Peach Cobbler Scones - Everyday Annie

Did you know August is National Peach Month? I just read that on Facebook last week so obviously it must be true. Peaches are one of my top favorite summer foods and they have me wishing I lived somewhere in the south so I could truly enjoy them in all their glory. A ripe summer peach is truly a thing of beauty, but you know what else is beautiful? Fluffy, tender buttermilk scone dough enveloping sliced peaches sprinkled with cinnamon-sugar. In other words, peach cobbler that you can justify eating for breakfast because it’s a scone. Of course since this is not actually a cobbler, the ratio of fruit to biscuit is flip-flopped which is cause for the biscuit lovers to rejoice. Even as a fruit lover myself, I’m certainly not complaining. These are just too dang good.

In case you aren’t convinced yet (really?), I made these twice in one week. That never happens. (Technically I made them three times, because I majorly messed up the second attempt. Apparently 1¾ cup buttermilk is not the same as ¾ cup. Go figure.) Anyway, this is a recipe worth making 2.5 times in one week. Take note. Make scones. Be happy.

Yield 8 large or 10 medium scones

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup sugar
1 tbsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. salt
1½ sticks (12 tbsp.) unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
1 large egg, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
¾ cup buttermilk, plus more for brushing
1-2 ripe peaches, sliced thin

For the cinnamon-sugar:
2 tbsp. sugar
¾ tsp. ground cinnamon

Directions

01
To make the dough, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a mixing bowl. Whisk briefly to blend. Add the butter to the bowl and cut the butter into the dry ingredients using a pastry cutter or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse meal and the largest butter pieces are the size of peas. Stir in the egg, vanilla, and buttermilk and mix gently with a fork until a dough forms. Knead briefly, about 10-15 times, until the dough has come together. Be careful to avoid over handling the dough, as it can result in tough, dense scones.
02
Preheat the oven to 400˚ F. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Turn the dough out onto a well floured work surface. (If the dough is too soft to shape, chill it for about 15 minutes before proceeding.) Roll the dough out into a 10 x 12-inch rectangle. Brush half of the dough lightly with buttermilk. Lay the peach slices in a single layer over the buttermilk side of the dough. Sprinkle evenly with about half of the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Carefully fold the other side of the dough over the peaches as if closing a book and press down gently. Slice the dough into 8-10 equal sized pieces.* Transfer to the prepared baking sheets. Brush the top of each scone with buttermilk and sprinkle with additional cinnamon-sugar. Bake, rotating the pans halfway through baking, until the tops are golden brown and the scones are baked through, about 15-18 minutes. Let cool 2-3 minutes on the baking sheet, then carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool further. Serve warm.
03
*At this point, the shaped, unbaked scones may also be frozen on a baking sheet and then transferred to a freezer-safe container. Bake as directed straight from the freezer, simply adding a few minutes to the baking time and checking for doneness.

Source

slightly adapted from Joy the Baker