Cinnascones

As you may have seen, I'm scone obsessed! Love to eat them, love to bake them, and I love tea. 

My dear friend Reha, who is beyond fabulous with her baking skills, called me and asked if I have a good recipe for cinnamon scones. My first instinct was to look up one of my favorite cookbooks– Alice's Tea Cup. The recipe there wasn't the conventional scone, flavored with cinnamon, but instead cinnascones, inspired from cinnamon buns. I guarantee that when you do bake these scones, you will have NO left overs! 

Makes 10–12 scones

Scones

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 tsp baking soda

1 3/4 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp kosher salt

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

3/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1 1/4 sticks (10 tbsp) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1/2 cup buttermilk

3/4 tsp almond extract

1/4 cup heavy cream (for brushing)

Cinnamon Paste

1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter

1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Frosting Drizzle

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 1/2 tbsp whole milk

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.
3. With clean hands, work the butter into the dry mixture until it is thoroughly incporated and has the consistency of fine breadcrumbs.
4. Make a well in the center of the dry mixture, and pour buttermilk and almond extract into the well. Still using your hands, mix the ingredients until all the wet ingredients are absorbed by the dry. Then knead the mixture about 7 times— no more.
5. Turn the dough onto a floured surface, and using a floured rolling pin, roll it out to form a 1/2-inch-thick rectangle.
6. Make the cinnamon paste by combining the btuter, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a small saucepan over low heat and stirring until the sugar is completely dissolved.
7. Smear the cinnamon paste over the entire surface of the rolled-out dough. Starting at the one long side, roll the dough tightly to create a long cylinder. Using an extremely sharp knife, slice the roll into 1-inch-thick disks. Lay the disks on their sides, spacing them about 2 inches apart, on a nonstick baking sheet. Carefully press them with the palm of your hand to flatten them to 1/2 inch thick.
8. Using a pastry brush, brush the tops of the disks liberally with the heavy cream.
9. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and bake the scones for 15 to 20 minutes, or until firm and golden on top. Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for about 20 minutes.
10. To make the frosting, drizzle, combine the confectioners’ sugar, milk, and almond extract in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth.
11. Using a spoon or a pastry bag, drizzle the tops of the Cinnascones in whatever design moves you! 
12. Best served warm