Vanilla-Blueberry Scones

My favorite holiday, the Fourth of July, is coming up.  As usual, I'll be at the beach with my friends and I cannot wait.  This annual trip of ours has become something of my own personal new year.  My time to recharge, reflect on the year past, and consider my goals for the year to come.

Over the years, we've learned how to simplify our time at the beach however possible.  One way is packing pre-made dry mixes and frozen baked goods in our suitcases.  I'll have spices for homemade salsa, dry rub for slow cooker pulled pork, a few of my perfect pie crusts, and a several dozen of my best-ever chocolate chip cookies nestled in with my swimsuits and sundresses.  It may sounds silly, but I tell you, it makes for shorter, cheaper trips to the grocery store, less time spent in the kitchen, and more time hanging out on the beach or by the pool.  

This year, I'm considering bringing some of these scones, as well.  They're a spin off of an early post--these strawberry scones I love so very much.  They'll make an easy breakfast one morning and, with so many beautiful blueberries shining through, they'd make for a very patriotic Fourth of July breakfast alongside a bowl of cut up strawberries, raspberries, and cherries.  Considering making a batch or blueberry and a batch of strawberry scones, or even using both berries in one batch.  No matter how you bring in the red, white, and blue, these scones are sure to please!

Freeze a batch of these lightly sweet vanilla-blueberry scones for easy, freshly-baked breakfasts any day of the week.

Vanilla-Blueberry Scones
adapted from the now-defunct blog, Good Things Catered

Ingredients:
1 egg
1/4 c. plain yogurt
1/4 c. milk
1 tsp. vanilla bean paste OR seeds scraped from one vanilla bean
2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. granulated sugar, plus extra for sprinkling (Turbinado works well for sprinkling)
1 TBSP baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
8 TBSP (1 stick) butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
1 c. frozen blueberries 

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheet with Silpat or parchment paper.

2.  In small bowl, combine egg, yogurt, milk, extract, and zest.  Whisk to combine thoroughly.  Set aside.

3.  In a large bowl or the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  Whisk or pulse to combine.  Using a pastry cutter or two knives, cut butter into flour until all pieces are smaller than pea-sized.  If using a food processor, pulse about twelve times until the butter pieces are the appropriate size, then pour into a large bowl.  Add berries to the bowl and gently toss to coat.

4.  Add wet ingredients to dry and mix in lightly with fork or spatula until dough just comes together.

5.  Turn dough out onto well-floured work surface and pat into a flat disk about 1 inch thick.  Cut into 8 slices.  Place scones on the lined baking sheet sprinkle tops of scones with Turbinado sugar.  If freezing, place scones flat on a plate or baking sheet and put in the freezer for 30 minutes.  Transfer to a zip top bag or other well-sealed container.

6.  If baking right away, bake the scones until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 20-25 minutes.  If baking from frozen,  bake for 25 minutes and add up to 3 additional minutes, if necessary.  Remove from oven and let cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.

yield: 8 scones