Vegan Pumpkin Scones

A week or so ago I asked Troubadour what treat he'd like for breakfast on the weekend.  He replied "pumpkin scones."  Luckily I had one can of pumpkin puree leftover from the fall.

My most favorite pumpkin scones had always been from Starbucks.  Once going vegan I had to find a recipe to make them at home.  The molasses cookies at Starbucks are vegan, but I don't believe anything else in the treat department is.

I found a copycat Starbucks Pumpkin Scone recipe on recipezaar.com and tweaked it to make it vegan. I think it tastes better than Starbucks pumpkins scones.  Not only are they lighter in texture and in flavor, but they are cruelty free too.

BETTER THAN STARBUCKS PUMPKIN SCONES

INGREDIENTS:

2 Cups all-purpose Flour
7 Tbsp Raw Sugar
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp ground Cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground Nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground Cloves
1/4 tsp ground Ginger
6 Tbsp cold vegan Margarine (I used Earth Balance) or chilled Coconut Oil
1/2 Cup canned Pumpkin puree
4 Tbsp unsweetened non-dairy Milk (I used soy)
1-1/2 tsp Ener-G Egg Replacer + 2 Tbsp cold water to mix it with OR 1 *Flax Egg
     *  powdered sugar for dusting

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Preheat oven to 425˚F (218˚C).  Lightly spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray.

2.  In large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger.  Stir to combine.  I like to use a large whisk to combine them just to fluff up the flour a bit.

3.  Cut in margarine with a pastry blender or two knives until the margarine is small and the mixture is crumbly.  Make a well in the center for the wet ingredients and set aside.

4.  Mix the Ener-G powder with water, whisk together and set aside. *If using Flax Egg mix 1 Tbsp ground flax seeds with 3 Tbsp warm water and set aside.

5.  In small bowl whisk together the pumpkin puree, non-dairy milk and Ener-G mixture or flax egg.  

6.  Pour pumpkin mixture into dry ingredients and stir with a fork or spoon until mostly combined.  This may look a little dry but it will work.  If you are worried add another tablespoon of non-dairy milk.  Just dump the mixture out onto the floured counter and knead a few times to combine then shape/pat into a 1" thick round disk.

(It may look dry but turn it onto the counter and knead it)

(Until it combines, then shape it - you can see it will look layered)

(And pat it into a flattened disk 1" thick)

7.  Cut the dough into 6 pie-shaped wedges.  Place on cookie sheet and bake at 425˚ for 14-16 minutes until risen and golden brown.

(Cut into wedges)

(ready for the oven)

8.  Cool on wire rack and dust with powdered sugar while warm.

** You can wait until they cool and drizzle them with glaze, but I think they taste best when warm so I prefer to dust with powdered sugar.

*** These are best eaten the first day but work well the next.  A bit of moisture will come out if covered overnight and the powdered sugar may become sticky as a result.  Best to cover loosely.

- Bon Appetit

"A scone is so easy to take with you.  We can easily put it in a pastry bag and they can eat it on the way to work.  It's not going to crumble all over.  There is no paper wrapping like a muffin, and it's also not as messy as a sticky bun." - Jamie Golladay
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