Fall is upon us here in my part of the world. The days are becoming shorter, the leaves have started to turn, and there is an unmistakable chill in the air. While I hate to bid adieu to Summer, I can’t help but look forward to the changing of the seasons. Fall is my favorite time of year, without question. Fall is a beautiful season, with its stunning reds, oranges and yellows. If only it lasted longer than ten minutes, and wasn’t followed by…*shudder*…Winter.
Several nights ago, I had a wonderful visit with some lovely ladies, one of which mentioned that Fall has always signaled the beginning of a new year for her. And for many people, especially those in school, Fall is the start of a new year. New classes, new teachers, new school supplies, and new clothes (always my favorite part growing up). I have been out of school for a few years now, so it’s been a while since September brought with it any feelings of newness or change. This year feels a bit different though. Maybe it’s because my life is very different than it was last Fall, or maybe it’s because I hope that my life will be very different next Fall. It might also have something to do with the fact that I had my tea leaves, tarot cards, and palm read a few months ago. Now, before you go laughing at me, I went for kicks. I’m not sure I actually even believe in psychic abilities. But it certainly made for an interesting experience. I didn’t take much of what the psychic said to me to heart, except that a recurring theme in my tarot cards was the number 9. His interpretation of my cards was that the ninth month (September) would bring some major (and good) changes into my life.
I’m not holding my breath. I’m not the kind of person who lives their life waiting for things to happen. I prefer to make things happen. But it’s comforting to know that I might have some additional positive energy on my side this month.
Fall also brings along delicious flavors. When I think of Fall, I smell cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin pie. I see colorful squash and cute little gourds. I taste warm soups and stews. I feel a cup of hot apple cider between my hands. I get a strong urge to walk through a corn maze and jump into a pile of just-raked leaves. I love what this season does to my senses.
This photo was taken last Fall in Central Park in New York. It was the end of October, and the colors were finally starting to change. The trees in the park were so beautiful, and we spent such a wonderful afternoon there. Such great memories that I will hold dear forever. I won’t be making it back to NY this Fall, but I hope to get there one more time before my BFF and her husband return home next Spring. I did make a promise after all.
This weekend marks the last few days of my summer vacation – the two weeks I took off from work. My “stay-cation” as I called it. I’ve spent most of my days out in the sunshine, reading good books, taking Miss Bella on long walks or to the dog park, enjoying visits with friends, and soaking up the warmth of Summer. But the last few days were cool, grey, and drizzly. So, yesterday morning I decided to bake, and I wanted something that would smell and taste like Fall. Enter these tempting little scones. I could barely wait for them to cool enough to eat after they came out of the oven – they smelled so enticing with their notes of cinnamon and nutmeg. I scarfed down the first scone, and properly enjoyed the second. I barely restrained myself from having a third.
Summer is taunting us again, with warm temperatures expected this long weekend. Mother Nature is a bit bipolar, at least here in Alberta. But I’m not complaining – I can be patient for Fall, especially if it means a few more hot sunny days. Regardless…whether you love Fall or hate it, I can guarantee that you will enjoy these scones. And they’re made with whole wheat flour, so they’re practically a health food.
Whole Wheat Apple Cinnamon Scones (adapted from Cooking Light magazine, Nov. 2006)
1 cup plus 2 TBSP. all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. baking soda
Pinch of salt
Dash of ground nutmeg
1/4 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 medium Granny Smith apple, grated (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla
Topping:
2 TBSP. buttermilk
1 TBSP. sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
Preheat your oven to 425°F. In a large bowl, combine the flours, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg. Whisk together until well mixed. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the apple, 1/2 cup buttermilk, and vanilla, stirring just until moist (dough will be sticky).
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead lightly with floured hands. Shape the dough into a circle about 1 1/2 inches thick. Cut into 8 wedges. Place on a lined or greased cookie sheet. Brush the tops of the wedges with 2 TBSP. buttermilk. Combine the remaining sugar and cinnamon together, and sprinkle evenly overtop of each wedge. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until golden. Serve warm.
