Sweet and savory Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones by Baking The Goods
I am one of those incredibly lucky people that gets to work from home. It is an honest to God joy and privilege to go days without washing your hair or wearing anything other yoga pants and hoodies. However, I do find myself consulting my dog for creative direction and project management advice quite often. The truth is, working from home can be terribly isolating, no matter how managerial your dog might be. Thankfully we both agree that these Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones are the best work from home breakfast around.
Day 1 of 2017 I set a goal, ughhh. I generally roll my eyes at the idea of goal setting as it stirs up memories of cheesy motivational speakers and HR meetings from hell. Goal setting does not come natural to me. This year I set out to collaborate more with other humans, not just dogs. I realize that’s a very broad goal without high and demanding expectations, baby steps. And guess what?! It worked. I set a goal and I’ve met that goal time and time again this year. Strangely enough, I really like how that feels.
I’ve made pals with photographer buddies and worked on all kinds of fun shoots from cocktails to cookies. I’ve took an hour train ride from Boston to meet my Insta-pal Andris of Baking Steel in real life. I’ve collaborated with other local bloggers to create the Spring Fling Brunch of your dreams. I borderline stalked and Single White Femaled my now close friend Laney of Life is But A Dish until she’d work with me on a project and be one of my best gal pals. I’ve been featured in 3 print magazines this year! Including the Bake From Scratch Holiday Cookies issue.
2017 has been transformative for Baking The Goods and for me personally. I’ve met so many inspiring folks, worked with some seriously badass business people and found true friendships that I hold near and dear. I am proud to be part of another exciting collaboration happening now between 50 talented food bloggers. The #Aisforalltheapples project is a way for all of us bloggers to come together and share our favorite apple recipes through our blogs, and Instagram accounts. My contribution to the #Aisforalltheapples collaboration is this fall forward recipe for Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones.
For the past 15ish years I’ve been pairing up apples and cheddar in my famous Apple Cheddar Pie, watch and learn how to make it yourself on my Skillshare class Picture Perfect Pie – Modernizing The Classic. There is just something so magical about the collaboration between the salty bite of cheddar and the mildly sweet and tart apples. In these Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones, the creamy sharpness of the sweet cheddar along with the honey sweetness from the apples and the herby green thyme wrapped in the buttery, biscuity base makes these scones a sophisticated balance between sweet and savory flavors.
This recipe for Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones is perfect for crisp fall mornings with comforting flavors and a crumbly exterior housing a warm and soft center. I’d say the collaboration between flavors and textures in these Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones is reason enough to believe in the power of community and collaboration. But if you need further proof, might I suggest you reach out to someone you’ve been inspired by on Instagram to see if they’d like to collaborate. Chances are they will be down, especially if you share a batch of fresh baked Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones.
Be sure to check out the #aisforalltheapples hashtag on Instagram for all kinds of apple inspo from a super talented crew of food bloggers! Check out all of the hot links to this big ol’ blogger collaboration & their lovely instagram accounts at the bottom of this post.
Sweet yet tart honeycrisp apples & Kerrygold Sweet Cheddar pair together like two peas in a pod.
Bite sized apple bits, chunky shards of salty sweet cheddar and fresh herby thyme mix together for a comforting flavor profile.
Using a pastry blender, it’s easy to cut the sweet cheddar and thyme into the dough.
Buttermilk brings a tangy creaminess to the Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones.
The dough should be rough and chunky for textural and dimensional scones.
Shape the Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scone dough into two disks for 12 small scones.
Slice each dough disks into 6 wedges for 12 mini scones total.
Bake the Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones until the cheese starts to bubble and brown and the scones are a deep gold.
Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones obviously taste better when you eat them 3 at a time.
Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones with a cup of black coffee. AKA, all I want for breakfast.
Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 12 small scones
Description
These Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones combine sweet and savory with salty cheddar, sweet apples & herby thyme wrapped in a buttery, biscuity scone base.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper (- freshly ground)
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme (- finely chopped)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (- cold & cut into 1/2″ cubes)
- 1/2 cup buttermilk (+ 2 tablespoons)
- 2 large eggs (- at room temperature)
- 1 cup Sweet or Sharp Cheddar (- grated)
- 2 medium apples (Honeycrisp or Granny Smith) (- chopped into 1/4″ cubes)
Instructions
- Measure the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and black pepper into a large bowl and whisk to combine.
- Dice the butter into 1/4″ -1/2″ cubes. Use your hands, a pastry cutter or the paddle attachment of the stand mixer on low speed to blend the butter into the dry ingredients until the pieces of butter are the size of almonds.
- Add the grated cheddar cheese and chopped thyme to the mix. Blend in just until evenly distributed.
