Apple Cheddar Scones
What inspires me?
Answer: Many things…seasons, friends, bloggers I wish were my friend, and family to name a few. Let’s break it down because today’s recipe involves many different sources of inspiration!
Seasons- Fall is by far my favorite season of the year. Pumpkin is great- in fact I am working on a few Pumpkin flavored treats to share with you , but truth be told, apples are what really make my heart sing during this season. Apple pies, apple cider, apple fritters, apple donuts…and today apple scones! That’s just one piece of the puzzle.
Friends- My college roommate (Hey Mags!) loved to make a plate of apples, grapes and cheese for a snack! Up until this point in my life I had never heard of such a combination…apples and cheese?! And grapes?! College has a funny way of opening your mind to new ideas. It’s a beautiful combination, especially cheddar cheese and apple!
Bloggers I wish were my friend- Joy the Baker is the person that peaked my interest into the blogging world. Joy if you happen to read this…I have been a follower of yours from the beginning (or perhaps a few months in to your adventure). I love all the projects you take on and am still inspired to this day by the recipes you develop in your kitchen. This recipe is a modified version of your Apple Pie Biscuits but I transformed them into a scone with cheddar cheese and gooey apples. Hope you don’t mind!
Remember when we made Blueberry Green Tea Scones? Well these are similar as far as the process goes, but we tweaked some of the ingredients. Let’s take a look!
The stars of these scones are apple and cheddar cheese- extra sharp cheddar to be exact. I love the sharp taste against our apple mixture. Let’s begin by making the apple mixture. Break down two apples: one granny smith and one fuji apple. You can certainly mix up what 2 apples you use based on your taste preference. I really like the play on tart and sweet with these two varieties.
In a large skillet over medium heat melt your butter. Then add some brown sugar, cinnamon and the apples. Stir the mixture till the sugar melts and combines with the cinnamon. You want the apples to be evenly coated with this gooey mixture so that they appear glossy. The apples will not be cooked all the way through…no worries- the oven will help us out with that!
Set the mixture aside so it can cool while you prep your dough. To prep the dough you will have shredded one stick of butter and set in the freezer to wait to be used. You will also do the same to some extra sharp cheddar cheese. The final step of prep is combining the half and half with some sour cream and place in the fridge. Remember- Coldness is key!
Mix together your dry ingredients in a large bowl. Toss in the shredded cheddar cheese to make sure it is evenly coated. Then add your butter shavings to the dry mixture and toss to make sure it is evenly coated.
Fold in your half and half mix to the dough with a spatula. Once it is just combined, turn out onto a well floured surface and knead the dough till the dough forms a ragged ball. Now it’s ready to roll.
Click here for the step by step instructions on how to roll out and prep this dough for our filling. After it’s chilled for a few minutes in the freezer roll out your dough to a 12 x 12 square. Add your cooled apple mixture to the center of the dough.
Spread the apple mixture to an even single layer of apples across the surface of the dough. I would leave about an inch border to make rolling a little easier. **Note- depending on the size of your apples you may not need to use the entire apple mixture. This is totally ok because you can use the extras as an ice cream topping or just to eat while you wait for these scones to bake…yea it’s that good!
Roll the dough as tightly as possible to form a log. Place the seam side down and press into a 12×4 inch rectangle.
Slice into eight large scones, place on a parchment lined baking sheet, paint on some melted butter, sprinkle with turbinado sugar and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes. Voila! Cheddar Apple Scones are yours for the taking!
The dough is cheesy and is complimented by the spicy, sweetness of the apples. It’s fall in the palm of your hand. It’s the perfect snack to share with family and friends!
Which brings me to my final aspect of inspiration…
Family- I love the satisfaction of feeding my family from the work of my two hands. I love the smiles from my son. The wide eyes of excitement from my husband’s beautiful blues as I describe the dishes I create. And of course, the love and constant support of family, both my husband’s and mine, is what keeps me motivated to journey on in this blog adventure! Love you guys!
…oh and thank YOU for reading! I am so lucky to share my thoughts and culinary adventures with you! You are AWESOME!
Chow for now!
JJ
- 1 stick of unsalted butter frozen whole
- 1 ½ cups of Sharp Cheddar Cheese, shredded
- ½ cup half and half
- ½ sour cream
- 2 cups all purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 1 Tbs sugar
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- ¼ tsp Baking Soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 Granny Smith Apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
- 1 Fuji Apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
- 4 Tbs Brown Sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 4 Tbs Unsalted Butter
- ¼ cup turbinado sugar for sprinkling
- 2 Tbs of unsalted butter melted
- Adjust your oven rack to the center and preheat to 425 degrees. While preheating, take your stick of frozen butter and grate through the large holes of a box grater. A food processer works great for this…if you have one. Once the butter is grated place in a bowl and back in the freezer when ready to use. Same for the cheese, once shredded place in the freezer till ready to use.
- Make your apple mixture by melting the butter to large skillet. Add the apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon to the skillet and stir until the sugar melts and combines with the cinnamon coating each apple piece. The apple pieces will not be all the way cooked through but look like glossy. Set mixture aside to cool.
- Next, you will combine in a medium bowl the half and half as well as the sour cream. Once it is combined place bowl in the refrigerator until ready to use. In another medium bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add in your cheese shreds and mix to coat it all.
- Add your butter to the dry ingredients. Toss with your hands until the butter is thoroughly covered. Next, add your sour cream, half and half mixture to the dry mix. Using a spatula fold the ingredients until it begins to combine to form a crumbly dough. Once a dough begins to form, pour dough onto a well floured work surface. Knead the dough 6-8 times till it all comes together in a ragged ball. Roll the dough to a 12 inch square.
- Next take the ends of the dough and fold it into thirds, like a business letter. Then fold the short ends into the center to form a 4 inch square. Place the dough square on a well floured plate and place in the freezer for about 5 minutes.
- Return the dough to the floured surface and roll it back into a 12 inch square. Now it’s time to take the apple mix and spread them evenly over the surface of the dough. Once the apple mix is placed take one end of the dough and begin to roll into a tight log. Position the log with the seam side down and pat the dough into a 12in by 4in rectangle.
- Cut the dough into four equal rectangles and slice each rectangle into a triangle. Place on the baking sheet with parchment paper. Next paint your melted butter on top of the prepped scones and sprinkle the turbinado sugar on top of each one. Place the baking sheet in your oven and bake for about 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.
Jane – yummy! I would like to make these to mail to Phil in Colorado. The apple stuff might get messy. Do you think the cheese scones alone would be good – could add I any other kind of protein to the scone to satisfy the hunger pains of late night studying?
Hey Barbie!! I think some great alternatives would be cooked bacon or even some jalapenos for an added kick would work great with the cheese scone recipe. Even ham would be a great add in as well. Let me know how they turn out! Thanks for reading!