Menu

Fig-Orange-Almond Scones

Fig-Orange-Almond Scones
My fig tree is finally starting to produce. I was starting to give up hope and considered cutting it down. It’s been in the ground for five years and until now it’s been a dud – beautiful, healthy leaves, but no ripe figs – nada, niente, nichts. Then last fall, my son pruned it back so hard it looked more like a giant slingshot than a tree. The tree must have realized it was close to becoming firewood, so it convinced me to spare it another year by producing three ripe figs so far. And there are still a couple dozen hanging on the branches waiting to ripen (if I’m lucky). I’m hopeful, but thankfully, I have “FWF” (that’s “friends with figs”) who are generous. So I made these scones — and fig-port wine-pistachio ice cream too (for another post).
These scones were really good, but truthfully, the fig flavor isn’t that pronounced. My friend and fellow food blogger Stacey Snacks recently made fig scones using dried figs and if you’re looking for a more intense fig flavor, you should try her recipe here.
I’m an equal opportunity fig lover and will gladly take green or purple figs off your hands. But these purple figs are my favorite because of the beautiful color they impart to foods. Look how vibrant they look within this dough:
 Once you’ve patted the dough into a circle, sprinkle with more almonds and sugar (in this case, demarara or turbinado sugar – a light brown, partially refined sugar that has a natural caramel-like flavor).
Using a knife, cut the circle of dough into eight wedges.
 Separate them for more even baking.
 They’re delicious as is, but you can gild the lily with a glaze if you’re so inclined.
 And I was.

 

Fig-Orange-Almond Scones

 

printable recipe here
from the blog Passports and Pancakes
adapted from Chobani; makes 8 scones
For the scones:
1 cup whole wheat flour (I used two cups all-purpose flour and left out the whole wheat flour)
1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for sprinkling your work surface
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
4 tablespoons salted butter (1/2 stick) , cut into small cubes
1 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon almond extract9 figs, stems removed, roughly chopped (a little over 1 cup)
1/2 cup sliced almonds, plus extra for sprinkling on top
Zest of 1 orange
Turbinado sugar (optional, for sprinkling on top)
Preheat
oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl whisk together the flours, baking
powder, and baking soda. Using a fork or pastry cutter, cut butter into
flour mixture until it pea-sized clumps form throughout.
In a
small bowl stir the almond extract into the yogurt. Add the yogurt
mixture, figs, 1/2 cup almonds, and orange zest to the dough and stir
until just combined (do not over mix).
Form dough into a disk,
and turn out onto a generously floured work surface. Knead 3 to 4 times,
form into a circle. Top with the extra almond slices and turbinado
sugar, and then cut into 8 wedges.
Arrange wedges on a non-stick
baking sheet (or a parchment-lined regular baking sheet) and bake until
golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. (Mine took longer to bake.)  Let cool slightly on a cooling rack and
top with orange glaze before serving (recipe below). Will keep, covered,
in the fridge for a few days.
For the glaze: 
2/3 cup powdered sugar
Juice and zest of 1 orange
Whisk together the ingredients until combined. Serve with fig-orange-almond scones. Enjoy!

Print Friendly, PDF & EmailPrint This Recipe
You Might Also Like
This Post Has 9 Comments

  4. Linda, are 3 year old fig tree has the most beautiful leaves with no figs at all, ever. There's hope after hearing about yours, I'll tell Tony to prune the heck out of it! I bought figs 2 times at Whole Foods, looked and felt ripe but had absolutely no taste!
    I will be making this with dried figs. Sounds so good!

  5. We love scones in this house, especially Bart. These sound wonderful, and I bet the figs, orange zest, and almond extract really lend a nice flavor, although I can certainly see how dried figs would lend even more figgy flavor. The sliced almonds on top toast up nicely in the oven too, don't they? You are right about the classy sugar. I love its flavor. As for gilding the lily, I say why not? A little icing sounds great to me. These look so good. I only wish I were there with to enjoy a cup of tea and a fig scone with you!

    I told my sister, a landscape architect, that I want to plant a fig tree, and she warned me that it would be at the very LEAST two years before I ever saw one fig from it, and that is if I planted a tree that was already two years old. Now I know she was not kidding. I see that Marie, too has a fig tree that has yet to produce. Home gardening can be a lesson in developing patience. Thank heavens for FWF.

  8. Such pretty scones and so unusual from the ordinary with the figs! I'd love one with my coffee this morning!! I agree that the fig tree must have sensed your frustration! I should have used a little of your gardening smarts with several trees and bushes that bid the dust for me! The glaze on these scones are the perfect addition Linda! Have a great day!!!

    xo
    Roz

  9. I adore scones! It is the Irish in me 🙂 These sound and look so delicious.

    I miss our fig tree so much! We gave it to friends when we moved from Brooklyn, and they told us it produced a lot of figs this summer. We bought figs here at Costco and they were ok, but not as good as freshly picked.

    I visited my brother in Long Island recently, and he had many figs waiting for us from his tree. They were so good!

Comments are closed.