- Whisk the eggs and buttermilk together. Add two-thirds of the mixture to the dry ingredients. Gently mix the dough just until it comes together, then add the remaining buttermilk mixture, the dough should look scrappy and rough at this point. Gently fold in the apples.
- Scrape the dough from the bottom and sides of the bowl to incorporate floury scraps. Move the dough to a lightly floured surface, it should come out as mostly one big chunk with some scrappy bits.
- Gather the dough ball and bits and pat until it just comes together. The top should be chunky and rough, this ensures the crunchy crumbly character of the finished scones. Gently form the dough into two 3″-5″ disks for smaller scones, or one 7″-8″ disk for larger scones.
- Place the scone disks on a lined baking sheet and chill in the freezer for 20-30 minutes. *This will help the scones hold their structure and prevent them from falling and spreading too much in the oven.
- Preheat oven to 350° while the dough finishes chilling.
- Cut the disk(s) into 6 wedges and spread out evenly on two baking sheets. Gently brush the tops and sides of the scones with remaining 2 tablespoons of buttermilk.
- Bake the small scones for 20-25 minutes or large scones for 25-30 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through the baking time. *The scones should come out a golden brown with bubbly melty cheese bits and some deep golden browns on the edges, giving that crumbly crunch to the exterior.
- Place the baked scones on a cooling rack to cool for at least 10 minutes.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Breakfast
#Aisforalltheapples Collaborator Recipes
Cloudy Kitchen’s Salted Caramel and Apple Babka
Square Meal Round Table’s Chai Spiced Tarte Tatin
The Wood and Spoon’s Maple Apple Cake
The Cooking of Joy’s Deep Fried Apple Dumplings with Miso Caramel Dipping Sauce
Pensive Foodie’s Mini Bacon Crusted Apple Pies
My Kitchen Love’s Bird’s Nest Caramel Apple Cake
More Icing Than Cake’s Apple Butter Pretzels with Rosemary Cheddar Dip
Casey Joy Lister’s Waldorf Salad’s Twisted Sister
The Kitchen Sink’s Apple Cheddar Loaf
What Should I Make For’s Apple Puff Pastry Tarts
Jessie Sheehan Bakes’ Apple Fritters
Smart in the Kitchen’s Gluten Free Apple Cranberry Crisp
This Healthy Table’s Cardamom Apple Tart
Figs & Flour’s Apple Purple Potato Pizza
Something New for Dinner’s Savory Bread Pudding with Apples, Sausage, and Pecan
Always Eat Dessert’s Apple Spice Scones with Maple Bourbon Glaze
Rezel Kealoha’s Rose Poached Apples with Rosewater Reduction
The Soup Solution’s Fennel Sausage and and Apple Dressing (Stuffing)
Lemon Thyme and Ginger’s Smoky Maple Apple Dutch Baby
Gobble the Cook’s One Pan Pork Chops and Sausages with Apple
Hola Jalapeno’s Fluffy Apple Chili Biscuits
Salt and Wind’s Pomegranate Ginger Apple Cider Punch
What Annie’s Eating’s Butternut Squash/Apple Soup with Asiago and Sage Croutons
Flours in Your Hair’s Brown Butter Bourbon Apple Pie
Confetti Kitchen’s Kale Salad with Chicken and Apple
Salted Plains’ Gluten-Free Apple Crumb Cake
Easy and Delish’s Fun Candy Corn Apple Pops
This Mess is Ours’ Easy Baked Apple Custard
Butter Loves Company’s Gingerbread with Brandied Apples
Zestful Kitchen’s Puffed Apple Pancake
Sweet Pillar Food’s Apple Honey Brie
A Farm Girl’s Dabbles’ Peanut Butter Apple Cookies
A Savory Dish’s Peanut Butter Protein Dip
Especially Southern Dishes’ Apple Pie Egg Rolls
Pie Girl Bakes’ Salted Caramel Apple Pie
Cocoa and Salt’s Vegan Apple Stuffin’ Muffins
Saltnpepperhere’s Honey Apple Muffins
Worthy Pause’s Thanksgiving-in-Your-Mouth Paleo Stuffing
Baking The Goods’ Apple Cheddar and Thyme Scones
Smart in the Kitchen’s Gluten Free Apple Cranberry Crisp
Something New For Dinner’s Savory Bread Pudding with Apples, Sausage and Pecans
Farm and Coast Cookery’s Apple Cider Donut & Cinnamon Apple “French Toast” Casserole
Ful-filled’s Milopita – Greek Apple Cake
Allo Maman, What’s Cooking’s Apple & Camembert Tarte Tatin
It’s a Veg World After All’s 5-minute Microwave Apple Crisp
Sprouting Radiance’s White Bean and Apple Soup
Champagne and Cookies’ Apple Galette