I liked reading through this post. You have some awesome pictures here and a nice style of writing. The apple scones look delicious and I have bookmarked the recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for stopping by Tina! I hope you enjoy the scones whenever you have a chance to try them. 🙂
Fall IS a wonderful time of year, for so many reasons! It has always been my favorite, too.
Your scones look delicious and I can practically smell them from the beautiful photos…..but the best part of your blog, Amanda, is your style of writing. You have a gift and should consider writing a book someday.
Enjoy our wacky Alberta “Fall” season 🙂
Thanks Lynn! What a sweet comment! 🙂
Recipe book P…recipe book!
Love you,
🙂
She’s Right! Recipe book!
And we always use frozen grated butter in our scones which is what I think makes them so light. Can’t wait to try this for Sunday breakfast!!! Yay!!! Freshly Pressed!!!
I’ve never tried freezing my butter and grating it, but have heard that it works like a charm. I will have to try it one of these days. Thanks Amber!
Loved reading your Blog… you make my mouth water while reading 🙂
Keep the Yummy’s Baking …
Those look absolutely delicious! I’ll have to try making them sometime 🙂
Congratulations on being Freshly Pressed! These scones look absolutely delicious and I am going to give them a try. Enjoy your fickle fall in Alberta–it’s the same way in New Brunswick, except we have a lot more maple trees here, I think. The colours are gorgeous once the leaves start to turn. I’ll be back to read more of your recipes.
I too love the tastes of Fall, spices, soups, warm drinks etc. I can’t wait to try these scones – they look delicious!
Can’t wait to try out this recipe!! Thanks for sharing
I’m SO excited that fall weather is almost upon us — and your recipe is perfectly cozy and awesome for a fabulous fall morning!
Beautiful shot of Central Park, BTW…
🙂
These look tasty and I am beginning to experiment more with wheat flour in baked goods.
Mmm, they look so good! I like to think of Fall as a time of new beginnings – hope you have a great one!
looks delicious! perfect recipe for this weather.
These look SO wonderful!
please stop by and check out my blog
Looks delicious!
These look lovely! We are picking apples this weekend — this should put some of them to good use.
Those sound wonderful! Now I want cool weather to enjoy them in!
I was just searching for a scone recipe on google yesterday with no luck. Happy to log onto wordpress and see this delightful scone! I love all kinds of scones, but am tired of chocolate or berry flavors. Thank you for this yummy change! I’m also excited for the whole wheat flour!
These look ridiculously delicious – definitely bookmarking this recipe! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
I love this recipe! Apple and cinnamon always reminds be of Fall! thanks for sharing your recipe 🙂
These look fabulous! I just posted your link on my blog’s FB post, to share. And, I can’t wait to try them myself. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Beautiful pictures. Charming writing. I’ve been thinking of using some of the apples from our small orchard in scones. I may give your recipe a try and I may use my recipe which uses oats and whole wheat pastry flour.
Hi Aster! I am so jealous that you have an apple orchard! That is a dream of mine – actually, I would just like to have one apple tree, nevermind a whole orchard! You must be searching for apple recipes to use up your stash! 😉
This looks so yummy – excited to try. 🙂
Scones–YUM!
Well they look like Autumn/Fall on a plate! Will be trying v soon, thanks for sharing. x
These sound incredible! How much did you change the cooking light recipe? These still look pretty “light”! 🙂
Hi Claire! I didn’t mess with the Cooking Light recipe too much – I added more apple and subbed in buttermilk for regular milk. Buttermilk is essential in scones, in my opinion. Hope you love ’em! 🙂
I love whole wheat baked goods…they give a unique texture and flavor unlike the plain all purpose flour. Time and again I experiment with it too…
Congrats for being on freshly pressed
oh my yum. i love the fall too, although from the pictures you shared, your fall is a lot more fall-y than mine…all i wanted to do lastnight was make soup and bread and pretend it was 50 degrees out instead of 100!! i’ll be making these scones as soon as i can get the ingredients. congrats on fp!!
