A Dilly of a Cheese Scone

I love scones. In fact scones might be my favourite baked good, and I don't make them nearly enough. I had some leftover dill from the orzo salad with chickpeas, dill and lemon and didn't want to waste any of the precious herb, so I made these. The original recipe uses all purpose flour (instead of whole wheat), heavy cream (instead of milk), Jarslberg cheese (instead of aged cheddar), as well as some other things I changed. I was kind of scared about how these would turn out because I changed so many things but they were really amazing. I often find whole wheat baked goods to taste distinctly whole wheat-y but these ones didn't. The dill and cheddar were the perfect combination, and I loved the crisp outsides. The only bad thing was that the dough was very wet and sticky. I tried patting the dough out to cut the scones and was not too successful with this (hence the weirdly shaped scones you see pictured) - so if your dough turns out wet like mine did I would recommend making these drop scone style! Which is much easier anyway.

My finals are next week and I can't wait to be done! More time for baking. ;) Maybe some elaborate cakes? Pastries? Chocolate babka?

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Cheddar and Black Pepper Scones
Apple Cheddar Scones
Cinnamon Apple Scones
Caramelized Onion, Sage and Cheddar Muffins

A Dilly of a Cheese Scone
Adapted from Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins & More

Makes 12 scones

1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup (2/3 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes and chilled
3/4 cup (about 3 ounces) grated aged cheddar
3 tbsp chopped fresh dill
1 large egg
3/4 cup milk

1. Position the racks in the middle of the oven. Heat the oven to 400F. Prepare 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpats.

2. Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse 2 to 3 times to combine. Add the butter and pulse 5 times, then process for 8 seconds. Add the cheese and dill, pulsing twice to blend. Empty into a large mixing bowl.

3. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and 3/4 cup milk. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid. Using a rubber spatula, push the crumb mixture into the well, working your way around the bowl to form a rough dough. With lightly floured hands, knead the dough three or four times in the bowl.

4. If your dough is really wet and sticky as mine was, you can make these drop scone style. If you think that you can pat your dough out and cut it into pieces, then put dough on a lightly floured work surface. Shape dough into a rectangle or square (or circle) about 1/2 inch thick. Cut into 12 pieces. Place on the prepared baking sheets.

5. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until lightly browned. If using two baking sheets as I did, halfway through baking rotate the baking sheets. Remove from the oven and transfer scones to a cooling rack.