Recipe: Mardi Gras king cake scones

Galadriel’s Goods shares tips to make easier Big Easy favorite for Fat Tuesday

SAN ANTONIO – Want to make a king cake without the hassle? King cake scones are the new “big easy.”

Watch the video above and try these king cake scones by Alexis Clark, New Orleans native and owner of Galadriel’s Goods.

The self-taught baker served over a decade in the Air Force and took time after her husband was deployed to focus on comfort food and her three children. Now she has a thriving baking business in San Antonio.

To order from Galadriel’s Goods, send her an email at galadrielsgoods@gmail.com. You can also follow on Instagram and Facebook.

Fat Tuesday, or Mardi Gras, is Tuesday, Feb. 16. Check out the recipe below.

King cake scones

By Galadriel’s Goods

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 1¼ teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup salted butter, very cold (Kerrygold recommended)
  • ¾ cup cultured buttermilk
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the cinnamon swirl filling:

  • ¼ cup butter, melted
  • ½ cup all-purpose flour
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon

For the glaze:

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons water (more if needed; you want the glaze thick but pourable; if it’s too watery, the glaze will not set properly)
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

For the topping:

  • Green sanding sugar
  • Purple sanding sugar
  • Yellow sanding sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°F.

In a large mixer bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients for the scone dough.

Cut the butter into small cubes.

Using a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the flour mixture very gently. The mixture should form crumbs, but does not need to be completely uniform. Work quickly so the butter will stay cold.

Mix together buttermilk and vanilla. Pour into the flour mixture. Stir slowly together, about 45 to 60 seconds. Scrape and stir again, no more than 30 seconds. Do not over-mix, even if there is extra flour not mixed in - you will fold it in and make delicious, flaky layers.

In a separate bowl, make the cinnamon swirl. Simply mix all the ingredients together with a spoon until it is thick and dough-like. You should be able to easily crumble it with your fingers.

Turn contents of the large mixing bowl onto a clean work surface. It will still be crumbly.

Gather the mass together and press down once. Crumble about a third of the cinnamon swirl mixture over the dough. Carefully fold it in, gathering the floury bits together and working them into the dough (it works well to sprinkle them over the top, just like you are doing with the crumble).

Repeat, distributing the cinnamon crumbles and folding until the dough holds together and all the flour and cinnamon swirl is worked in, probably between six and eight folds total. Overworking the dough will produce tough scones, so be gentle and don’t stress about a few extra crumbs of flour that aren’t mixed in.

Form the dough into a small round and slice into 8 equal triangles.

Place scones on a parchment paper–covered cookie sheet and bake 15 to 18 minutes. Immediately remove to a wire rack to cool.

Take one cup of powdered sugar and pour into a small bowl. Add water and vanilla. Mix until the powdered sugar has dissolved.

With the scones still on a wire rack (place foil or parchment paper underneath for easy clean up), pour glaze over each scone. Once the glaze starts to drip slow, start adding sanding sugar. Allow the scones to set for a few minutes and voila, it’s time to eat!


About the Authors:

Diana Winters is a San Antonio-area native, Emmy award-winning and GLAAD-nominated journalist who loves the Alamo City. She is the executive producer of SA Live, creator of South Texas PRIDE and co-creator of Texas Eats.

Robert started his career at KSAT more than 10 years ago. He started as a prompter operator, to director, to promotions producer and now SA Live producer. He loved the excitement of news but entertainment is where he feels at home.