Cheddar-Chive Scones

I’ve made other savory scones on the blog before, but these cheddar-chive scones turned out to be even better than the first recipe I tried and if I could eat them every single day, I would. The best part, the scone dough recipe is the perfect base for a variety of flavors and toppings. With a few easy adjustments, you can make any scone your heart desires!

Ingredients:

Dough:

• 2 3/4 cups King Arthur Gluten-Free All-Purpose Baking Mix
• 1/3 cup sugar–I used a little less than 1/3 cup since these are savory scones
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• 1/2 cup cold butter
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup to 2/3 cup half and half or milk
• 2 tsp. of vanilla extract (if you are making sweet scones)

Toppings

• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 3 Tbsp. freshly chopped chives
• 2 teaspoons of milk
• **Any other toppings you’d like to use: bacon-cheddar, cranberry-walnut, almond-vanilla, or chocolate chip are just a few popular options.

Instructions:

• In a large bowl, whisk together the baking mix, sugar, salt, and baking powder.
• Work in the butter until the mixture is crumbly. It’s OK if some of the butter remains unincorporated in the dough.
• Stir in your toppings. For this recipe, that would be the cheddar cheese and chives.
• In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and milk (or half and half) together.
• Then, add in the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until the dough is moist and holds together.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Using your hands (with a bit of gluten-free flour on them), make round balls/discs of dough in your desired size. With the toppings mixed in, 6″ circles about 3/4″ thick are recommended, but it really just depends on your preference.
• Brush each circle with the milk and sprinkle with additional chives or coarse salt if you’d like.
• For the best texture and rise, place the pan of scones in the freezer for 30 minutes, uncovered. Putting the dough in the freezer also helps chill the fat in the butter for a flakier scone.
• Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit while the dough is chilling.
• When it’s time, bake the scones for 20-25 minutes, or until they are golden brown.
• Let them cool briefly to serve warm with butter, or allow them to cool completely to wrap in plastic and store at room temperature for a few days.

The scones can also be reheated in the oven for breakfast or a snack. I stored mine in the refrigerator after the second day and packed them for breakfast at work–heating them up in the microwave.

**Note**–King Arthur Gluten-Free All-Purpose Baking Mix and King Arthur Gluten-Free All-Purpose Measure-for-Measure Flour are different, but I encourage you to play around with them and see what you like best. In this case, King Arthur recommends the flour, but my mom and I tried the baking mix instead and loved how they turned out. I think the baking mix is what gave these scones their biscuit-like texture, which I loved!