Caramel Eggnog Scones
Of all the holiday goodies there were in my house growing up, eggnog wasn’t one of them, so I was pretty up there in my twenties before I ever tried it. Which is a shame, because it’s actually made with some of my favorite ingredients/flavors.
But even if you’re not a fan of the drink itself, eggnog can still have a place in your holiday baking. It’s base is made with egg yolks, heavy cream and milk, which means it has a lot of richness– which, while not very healthy, still tends to make baked goods taste better.
Everything in moderation, am I right?
Scones sometimes get a bad rep as being dry and tasteless hockey pucks, but they really shouldn’t. Like biscuits, there are tips in making them that can help you to avoid all of the pitfalls of less than successful recipes out there.
(Incidentally, this are also tips that will work well for biscuits, which I like to think of as scones’ first cousins.)
Freezing/ grating your butter is a must. One of the reasons why scones end up turning out tough is because the butter melts/evaporates because it was too warm/soft to begin with. Mixing the dough while it’s frozen ensure that it stays there until it bakes, during which it releases into the dough and creates layers of flaky goodness.
An overnight rest for the dough is very closely related to this. Scone dough doesn’t take kindly to kneading which develops gluten and makes them turn out tough. To a certain degree though, some handling is required to put them together, which inevitably develops gluten. Letting the dough rest overnight, or at least for one hour, gives the gliuten time to relax, which will result in softer/more tender scones.
A third thing to help is the quality dairy that you add to the scones themselves. Skim or low-fat milk is a no-go here. The fat in the liquid helps with jot just texture, but flavor and if you’ve ever had skim/low-fat milk you’ll know it doesn’t have very much of it. Most biscuit recipes use full-fate buttermilk and scones recipe use heavy cream or half and half. I’ve used sour cream in biscuit before and had absolutely heavenly results.
Apropos of today’s recipe, you could also use eggnog.
Eggnog has both the fat and the flavor to give your normal scone dough a holiday twist and boost of both. In this recipe, it’s joined by a healthy portion of caramel baking ‘chips’ that you should be able to find in the baking aisle of your grocery store right by where the chocolate chips are.
However, if they’re not available where you are or if you’re just not a fan of them, you can also substitute cinnamon-flavored chips, butterscotch chips, or even chocolate chips with equally tasty results.
I actually ended up doubling this recipe to give me double the amount of scones to eat and share. They turned out wonderful; golden, crusty brown on the outside, and tender/flaky on the inside–just the way a scones should be. The caramel chips burst while baking, releasing tiny pockets of sweet caramel-y sweentess throughout, which compliments the flavor of the eggnog nicely.
Because the actual labor is split up across two days, these would make a perfect Christmas morning breakfast to enjoy alongside coffee/tea as you open presents. They also store/ship very well.
We’re on Day 9 of the 12 Days of Christmas–only three days left! Be sure to keep up with the recipes we’ve had so far, and stay tuned for the final three that will be shared over this final week until Christmas 😉
Day 1: Holiday Style- Biscuits & Gravy
Day 2: Cranberry Pie Bars
Day 3: Pryaniki
Day 4: Iced Lemon Gingerbread Cakes
Day 5: Peanut Butter & Chocolate Biscotti
Day 6: Gingerbread Fudge
Day 7: Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
Day 8: Five Spice Snickerdoodles
Day 9: Caramel Eggnog Scones
Caramel Eggnog Scones
Recipe Adapted from King Arthur Flour
Ingredients
- 2 3/4 cups (330g) All-Purpose Flour
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon table salt
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 8 tablespoons (113g) unsalted butter, frozen
- 1 cup (156g) baking caramel chips/bits
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or emulsion
- 3/4 cup (199g) eggnog, cold
Topping
- 1 tablespoon eggnog
- 2 tablespoons coarse sparkling sugar or cinnamon sugar, optional
Directions
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all the dry ingredients.
In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the egg, vanilla or other eggnog flavor, and eggnog.
Use the large holes on a box grater to grate the butter directly into the dry ingredients. Mix in the caramel chips/bits.
Make a well in the center, and pour in the wet ingredients. Use a large fork and a large rubber spatula to stir the mixture together. If it seems a little dry you may add additional milk until it forms a shaggy dough.
Sprinkle a pastry mat, wooden cutting board or wax paper with flour. Turn the dough out onto the surface and pat a few times with your hands until it loosely holds together. (Don’t knead it too much or the warmth in your palms will melt the butter and cause the scones to be tough.)
Pat and roll the dough into a rectangle. Use a sharp knife or a bench scraper to cut the rectangle in half, legnth-wise. Stack one half on top of the other, and use a rolling pin to gently roll it into one rectangle. Repeat this process 2-3 more times, sprinkling the surface with flour if it gets too sticky, before patting it into one final rectangle.
Wrap the rectangle in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment.
Place a shallow pan of water on the bottom rack of the oven.
Brush each scone with some eggnog, and sprinkle with sparkling white sugar, or cinnamon sugar.
Bake the scones for about 20-30 minutes, or until they’re golden brown. When you pull one away from the others, it should look baked all the way through; the edge shouldn’t look wet or unbaked.
Remove the scones from the oven, and cool briefly on the pan. Serve warm. When they’re completely cool, wrap in plastic and store at room temperature for up to several days.
Sharing at Fiesta Friday #415, cohosted this week by Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook.
What lovely flavors!
Thanks Dorothy–they really work well together 🙂
Jess, your recipes always turn out great. Hope you can send me some. 😀 Thanks for joining Fiesta Friday Party and hope to see you again.
Thank you Jhuls– if I’m honest, I just share the ones that turn out lol 😉