Mmm, gorgeous scones! I want to go and make them now.
Apple and cinnamon is a great combination of flavors (I just finished eating a serving of apple cinnamon crumble) 😀
Those look great. Thanks for sharing the recipe. 🙂
I am so inspired by your photography and styling. And, of course, by your recipes. Can’t wait to try these scones. I’m thrilled that fall is finally in the air.
looks yummy! Can’t wait to try the recipe.
I would so love one of these with my chai tea! I actually work in a school, so my year certainly seems to start in September…lol. I had been looking for a nice recipe for something to take to work on my birthday… I’m going to make these!
I’m glad to read that you mix up the flour. Everytime I’ve used whole wheat flour only, it takes out all of the sweetness of whatever I’m making. I will try these!
o wow – these look and sounds amazing! nice job!
-grace
Oh man that looks good and I have no food in the house. “No soup for you!”
About to be my breakfast tomorrow morning, yum!
Dear Amanda,
I absolutely loved your post. My favorite season is autumn and I have all of my decorations already setup, I am still waiting for the season to officially switch over though. I cannot wait for the cool crisp air to finally get here and stay here! I always enjoy comfort food in fall and this new recipe is a definite must try for me. I have it copied down and I cannot wait to try it, I love how you incorporated whole wheat into the scones! I can now enjoy my scone and reason with myself, that yes it is healthy so I think I will have another 🙂 I hope to see more fall recipes from you! Congratulations on making the “Freshly Pressed” page as well!
Ellie
Thanks so much Ellie! You and I think alike…whole wheat = healthy = guilt-free second helpings! I don’t need much more convincing than that! I hope you enjoy the scones as much as I did. 🙂
Those scones look so good! Great post =D
mmmmmmmmm~
mm looks so good
Your blog is a fun read! I’ll have to try making those scones, too!
-Tracy
oh my god. YUM! Can’t wait to attempt this!
Yummy, these look great (I’m not the biggest apple fan so maybe peaches or something…)
My aunt tried making these scones with peaches (since she didn’t have apples on hand), and she said they worked wonderfully! Happy baking! 🙂
It really doesn’t get much better than apples in pastries in autumn. Thanks for this!
Love this blog….just subscribed!
This recipe looks both yummy and healthy. I can’t wait to give it a try.
Great recipe and very well written! Congrats on being FP. 🙂
those look delish! awesome blog!
Thank you for posting this apparently delicious recipe! I, myself, always look for “lighter” but just as delicious recipes to try and add to the arsenal…….These look wonderful! I recently started blogging about my weight loss journey and posted my homemade granola and yogurt! Thanks for sharing and will let you know how fantastic I know they will taste….pono
Mmm Yummy 🙂
Thanks for posting!!
Yum! These look delicious!
Scones look delicious and I agree with you about fall and *cringe* winter…we just had flurries forecast for later in the week here in Manitoba. Might be a good day for some baking!
Flurries already?! Canadian weather never ceases to amaze does it? Sounds like a fabulous day for baking! 🙂
Hey, love your scones!
Thanks love!
This looks like a delicious fall recipe. If there’s one thing I love about the turning of the seasons, it’s the shift in food and my associations with the changing produce. The gourds are coming.
Power to the gourds! 😉
Love it! Can’t wait to try! Thanks for the post and I LOVE your blog!!!
And I love that you love my blog! Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
These scones look absolutely scrumptious! I cannot wait to try out the recipe! Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Hi, Amanda! Just reading the words “apple” or “cinnamon” turns my thoughts to fall and fall baking — no matter *what* season it is! Thanks for sharing this mixed-flour recipe that includes the two magic “fall words”;-).
