the glow of pumpkin scones

I had to race outside to catch the last rays of sun that reach this house - which is between 2:30 and 3:00PM this time of year. The heap of snow in front of the house doesn't help. So there I was, running full speed to pose these lovely glowing pumpkin scones in the snow.

A few weeks ago, I nibbled on a pumpkin scone my daughter had bought at a coffee place. I was disappointed - it was very dry and quite tough. It stayed in the back of my mind, though, and last night I experimented with making a moist, somewhat dense pumpkin scone. I also cut the butter content a bit, by using applesauce ( which was homemade and chunky) - and added a few currants for interest. I hope you enjoy them.

You will need:

Preheat oven to 350F. Fit a baking sheet with foil.

2 3/4 cups King Arthur flour, plus more for rolling

1 t. b. powder

1 t. baking soda

1 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. ginger

1/2 t. cloves

5 T. chilled unsalted butter, cut into little pieces

the wet ingredients:

3/4 of a One Pie Pumpkin can

1/2 cup applesauce, or cook one peeled and cut up apple til tender and mush up

1 large egg

1/2 cup currants (dried)

1/3 cup buttermilk

Mix the dry ingredients together in mixer bowl. Add the cut up butter and mix until it looks a little like cornmeal.

Add the wet ingredients and mix. If it's too sticky, add a little more flour. Turn out on floured counter and pat into a circle. Cut into 6 pieces, shaped like triangles. Place on prepared baking sheet. Brush with egg ( it will be shiny) or coffee - which I did....using coffee will remove any flour remaining on the scones, in addition to bringing out the color.

Bake at 350F for about 25-30 minutes. Remove and cool. The scones will stick to the foil, so wait until cool before removing firmly with a spatula.

Enjoy with tea or hot chocolate, or warmed milk with a cinnamon stick!