Whole Wheat Maple Pecan Scones with Maple Icing

This post is dedicated to my mother-in-law.  Last year for my birthday she got me The Pioneer Woman Cooks, which is a fantastic cookbook and the original source of this recipe (I health-ed it up a little bit!).  My birthday is approaching again, and yesterday I got a package from her with several more cookbooks, including The Pioneer Woman's new cookbook.  Score!  Not only did she provide me with this recipe, she made The Pioneer Woman's maple pecan scones for us while we were visiting last year.  I kid you not, these were my first scones EVER!  And I was instantly in love.  It doesn't hurt that they were maple pecan, which is one of my favorite flavor combinations.  But since that time I have made myself several other scones (a few of which I have already shared) and have loved them all. 

I have been wanting to make these scones myself since the moment I took my first bite of the batch my mother-in-law made.  They are so delectable!  We're talking about flaky, buttery, scones with crunchy bits of pecans covered with a sugary, maple-y icing, topped with more crushed pecans.  Add a cup of hot coffee and you have pure breakfast nirvana.

I added some whole wheat to these scones, because that's just how I roll.  But honestly, I think the whole wheat is a nice touch in this recipe.  It gives it a little additional crunch and it complements the nutty taste of the pecans.  I did 1/4 cup chopped pecans like the recipe said to, but I am posting my recipe with 1/3 cup because I thought it could use a little more pecan.  I like pecans.  As usual, I used skim milk instead of cream.  Also as usual, these turned out great. 
 

One thing I might try next time is to substitute some or all of the sugar for maple syrup to up the maple flavor.  I like maple.  But I wanted to share this recipe with you as is for now.  I've been wanting to make this for over a year and am just now doing it.  Who knows when I will get around to making it again for experimenting!

To make these amazing scones, start by mixing together the flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt.

Then cut in the butter.  I know it's a lot of butter, but that's how you get the flakiness.  This dough isn't the easiest in the world to work with so I wouldn't use margarine for this.  The water in margarine would just make the dough stickier.  Sometimes you just have to give in and eat the butter.  And run a mile.  

Stir in your pecans.  Then mix together milk and an egg and add that mixture to the bowl.  Stir it together just until its combined.  The dough will be very crumbly, but you want to avoid working with it too much.  That leads to tough scones.  We're going for tender and flaky here.

Transfer the dough to a work surface and form it into a ball.  Pat it into a 10-inch circle.  The dough should be about 3/4-inch thick.

Cut into 8 wedges.  I used my pizza cutter.

Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake at 350 for 22 minutes.  The Pioneer Woman says to let the scones cool completely before icing.  Obviously she doesn't know me.  I don't let things cool.  Hot out of the oven for me!

Now make the icing by just combining powdered sugar, milk, margarine, a splash of coffee and pinch of salt together until they are smooth.  This stuff is so good, I want to eat it with a spoon.  I want to swim in a pool of this stuff.  I love it!

Now drizzle that maple goodness over your scones.  Yummmm...

I've got to start having these more than once a year!

Whole Wheat Maple Pecan Scones with Maple Icing

For the Scones:

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 cups whole wheat flour

1/3 cup sugar

5 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 lb (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into pieces

1/3 cup pecans, chopped, plus more for sprinkling if desired

1 large egg

3/4 cup skim milk

For the Maple Icing:

1 lb powdered sugar

1/4 cup skim milk

1/4 cup margarine, melted

Splash of strongly brewed coffee

Dash of salt

2 tsp maple flavoring or maple extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl or food processor, mix together the flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  Cut the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles crumbs. 

Stir in pecans (if using food processor, move to large bowl).  Mix the egg and milk together and add the mixture to the bowl.  Stir together just until combined.

Turn the mixture onto a large cutting board or work surface.  The dough will be crumbly.  With your hands, push the mixture together into a large ball.  Do not knead or press too much.  Form the dough into a 10-inch round about 3/4 inch thick (use a rolling pin or your hands).  With a sharp knife or a pizza cutter, cut the round into eight wedges.  Transfer the wedges to prepared baking sheet.  Bake 22-26 minutes or until just beginning to brown.  Allow the scones to cool.

While scones are cooling, prepare the icing by mixing together all icing ingredients in a medium mixing bowl or large liquid measuring cup until smooth.  Pour icing over cooled scones.  If desired, sprinkle with additional chopped pecans before icing sets.  Allow icing to set before serving.

Recipe adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks