My love affair with scones began about a year ago, on my birthday with Strawberry Cream Scones. I’d first tried scones from Alice’s Tea Cup in NYC nearly 11 years ago and only sporadically since then, from Starbucks or Great Harvest. As all love affairs go, it started in a moment. You know the one, hand to mouth, where upon first bite, I knew I was a goner and had fallen fast and hard for the homemade kind. Our birthdays all fall within a three week time period and just like that, I was making a different kind of scones for each of our birthdays. These happen to be Leah’s favorite.

Ingredients

For the scones:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar (vanilla bean sugar)
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 stick cold butter, cut into small pieces
• 2/3 cups heavy cream + 2 tbsps. (use vanilla bean cream)
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1 vanilla bean

For the glaze:

• 1 vanilla bean
• 2 cups powdered sugar (vanilla bean sugar)
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1-2 tbsps. heavy cream (use vanilla bean cream)

Preparation:

Note: To make vanilla bean sugar, I measured out 2 cups of granulated sugar, sliced the bean pod, scraped out the insides, and using the back of the spoon, worked the vanilla into the sugar. I did the same thing with the powdered sugar. Then, instead of discarding the bean pods, insert into the container of heavy cream. Label the cream, if necessary, so you don’t end up using vanilla bean cream in a soup!

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a food processor, combine the flour, vanilla bean sugar, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and butter. Pulse a few times until crumbly.

In a separate bowl, combine the vanilla cream and egg, and incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, until just mixed in. On a lightly floured surface, roll out or pat down to about an inch thickness and form into a rectangle or disc, and cut into wedges. Tip: I always use a pizza cutter for this part.

Using a metal spatula that’s been lightly floured, transfer the wedges onto the prepared baking sheet. Brush with vanilla flavored cream. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack. While cooling, in a small bowl, whisk together the vanilla bean powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and vanilla cream. Brush the glaze over the tops of each scone. Repeat.