Biscones

Last night, I pulled out a few cookbooks hoping I would find a recipe for a good "drop biscuit."  I wanted biscuits, but I wanted to be lazy.

I saw these biscones in one of the cutest cookbooks I have and remembered I have been wanting to try them since I first saw them on a Paula Deen episode a few years ago.  I finally tried them and realized I have been missing out all these years.  

They are a perfect cross between a flaky biscuit with the rich buttery flavor of a scone. 

Of course I decided to try four different variations - Regular Buttermilk, Cardamom Sugar, Blueberry and Cinnamon.  So much for being lazy :)

These are Absolutely DELICIOUS and incredibly soft and tender.  How could you not love them?  

Drop dough onto cookie sheet using a 1/4 cup ice cream scoop

Brush tops generously with a beaten egg.

Bake, smother with jam and enjoy every last crumb.

Biscones

adapted from: The Back in the Day Bakery
(Printable Recipe) or (Printable with Picture)

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1 1/2 c. cake flour

1/4 c. sugar

2 Tbl. baking powder

3/4 tsp. salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, cold

   cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 1/2 c. buttermilk, or as needed 

1 beaten egg, for egg wash

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  In a large mixing bowl, combine the flours, sugar, baking powder and salt and whisk until completely incorporated.  Add the butter and working quickly, cut it in with a pastry cutter.  You should have various-sized pieces of butter, from sandy patches to pea-sized chunks and some large bits as well.  

Gradually pour in the buttermilk and gently fold the ingredients until you have a soft dough and there are no bits of flour in the bottom of the bowl.  You should still see lumps of butter in the dough; these will give you light and flaky biscones.  If the dough seems dry, you may need to add a little more buttermilk.  The dough should be moist and slightly sticky.  Do not over work the dough.  

Gently pat down the dough with your hands right in the bowl until it resembles a loaf of bread.  Dust the top of the dough very lightly with flour.  Using a large, 1/4 cup ice cream scoop, scoop mounds of dough onto the prepared baking sheet, arranging them about 1-inch apart. 

Brush the tops liberally with the beaten egg.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through for even baking, until the biscones are lightly golden and fully baked.  Serve warm or at room temperature.  These are best eaten the day they are made.  Yield: 12-14 biscones.    

Jenn's Notes: These are so good.  I made the recipe "as is" and they were perfect.  I baked mine for 25 minutes.