With a crisp flaky crust, and a moist tender interior, you'd never know that these scones are vegan. Thanks to some caramelized onions and shiitake mushroom powder, they almost taste like they have cheese in them. Chock full of zucchini and with a hint of Za'atar, which adds a marvelous herbal note, these scones make for a delicious savory alternative at tea.
First cut along the dark lines, then cut along the light lines.
Za'atar is the Arabic name for Thyme, but it's also used to describe a blend of spices, which often includes thyme, sesame seeds, sumac and salt. It's a delicious blend that's great on meats, vegetables, and especially baked goods.
Because of the amount of olive oil in these scones (taking the place of butter), it's important to use one with a mild creamy flavor. Strong olive oils will overwhelm the other ingredients and may even make your scones taste bitter. Also, since the olive oil is not solid like butter, this dough is going to be much more wet than a regular scone. Just use a well-floured surface and make sure you have flour on your hands.
The most time consuming component is caramelizing the onions, but if you've been following along and have a batch of caramelized onions portioned and frozen, these scones comes together in about 30 minutes. They're best fresh, but they can be kept and reheated in a toaster oven for up to three days.
This recipe was originally posted on PBS Food.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small onion, finely minced
- 250 grams whole wheat flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons unrefined sugar
- 2 teaspoon za'atar
- 2 dried shiitake mushrooms
- 1 packed cup grated zucchini (about 1 large zucchini)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup soy yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the onion into a pan over medium heat and sauté the onions until caramelized (15-20 minutes). If you have frozen caramelized onions you can skip this step and grate the frozen onions in with the zucchini.
- Put the oven rack in the middle position and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and za'atar in a bowl.
- Use a Microplane or clean coffee grinder to powderize the shiitake mushrooms and add it into the bowl with the flour. Whisk together.
- Add the grated zucchini to a bowl and stir together with the salt.
- Add the caramelized onion, olive oil, soy yogurt, and lemon juice. Stir to combine.
- Dump the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold together with a spatula until just combined.
- Dump the dough out onto a well-floured surface and pat it out into a rectangle that's about 1 inch thick.
- Slice the dough into 9 pieces using a floured knife so it resembles a tic-tac-toe board. Then cut each square in half diagonally to get triangles. Use a spatula to transfer the triangles to your baking sheet.
- Bake until the scones are golden brown on top (about 15-20 minutes). Cool the scones on a wire rack for a few minutes and serve warm.
This recipe was originally posted on PBS Food.
