It’s officially November. Tis the season for holiday baking! While I have only made one pumpkin flavored item thus far, I am now in the mood for apples now that pie season is upon us. The Granny Smith apples were calling my name at the grocery store, so I decided to make some apple scones. Let me tell you, these Apple Cinnamon Pecan Scones are ADDICTIVE!
What you’ll need:
- Flour: These scones are made with all-purpose flour. While the recipe is designed for this type of flour, feel free to play with what you like. A nutty flour would be nice with the flavor profile of these scones, but I have not yet experimented with other flours.
- Apples: Apples, of course apples. This recipe calls for Granny Smith apples. This tart apple is fantastic for baking. The tart and sweet flavors play so well together. In this case, the tartness of the apples pairs perfectly with the sweet glaze.
- Brown Sugar: While you commonly see granulated sugar in scone recipes, this one uses light brown sugar. Similar to my Brown Sugar Pecan Scones, these apple scones marry nicely with the caramel tones of brown sugar. Brown sugar is also used in the glaze as well.
- Heavy Whipping Cream: Heavy whipping cream is always my go-to for scones. It provides a beautiful effect to the crumb and taste of the scone. While you can substitute it, I strongly suggest using the heavy cream.
- The Other Stuff: Ground cinnamon is in both the scone dough and the glaze. Cinnamon and apples are a perfect duo. Chopped pecans are in the dough as well, for a nice nutty crunch. While I did not do so, you can use them as a garnish too.
How to make these Apple Cinnamon Pecan Scones:
The scone, or biscuit, mixing procedure requires cold cubed butter. It is absolutely necessary for the butter to be cold before it is cut into the dough. Both the dry and the wet ingredients should be mixed separately before combing into the dough.
Here is the procedure for this recipe:
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and salt until thoroughly incorporated.
With a pastry blender, or two forks, cut in the cold cubed butter until pea sized pieces remain. Add in the cup of chopped apples and the pecan pieces. Using the pastry blender or forks, mix in the pecans just until incorporated.
Pour the heavy cream in slowly, gently mixing until the dough is moist and begins to come together. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a lightly floured surface. Gently knead the dough until it comes together and shape into a flattened disk. It is important that you do not over-knead.
With a bench scraper, portion the dough into 8 wedges. Place the wedges of dough onto a parchment lined sheet tray and place in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Whisk together the egg and tablespoon of cream together in a small bowl. Brush the egg wash onto each scone, you may not use it all. Place the scones in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown.
Let’s talk about this Cinnamon Brown Sugar Glaze…
This glaze is buttery and very similar to a caramel sauce in flavor and texture. This glaze does stay slightly sticky due to the higher butter content. If you prefer a more solid, less sticky glaze, the glaze in this Brown Sugar Pecan Scones recipe can be substituted for this one. The procedure is essentially the same, however, the other glaze sets very quickly.
Here’s what you’re going to do:
- In a small saucepan, stir together the brown sugar, heavy whipping cream, and butter. Bring mixture to a simmer. Cook until butter has melted and sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Allow the mixture to cool for about 5 minutes.
- While the brown sugar mixture is cooling, whisk together the sifted confectioners’ sugar and the cinnamon. Add to the cooled brown sugar mixture and whisk until everything is completely incorporated and no lumps remain.
- Drizzle glaze over each scone. Allow the glaze to set before enjoying one of the scones. (The glaze will remain sticky.)
I hope you enjoy these Apple Cinnamon Pecan Scones as much as we did. They are so tasty as a snack with coffee or as an after dinner treat. Dare I say, they are reminiscent of an apple donut. As I stated above, the glaze is sticky, but gosh darn is it good. Happy Baking!
You may also like:
- Brown Sugar Pecan Scones
- Almond Raspberry Scones
- Feta Scones with Dill and Chives
- Goat Cheese Scallion Scones
Apple Cinnamon Pecan Scones
Ingredients
Apple Cinnamon Pecan Scones
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 stick unsalted butter cold and cubed
- 1 cup Granny Smith apples peeled and chopped small
- ½ cup pecans chopped
- 1¼ cup heavy whipping cream cold
Egg Wash
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 tbsp heavy whipping cream
Cinnamon Brown Sugar Glaze
- ¼ cup light brown sugar packed
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter sliced into pieces
- 2 tbsp heavy whipping cream
- ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup confectioners’ sugar sifted
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
Apple Cinnamon Pecan Scones
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and salt until thoroughly incorporated.
- With a pastry blender, or two forks, cut in the cold cubed butter until pea sized pieces remain. Add in the cup of chopped apples and the chopped pecans. Gently mix in just until incorporated.
- Pour the heavy cream in slowly, gently mixing until the dough is moist and begins to come together. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a lightly floured surface. Gently knead the dough until it comes together and shape into a flattened disk. It is important that you do not over-knead.
- With a bench scraper, portion the dough into 8 wedges. Place the wedges of dough onto a parchment lined sheet tray and place in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Whisk together the egg and tablespoon of cream together in a small bowl. Brush the egg wash onto each scone, you may not use it all. Place the scones in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow scones to cool before adding glaze.
Cinnamon Brown Sugar Glaze
- In a small saucepan, stir together the brown sugar, heavy whipping cream, and butter. Bring mixture to a simmer. Cook until butter has melted and sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes.
- While brown sugar mixture is cooling, whisk together the sifted confectioners' sugar and the cinnamon.
- Add the confectioners' sugar blend into the brown sugar mixture and whisk until completely incorporated and no lumps remain.
- Drizzle glaze over each scone. Allow glaze to set before eating.
- Store scones in an air tight container for up to 3 days.
These look incredible! That glaze is making my mouth water 🤤
Thank you! That glaze is the “piece of resistance.” So, so good!
Oh My …these scones look just too perfect! Beautiful glaze too!!
Thank you so much! 🙂