Say, are you writing “undercover” for Meredith Publishing (of BH&G)? (Oops! If so, then maybe I just “blew your cover”!!!) Undercover or no, you definitely have beautiful gifts for writing, photography, and a keen artistic sense of placement/page design — nothing “undercover” about those! (But I do so wish that the choc chip cookies now showing on the banner could be tasted via the Internet… Maybe your next post, eh?) – gracie;-)
p.s. Congrats on being fp; looking forward to seeing many more of your posts there!
Hi friend, thank you for your sweet comments! Cheers to delicious fall recipes involving apples and cinnamon (two of my magic fall words also)!
I promise you that I am not writing undercover for anyone…I’m just a little twenty-something nobody writing about the shenanigans going on in my kitchen! I will take your question as a compliment though (even though I have no idea who or what Meredith Publishing is)! How I wish I could send you one of those delicious cookies over the Internet…although, you can find the recipe on this blog and make them as a treat for yourself… 😉
These look yummy!
Check out our blog:
brookeandmckenzie.wordpress.com
Wow the pictures and the story really make me want to start baking some when I get back home. Fall is the best season!
I love your story and the delectable delights! I’m inspired to keep my food blog going. Your recipes are not only very inviting! I’m drooling upon seeing the photos! Cinnamon is my favorite and this delight is likey-likey!
Enjoy more of fall’s surprises! I’ll keep posted! 🙂
BTW, CONGRATS for being freshly pressed! more power!
~Lailanie
Thank you so much Lailanie! I will definitely be sharing any good surprises that come my way! 🙂 I’ll have to check out your blog too!
Definitely looks scrumptious! And healthy! Awesome! Will try your recipe one of these days!
And oh! Fall is my favorite season too although it’s a shame that we don’t have four seasons here in Manila. We only have rainy days and sunny days. Not that you can count those as seasons either. Well, I guess it’s always summer here, so yes, I’m tired of summer already. LOL. But, the lack of fall is not an excuse for me not to try this recipe out!
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
YUMMY!!! Thanks for sharing and congrats on freshly pressed!
they must be really delicious, I love scones!
Thank you for sharing the recipe!The apple scones look delicious!I will try to make it following your recipe.
This seems too delicious to be true. I may have to experiment with this.
We have to make our own Fall down here in Key West and these scones just may do the trick!
wow these look delicious! i’ve a baking enthusiast (and traveler), check out some of my baking-related posts, http://maevdkrogt.wordpress.com/?s=baking&submit=Search. thanks for sharing!
Thanks for such fantastic delicacy!
Even if I’m just getting ready for Spring over here, I’ll be sure to try this recipe!
It looks so good!! I like anything with cinnamon!
Omg, these look wonderful! 😀
Hi Amanda, love this post — and your blog! I like the way you incorporate writing about things other than food in the other posts I scrolled down to read so far; not many foodie blogs I’ve seen do that well enough, in my opinion. It’s weird, I was in Alberta this summer, and I live in New York! (http://nadiaqahmad.wordpress.com/2011/08/21/20/ if you’re interested in a post)
I’ve had cinnamon scones before, but never thought of baking them myself, or adding apples to the recipe (though it seems like common sense now that I think about it). Hope to try this one day. Will definitely follow your page. Thanks for posting!
Hi Nadia, what a coincidence! I will have to check out your post to see what you think of our fine province. 😉 Thanks so much for stopping by!
I love the hot, hot southern summertime, but I also love the fall. I made pumpkin cookies over the weekend and my son said, “it smells like fall … which means it’s almost Christmas!” We’re going to make these scones Saturday morning. Great pics, too!
How frightening is it that winter is just around the bend? While Christmas is my favorite time of year, I get a little nauseous thinking about a solid 6 months of cold and snow. If only our Fall could last longer! I hope you and your son enjoy the scones this weekend!
good food, good places! worth reading your work!
