Description
Deliciously moist, flaky, and crumbly banana nut scones with maple glaze. Not quite banana bread or banana muffins, but everything you crave for breakfast!
Ingredients
- 1 cup (230g) mashed bananas (about 3 medium or 2 large ripe bananas)
- 1/4 cup (60g) plain Greek yogurt (or any plain yogurt or sour cream)
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 and 1/2 cups (313g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 2 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 5 Tablespoons (71g) unsalted butter, frozen
- 1 cup (125g) chopped walnuts (optional)
- top before baking: 3 Tablespoons (45ml) milk and coarse sugar
Maple Glaze
- 2 Tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup (80ml) pure maple syrup
- 1 cup (112g) sifted confectioners’ sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C). Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer or medium bowl with a handheld mixer, beat the mashed bananas, yogurt, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla extract together. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt together. Grate the frozen butter (I use a box grater to grate it; a food processor also works for grating). Toss the grated butter into the flour mixture and combine it with a pastry cutter, two forks, a food processor, or your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Set aside.
- Drizzle wet ingredients over flour mixture, add the walnuts, and then toss the mixture together with a rubber spatula until everything appears moistened. Try your best to not overwork the dough at any point. Dough will be sticky and a little wet. Drop scones, 1/4 cup of dough each, at least 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Brush scones with milk, then top with a little coarse sugar if desired for extra crunch. Tastes great!
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly golden and cooked through. Remove from the oven and cool as you make the icing. The scones taste even better after they cool down!
- Make the icing: In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter and maple syrup together, whisking occasionally. Once the butter has melted, remove from heat and whisk in the sifted confectioners’ sugar. Drizzle over scones.
- Scones are best enjoyed right away, though leftover scones keep well at room temperature or in the refrigerator for about 3-5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Some options here. The baking powder is initially activated once wet and if you hold off on baking, the scones won’t rise as much in the oven. However, the decrease in rise is so slight that it doesn’t make a noticeable difference. That being said, you can shape this scone dough into wedges and refrigerate overnight before baking. You can also freeze before baking. Freeze scone dough wedges on a plate or baking sheet for 1 hour. Once relatively frozen, you can layer them in a freezer-friendly bag or container. Bake from frozen, adding a few minutes to the bake time in the recipe below. Or thaw overnight, then bake as directed. You can also freeze the baked and cooled scones before topping with icing. To thaw, leave out on the counter for a few hours or overnight in the refrigerator. Warm in the microwave for 30 seconds or on a baking sheet in a 300°F (149°C) oven for 10 minutes.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Glass Mixing Bowls | Box Grater | Pastry Cutter | Baking Sheet | Silicone Baking Mat or Parchment Paper | Pastry Brush | Coarse Sugar (optional)
- Frozen Bananas: You can use frozen bananas here. Thaw the frozen bananas. Drain off any excess liquid, mash, then use as instructed in the recipe. See How to Freeze & Thaw Bananas for Baking.