Lavender Earl Grey Scones

Anyone who knows me knows that when I bake or cook, I like to substitute the fatty, unhealthy ingredients with healthier options. I like to find alternatives that still taste good, but I'm a big proponent of whole wheat flour and low fat or non-fat dairy products, and I have a hard time baking with butter and cream in good conscience. But I also believe that the first time I make a recipe is not the time to mess around with it, and frankly, if I'm going to make scones, I'm going to make them right. So I followed the Lavender Earl Grey scones recipe to a T (except that I had to use a half cup of whole wheat flour when I ran out of white flour) and, needless to say, they were delicious. 

I also got to use three of my newest baking toys with this recipe - a real marble mortar and pestle from IKEA, an OXO pastry brush, and a silicone mini scone pan.

 Mom grinding up the tea leaves

Scones ready for the oven, freshly brushed with heavy cream and sprinkled with sugar

Lavender Earl Grey Scones
Adapted from The Alice's Tea Cup Cookbook

2 heaping teaspoons Lavender Earl Grey tea leaves

3 cups all- purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2- inch pieces

1 1/4 cups buttermilk

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 cup heavy cream (for brushing)

1/4 cup sugar (for sprinkling)

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F.

2. Steep 1 heaping teaspoon of the lavender Earl Grey tea leaves in 1/4 cup boiling-hot water for 3 minutes. Strain, and reserve the tea.

3. In a coffee or spice grinder, grind the remaining teaspoon of lavender Earl Grey tea leaves to a very fine powder. Place the powder in a large mixing bowl, and add the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir until combined.

4. With clean hands, work the butter into the dry mixture until it is thoroughly incorporated and has the consistency of fine breadcrumbs.

5. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and pour the buttermilk, vanilla extract, and 1 tablespoon of the brewed lavender Earl Grey tea into the well. Combine the ingredients until all the dry mix is wet, but do not knead!

6. Turn the mixture onto a floured surface and gather the dough together. Gently pat the dough to make a rectangle about 1 1/2 inches thick. Using a dough cutter, cut the scones into wedges measuring about 3 1/2 x 4 inches, and lay them on a nonstick baking sheet. Gather the remaining dough together lightly to cut out more scones—just don't knead the dough too much.

7. Brush the top of each scone liberally with heavy cream and then sprinkle with sugar.

8. Bake the scones for about 12 minutes, or until lightly browned.

In addition to using half a cup of whole wheat flour because I ran out of white flour, I also had to bake the scones for an extra 10 minutes. I don't know if that was because of the silicone pan or because of my very old oven, but they needed about 20-25 minutes.

And they came out perfect!