Cauliflower And Cheese Scones - International Scone Week 2019 - #ISW2019

Once again, International Scone Week has caught me unawares!  Where the heck is this year going to?  Just as well Tandy from Lavender and Lime reminded me it was on again.  (Everyone is welcome to join in #ISW, so go to Tandy's blog for info.)  I have a few scone recipes I wanted to try, but Mr P. seemed keen on this one...  I found several versions of cauli scones, but most have you boiling and mashing said vegetable.  'No, no,' said I to myself, 'not happening'.  So here we have a recipe that uses cauliflower rice i.e. raw cauli blitzed in the food processor.  'Yay,' I said to myself, 'that's the recipe for me.'  (Boy, does she ever stop talking to herself - tee hee?)

delicious warm and cheesy scones

This is a recipe from Monika of the Everyday Healthy Recipes blog.  I added a few blings of my own to personalise it, but her recipe provides the basis.  And what a tasty one it is, (even if my scones ended up a wee bit flat).  Mr P. wolfed down three (or four?) at lunchtime, straight out of the oven.  But then again, he is a carb man after all.  I had a couple, warm and cheesy, the melting butter cascading over the sides...  You get the picture, folks.


ingredients:


280g. plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

2/3 tsp sea salt flakes

1/4-1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (optional but tasty)

1/8-1/4 tsp ground black pepper or mountain pepper berries

2 tsp lightly dried parsley flakes, or 1-2 tbs fresh parsley, finely chopped 

1/2 tsp dried onion flakes

1 large egg

150 mLs buttermilk

130g. raw cauliflower, chopped roughly (use the florets and stalks)

80g. cold butter, cubed

70g. mature/tasty cheddar cheese, coarsely grated

good sprinkling of sesame seeds - say, 1 tbs?


Method:


Sift the dry ingredients - flour, baking powder, salt, cayenne, black pepper, parsley flakes and onion flakes into a large mixing bowl

Whisk them well together

Whisk the egg and buttermilk together in a medium bowl

Blitz the cauliflower in a food processor till it resembles grains of rice - don't go too far; you don't want a paste

Now stir the cauliflower into the egg and buttermilk mixture

Add the butter and the cheese into the flour mixture, and rub in with your fingertips till it looks like breadcrumbs

Now tip the egg mixture into the flour mixture, stirring with a knife till just combined

Tip the sticky, lumpy dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and bring together gently (!) with your hands till you have a smooth dough, about 2-3 cm. thick

Cut into 8-10 triangles and place them (via a metal spatula) on a large, lightly floured baking tray

Scatter the sesame seeds over the scones

Bake at 220C (425F) for 15 minutes till golden


Notes:

Treat the dough with care; too much handling will make it tough

Try a mix of tasty and parmesan cheeses

Use your fave herbs 

ingredients gathered

egg and buttermilk whisked together 

cauliflower blitzed

stir the egg and buttermilk into the flour mixture

pat out the dough to a rectangular (or round) shape 2-3cm. thick  

cut the dough into 8-10 triangles

golden and crunchy on top after 15 mins. @220C

Mr P. is about to eat half of these

cheesy buttery scones

        artwork © Sherry's Pickings