Dried Apricot Oatmeal Scones

I love me a lazy Sunday.  I try and get all of my planned out-of-the-house activities and errands scheduled on Saturday, attend church on Saturday night and then settle in late Saturday night for a full day of homey things, crafting, cooking and devotional time on Sunday. Some would accuse me of being a little protective of my Sundays.  Some would be absolutely correct. 

I learned a long time ago that I am equally an early morning and late night person...it's the middle of the day that doesn't thrill me.  That doesn't bode well for my job really.  If I had my perfect day, it would be waking up by 5am, taking a siesta after lunch and then staying up late into the dark night.  But alas, my office frowns upon siestas at our desk so I'm stuck choosing between morning or late night and I choose mornings.   By not running any errands on Sunday, I accomplish more around the house by 11:00am than I do all week.  

All that to say I got a new DVD and planned for a few hours of uninterrupted Jane Austen delightfulness yesterday. This is my third copy of this particular movie.  I owned the original 6 VHS copy and then bought it on DVD when it first came out.  What a horrid, abysmal thing that was.  When I heard that they digitally remastered P&P AND released it on Blu Ray, I debated.  What is it was only slightly better than the original DVD?  I finally just took the chance and ordered it.  WOW! How I've missed you so P&P... "She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me.."  The colors and quality of this release are awesome.  I would absolutely recommend purchasing the remastered version if you love this movie(umm, who doesn't?)...it's like watching a brand new version, except still with the best Darcy and Lizzie ever. 

Anti-climatic, but I also made scones.  Oatmeal apricot scones to be precise because what is more British than tea and scones while watching P&P?  Have to appease my inner anglophile when possible. 

I baked these in a cast iron skillet because I love my scones crisp on the outside and melt in your mouth soft on the inside.  Not so much a fan of the soft cakey sones. Cast iron helps get a little crunch on the bottom and crystallized sugar add crunch to the top. 

No clotted or Devonshire cream in this house...I whipped some cream and added some greek yogurt for a little of that clotted cream tang.  Served with jam of course.  The apricots added fun little bites in the scones and the oat flavor was surprisingly pronounced.  Definitely a make again scone but probably won't replace my all time favorite scone recipe.  That recipe masters the crunchy top and bottom, soft inside combo. 

Oh, and cookbook #84, Gourmet = complete.  I'd go on about how spectacular it is, but it's one of those magazine compilations that's like a eleventy billion pages long, so it's a given that it's pretty fantastic.  It's one of those cookbooks that has just about everything you could possibly want to make, all in one book.  It's way shy on photos though so doesn't get used as often as it should.  Shame indeed. 

Oatmeal Scones

adapted from Gourmet cookbook

1 cup whole wheat flour
2/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour (can also use 1 2/3 cup ap flour for the wheat and wheat pastry)
6 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1⁄3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 1/2 sticks cold, unsalted butter, cut into 12 tablespoons
1/2  chopped dried apricots
Grated zest of 1 large orange
2⁄3 cup buttermilk, plus additional for brushing

large crystal sugar for sprinkling

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425  Lightly butter pan, or line with Silpat type liner.   
2. Whisk  flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt together and add to bowl  food processor. Add oats, and pulse to mix. 
3. Add butter, and pulse until mixture that resembles coarse meal with small pea-sized lumps of butter. Transfer mixture to large bowl, and add dried fruit.
4. In small bowl, stir together zest and buttermilk. Add to dry mixture, stirring with fork just until dough forms. 
5. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface, and gently knead a few times. 
6. Pat dough into 1-inch-thick rectangle, about 15 inches long and 5 inches wide, dusting surface with more flour if necessary. 
7. Cut rectangle into 3 squares and cut each square in half diagonally to form triangles
8. Transfer scones to buttered baking sheet, spaced about 2 inches apart.
9. Brush tops of scones with buttermilk and sprinkle lightly with sugar. 
10. Bake on middle rack until golden brown, 15 to 18 minutes. 
11. Transfer to rack and serve warm or at room temperature.