Wow! These sound amazing! I would love to make this recipe…maybe I will surprise my boyfriend with them this weekend!
Your boyfriend will love you (even more than he does now)! 😉
These scones are perfect to ring in fall! I look forward to making these yummy delights!
Did you know that most cinnamon served in USA and Europe even the most gourmet (Whole Foods, etc) is a FAKE!!! Real Cinnamon comes from Sri Lanka and while visiting for a photoshoot I had the pleasure of touring Cinnamon island!!! My garden is about to be the BEST! If anyone is interested in Cinnamon trees, let me know.
I have a whole new take on cinnamon desserts now!
WOW, these scones are a must-try!!! I am all for whole weat, and if they taste as good as they look, they are just lovely – maybe even suitable for breakfast! And yes, you really do have a nice style of writing, congratulations. Really nice blog.
Definitely delicious for breakfast! Enjoy!
These look absolutely amazing! I love that they’re whole-wheat. And fall is my favorite season too, it’s the best weather and everything is so beautiful and colorful. And apple cider season, mmm! 🙂 Great post!
I read this while waiting for an apple streusel cake to cook – made from windfalls – my own gesture towards the turn into autumn. These scones look great – will try them next! Thanks.
Beautiful scones! So glad I found your blog today 🙂
I can’t wait to read more!
Sarah
Aww, thanks Sarah! I’m so glad you found it too! 🙂
Umm, I am SOOOO making these my new fall treat of choice! Thank you for sharing your wonderful autumn-inspired memories and observations, as well as this fantastic recipe. Cheers to a wonderful fall!
This looks like a recipe I’ll have to try. We bake egg-free around here due to a food allergy, and these look like a great option!
I love the picture of Central Park. It looks beautiful the autumn. Do you get conkers in New York?
Umm…conkers?
Mmm, this looks a-mazing. Can’t wait to bake & taste it myself 🙂
yum, those look good! my friend just made some maple oat scones which were delicious and fallish too!
Wonderfully delicious. I love good eats. Thanks so much for sharing. Connie
http://7thandvine.wordpress.com/
they look sooo good. I love cinnamon, and love finding new ways to get it into sweet things. Well done!
Excellent recipe! I will make sure to try it soon!
After read your post….hungry 🙂
Thanks for recipe.
Awesome recipe, i’ll definitely be trying this real soon.
By the way, how long would the scones last?
As with most scones, these taste best when they’re still warm from baking. However, I found that they stayed in good shape for a couple of days. My tip would be to warm leftover scones in the microwave for 20-30 seconds before eating.
You just turned my delicious omelet I’m eating into tasting like a piece of crap.
Thanks.
You should probably mail me some scones in apology.
Regular mail or expedited? 😉
These sound really delicious! Would be great for breakfast during the weekend with family 🙂
i wanna make one!
yummy
I heard it had turned cold in Alberta, but summer had treated you well. Fall has arrived here in Vancouver too and along came with it the rain. I could use a couple of those scones! They look delicious!
I can almost smell them.
Congratulations on being Freshly Pressed. Your scones looks delicious. You photography is fabulous. I have a scone pan and make scone sometimes. I will surely try this recipe.
Oh my, I can’t wait to try these!
What a wonderfully delicious and healthy way to start the fall season!
im always curious to make “healthier” scones and apples are my most super duper favorite fall fruit/veg. I just can’t get enough of them – i’m on this!
What a great fall recipe. Love all the photos too.
Thanks buddy! 🙂
I have a ton of apples. I’ve made pie, muffins, salad, chicken burgers, cider, and coming up these scones! Can’t wait!
Enjoy! 🙂
yummm…absolutely bookmarked and the best part is that you have not used any Eggs 🙂 So even more perfect 🙂 First time here, and I am glad I came by 🙂
I love whole wheat scones. I’m going to make these over the weekend. Great blog!