Since they are Seventh Day Adventists - which means they are vegan, and grow organic produce only, I figured their lavender must be safe to eat, so I decided to try and bake something I have sorely been missing since moving to Castle Valley: Scones!
After letting the lavender dry out for a couple of days, and seeing as how today it was going to be 78 degrees and not 100 degrees, I figured it would be a good day to crank up the oven to 400 and get my bake on. I have never attempted baking scones before, as is the case for most of the recipes I have tried since moving out here. Necessity is the mother of all awesome baked goods, as they say. These were easy as pie, and oh-so delicious! Here's how it's done:
Lavender Lemon Scones (non-vegan, non-low fat ;)
If you are lucky enough to have a full-size food processor, you can use it to mix the entire recipe.
2 Tbsp lavender
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter - cold and sliced
2 large eggs - separate the yolk from one egg
1 cup buttermilk or heavy cream
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Add lemon zest, lavender and sugar into your food processor. (I use a 2-cup Cuisinart. If you do not have a small food processor, grind your lavender in a coffee grinder or mash it with a mortar and pestle first to start releasing the oils.) Blend until mixed well.
In a medium sized bowl, or in your full-size food processor, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add sugar mixture. Add butter slices and combine (either with the pulse function, or using a pie crust mixer as shown) until the mixture resembles corn meal.
Whisk your egg whites, egg yolk, and cream (reserving egg white from the 2nd egg for your egg wash later) and add to the sugar/flour mixture. Pulse/chop to combine.
Divide your dough in to two balls. Lightly flour a clean surface and shape one of the dough balls into a circle 1 inch thick. Using a pizza slicer, cut out triangle shapes for your scones.
Place the scones on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and brush with the reserved egg white, sprinkle with your granulated sugar, and pop in the oven for about 14 minutes - or until they are a light golden brown. Serve with your favorite tea, coffee, or other delicious beverage. Enjoy!
