Vanilla Bean Scones Recipe 455

Steps:

• For the scones: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Split the vanilla beans in half lengthwise and scrape out all the vanilla "caviar" inside. Stir the caviar into the cream. Set aside for 15 minutes.
• Sift together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut the cold butter into pats, and then use a pastry cutter or two knives to cut the butter into the flour. Keep going until the mixture resembles crumbs.
• Mix the vanilla cream with the egg, and then combine with the flour mixture. Stir gently with a fork just until it comes together.
• Turn the dough onto a floured surface and lightly press it together until it forms a rough rectangle. (Mixture will be pretty crumbly.) Use a rolling pin to roll into a rectangle about 12-by-7 inches and 1/2-to-3/4-inches thick. Use your hands to help with the forming if necessary. Then cut the rectangle into 12 symmetrical squares/rectangles. Next, cut each square/rectangle in half diagonally, to form two triangles. Transfer to a parchment or baking-mat-lined cookie sheet and bake for 18 minutes, removing from the oven just before they start to turn golden. Allow to cool for 15 minutes on the cookie sheet, and then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
• For the glaze: Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape out the caviar. Stir the caviar into the milk. Set aside for 15 minutes.
• Mix the powdered sugar and salt with the vanilla milk, adding more powdered sugar or milk if necessary to get the right consistency. Stir or whisk until completely smooth.
• One at a time, carefully dunk each cooled scone in the glaze, turning it over if necessary. Transfer to parchment paper or the cooling rack. Allow the glaze to set completely, about an hour. Scones will keep several days if glazed.

Steps:

• *NOTE: Self rising flour can be made by substituting 1 cup of all purpose flour minus 2 teaspoons, with the addition of 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt to make the full cup. NOTE: For tender scones, you don't want to overwork the dough and you'll want to keep your ingredients as cold as possible. Chunks of butter, chilled in the dough, will create steam -- and that means tender dough. I like to use frozen butter, and then grate it-- which is much less work than using a pastry cutter or your fingers. Plus, it keeps the butter nice and cold. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Whisk the vanilla bean paste to the light cream or whole milk to infuse the flavor. In a large bowl, whisk the flour and sugar together. Grate the frozen butter on top of the dry ingredients. Blend, together the milk, vanilla and eggs. Gently combine the wet ingredients to the dry. Turn the mixture onto a lightly floured work surface and fold over once or twice, just until it binds together. Don't worry if you see bits of dried flour. Pat the dough into a circle, about 3/4 inch thick-- or into a 3/4-inch thick rectangle. If patted into a circle, cut into eight wedges. If cutting into a rectangle, cut into approximately 2 1/2 inch squares. Optional: Once the dough is placed on a baking sheet, freeze them for up to 15 minutes. Otherwise, place the scones onto an ungreased or parchment lined baking sheet. Optional: Brush each scone with heavy cream and sprinkle with coarse sugar, for a textured crunch. Bake them at 400°F oven for 12 to 16 minutes, or until light golden brown. Allow to cool to warm and serve with butter and jam, or clotted cream. NOTE: Unbaked scones can be wrapped, individually, with plastic wrap. They can be baked frozen for convenience, but it might up to an additional five minutes for them to bake to a light golden brown.