Being from Wisconsin I think it is inherently mapped in our DNA that we have to love cheese. I am a cheesehead, I accept it and embrace it. I especially am a sucker for cheese plates at restaurants or parties, I really have a hard time restraining myself. When I was visiting two of my best friends in New York City Maddy took me to The Dove Parlour, this beautiful little bar that had one of the best (and most affordable) cheese plates. After we stuffed our faces with a variety of delicious cheeses, an assortment of bread slices, apricots, jam, nuts, figs etc., I was inspired to make these fig and goat cheese scones.
These scones are a great savory, yet sweet treat. I love making a big batch and freezing them, heating them up for breakfast or eating with a hearty soup for lunch. I have made these a bunch of times in the past, but this time I tried to make them a bit healthier by using light butter and whole-wheat flour, and I splurged and bought some fresh chevre from my fave cheese shop in DC, Cowgirl Creamery. So Good!
The great thing about this recipe is that you can use fig jam (which I use here), fresh or dried figs, whatever you can find/is in season. You can also substitute in other fruits if you prefer, I think apricots would taste great too.
To start, gather all your ingredients and preheat your oven.
Ingredients Assembled!
In a large bowl combine your dry ingredients, the two-types of flour, baking powder, salt and sugar.
Dry goods
Then drop in the butter pieces, working them into the flour mixture with your fingers. Once mixed in, add the milk and goat cheese and stir until the dough comes together. You will end up with a slightly sticky ball of scone dough.
Scone Dough
Next, simply mix in the fig jam or fresh/dried figs. Then take the dough and form into 12 2-inch balls of dough. Place them on baking sheets you sprayed with cooking spray and slightly flatten.
Scones for baking
Bake the scones for 15 minutes, or until their tops are slightly brown, and remove from the oven. Take off the baking pans and let cool on a wire rack before enjoying! If you want to freeze some, let them completely cool before wrapping for the freezer.
Fig and Goat Cheese Scones
These scones are super easy and delicious! As a bonus the dough base is a great starting point for any scone recipe you may want to experiment with. If you are going for something a bit sweeter I would probably add a bit more sugar, not a lot, but just a bit. I did that with a batch of blackberry scones, and though they turned out purple, they were pretty yummy.
Blackberry Scones
Fig and Goat Cheese Scones (Adapted from Yum Sugar)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 Tbsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 tsp sugar
1/3 cup light butter, chilled and cut into large pieces
1/2 cup low-fat milk
1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese (4 ounces)
6 Tbsp fig jam or 3/4 cup fresh or dried figs
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400ยบ
Spray baking sheets with cooking spray
In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar by mixing
Add in butter gently using your finger tips to rub the butter into the flour mixture
Add the milk and goat cheese, stirring until dough comes together in a slightly sticky ball
Mix in fig of whatever type you are using
Divide the dough into 2-inch balls and place on the baking sheet and flatten slightly
Bake 15 minutes or until the tops of the scones are slightly browned
Let cool on a wire rack
Yields 12 scones
Eating My Way Through 