Lemon Cornmeal & Cherry Scones

Lemon, tart cherries, scones, yes to all and better yet, let's combine them in one delicious bite. The original inspiration for this recipe came from listening to the audible book, Stir: My Broken Brain and the Meals That Brought Me Home by Jessica Fechtor, the author referenced lemon cherry cornmeal scones. I had never heard of such a thing, but these are all things I adore so I hopped online found a starting place for my recipe here, and then I made some substitutions so it would work for me, and voila. C'est Magnifique. #vegan #glutenfree

Ingredients

5 oz Dried Sour Cherries

1 1/2 c GF All-Purpose Flour

1/2 c GF Cornmeal

1 T Baking Powder

1/4 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Kosher Salt

Finely grated zest of 2 lemons

6 T vegan butter, cubed

1/2 c Non-Dairy Milk, I used almond.

1/4 c Pure Maple Syrup

1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

For "egg wash" on top-

2 T Non-Dairy Milk, 1 T Maple Syrup

Coarse sugar, for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Makes 12 scones.

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a bowl cover dried cherries with hot tap water, allow to sit for 15 min. Drain water and pat cherries dry.

In a medium bowl, mix the flour with the cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon zest. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in the butter until it is the size of small peas. Add the cherries. Combine Milk, maple syrup, and vanilla. Add the liquid to the bowl and stir with a wooden spoon until the dough is evenly moistened. It will be a little wet.

Scoop 1/4 cup mounds of dough onto the baking sheet, spacing them two inches apart. Brush the tops with the "egg wash" mixture of non-dairy milk and maple syrup and sprinkle lightly with coarse sugar. Bake for about 30 minutes, until golden. Transfer the scones to a rack to cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temp.