for breakfast, lunch or dinner. I can’t believe Thanksgiving is so soon…I know that I will be making these at least once over the next few weeks. Thank you for sharing. I hope your weekend is full of love and fun.
I’d like to turn those into a egg sandwich for breakfast, yummy!
Hey there! I thought there was some deal about getting samples of the recipe that you post on a guest blog post (that’s what Tickled Red said!). Since I didn’t get any of the Chocolate Caramel Cookie Bars, can I at least have some of these shipped my way?! 😉 Thank you.
Love! Not sure these would make it all the way to Thanksgiving! And cutting then freezing? Brilliant.
Those look so savory and delicious. Love it!
And thanks for the Thanksgiving reminder. I thought I had more time 😉
These look incredible! I love the idea of freezing them for later, too – genius!!
Love how you said you make, cut and freeze them for baking later. Brilliant!!! That’s a definite tip that I’ll file away for future reference. Love your musical paring too 🙂
Thanks for sharing.
These do look addicting! I love that you can freeze them to cook up at a later time. My kids are always asking for bread at dinner but I usually wait until it’s too late to put a batch together.
I’m not panicked… I have my menu pretty much set. Just need to write it all down and figure out what I’m doing when!
Love this alternative to rolls on Thanksgiving day. Delicious!
Lori, you are such a pro!!
Oh, wow….I love everything about these! Scones, cream, butter, cheese, jalepenos. Oh my!
Oh we will be making these very soon. Love them!
These crumbly scones look amazing! The only problem is if I made them ahead of time they might not last until Thanksgiving!
Marla ~ that is why is always bake 2 for The Professor & I to have one then, and then I put the rest on a parchment-lined cookie sheet, unbaked and freeze for later.
Are there really people with scone-phobia? I love making scones but you know I have never made savory scones. These are fabulous! I mean, cheddar cheese with the kick of jalapeno? I love it. And yes, a fabulous treat for a holiday meal.
Oh Jamie ~ I WAS one of those ‘scone-phobia’ people for years! These really are one of our most favorite scones and I ALWAYS have a few tucked away in the freezer!
Hmm! I think these would make a good Thanksgiving day breakfast! Especially since they can be made ahead and frozen. Yum!
Perfect for Thanksgiving day breakfast Rowdy!
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Great tip on freezing and baking later.
These sound amazing! 🙂
I am a scone lover. These savory scones look fabulous! Great photos Deb. 🙂
Haven’t made from-scratch scones in I-don’t-know-how-long, but I’m thinking these look like just the excuse. Thanks!
Hi Debra, You had me at Jalapeno as it was showing up on the URL and then I saw cheddar, OMG looks luscious GOOD! love the pic of the dough!! Kisses for a Happy Thanksgiving! Shulie
Mmm hmm, yup. You’re a genius.
I love savory scones (yet I have never made them). These look like absolute perfection… and a perfect addition to the Thanksgiving table!
You will LOVE these Brian, really!