Close your eyes and just imagine with me for a moment – You’re sitting at the breakfast table; the house is filled with the aroma of fresh baked scones. You pick one up; it’s still warm. You break it in half and take that first bite. It’s crisp on the outside, tender and light on the inside, and filled with bites of sweet cinnamon. Sound good? I assure you it is.
I’ve been making these scones for years now, ever since my mom showed up at my door with the best present ever – a bag of cinnamon chips. At the time, we had never seen them before, and I immediately got to work on a recipe to make them shine. Welcome to the world, Cinnamon Chip Scones. You make me so very happy.
These scones freeze beautifully (and I think they actually bake up better when frozen), so I always try to keep some stashed away. Great for busy mornings around the house, a surprise guest, or the “uh oh, I was supposed to bring breakfast” moment we all occasionally have, I can honestly say that stash has come to my rescue more than once.
Cinnamon Chip Scones
- 4 ¼ cups Flour
- 1/3 cup Sugar
- 2 tablespoons Baking Powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 3 sticks butter, very cold
- 1 cup Heavy Cream, plus extra for brushing tops
- 4 Eggs
- 1 cup Cinnamon Chips (usually in the Chocolate Chip section)
In the bowl of a food processor, add flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Pulse to combine.
Dice butter and add to food processor. Pulse several times until butter is mostly pea sized and combined with the flour mixture. Pour into large bowl, and make a well in the middle.
In a separate bowl, whisk together cream and eggs. Pour into the well in the flour and butter mixture and slowly stir to combine. Stir in cinnamon chips.
On a well-floured surface, knead dough a couple of times to form a ball. Roll dough to about 1” thick. You will probably see bits of butter. This is good! The butter pieces are what makes the dough bake up light and flaky. Use a 3” round cutter to cut scones and place on a parchment lined pan. I usually get about 18 scones.
Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for at least 2 hours. Remove scones from pan and place in zip top bag. Keep them in the freezer until ready to bake.
To bake: Pre-heat oven to 400⁰. Place the desired number of scones two inches apart on a parchment lined pan. Do not defrost scones; they are baked straight from the freezer. Brush the tops with extra heavy cream (this makes them so shiny and pretty!), and if desired sprinkle with a bit of sugar. Bake for 18-20 minutes until golden on top.
Serve plain or with honey-cinnamon butter.
NOTE: Yes, you can bake them in their unfrozen, just stirred together form. However, I always have better results with them frozen. They hold their shape better and do not brown as quickly when baking from frozen. If you get impatient and have to bake some right away, keep an eye on them as the cook time will not be quite as long.
Happiness at Home 