Patience is a virtue. Especially if you’re a recipe trying to get posted around here.
These poor scones have been waiting in the wings to get their 15 minutes of fame for so long I have wholly forgotten what I had on my mind when the idea of tomato scones suddenly gripped me. I have a suspicion that it gripped me as I was reading labels in the tomato purée aisle at the grocery store. I do love to read a good label. If those pesky food manufacturers weren’t so sneaky so much of the time I would never get my label-reading fix; but only because I wouldn’t have to. The good news is that once we’ve figured out what’s the good stuff from the pile of manufactured I-don’t-know-what, we’re in the home straight. Next time we know exactly which brand to buy. The downside to not having to check the contents of every can and jar is that had I not been loitering in the tomato purée aisle for all that time reading labels I may well have not been gripped by tomato scone fever; and that would have been an awful shame. Having to loiter over labels does provide opportunities.
I have ideas pop into my head in the strangest of places and at the oddest moments – which accounts for the 134 draft blog posts I have awaiting my attention. It also explains why – once I have perfected a new recipe for you – I rarely make it again. I’m on an unyielding quest to create new *SANE scrumptiousness to bewitch and captivate your taste buds – like an over-excited kitchen elf in a cocoa-stained white apron buzzing around with a whisk and a blender and more measuring spoons than should be allowed without a licence. Jonathan may be the traditional studious, serious and sensible scientist, while I’m the mad, happy one – hopping from one exhilarating experiment to the next, ever curious to see how tasty I can make something that doesn’t have anything in it.
These scones definitely have something in them. Tomatoes. Bunches of ’em. If you like tomatoes, these biscuits will knock your socks right off. If tomatoes are not really your thing, I suggest you move right along to the next recipe. These orangey-hued beauties pack an intense punch with their chunks of sun-dried tomatoes punctuated with little bursts of basil. They are not for the faint-hearted. These are not delicate, pretty little scones. They’re chunky, rustic, manly scones, with almost more tomato than scone.
I remember being on somewhat of a tomato kick when I made them, gobbling them up alongside my Times Two Tomato Soup (coming soon!). That was one crazy tomato-fest right there. If you’re craving some juicy summer tomato goodness in the middle of winter, give these a try. You’ll be deep in tomato heaven.
- 9 oz / 250g almond flour / ground almonds (NOT almond meal)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 4 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp xanthan gum
- 3 tsp dried basil
- 2 oz / 55g butter
- 2 oz / 55g sun-dried tomatoes, pre-soaked in hot water to soften, and then chopped
- 1/3 cup / 3 fl oz. unsweetened thin coconut milk
- Beaten egg to glaze
- Heat oven to 400 F.
- Put the almond flour, other dry ingredients, basil and butter in a food processor and pulse until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. You can also do this by hand if that’s your thing.
- Turn into a bowl and mix in the sun-dried tomatoes until evenly distributed.
- Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the milk.
- Mix by hand to form a dough.
- Knead the dough lightly until smooth.
- Divide dough into 8 x 2 oz pieces of dough.
- Roll each piece in your hands to make a ball, please on baking sheet and flatten gently to resemble a cookie.
- Brush tops with beaten egg.
- Bake for 10 minutes until golden brown.
- Carefully use a serrated knife to cut open, especially if they are still warm, as they are quite fragile.
MeredithAnything “tomato basil” can’t be bad! Look delish. It’s official: I need to get xantham gum.
carrieYes, Meredith! Yes you do :-)
RebeccaYum!
Made a few little changes…
Didn’t have almond flour… so used whole almonds in the Thermomix for 10 seconds to grind them up.
Didn’t have butter… so quickly whipped up some cream in the Thermomix.
Didn’t have sundried tomatoes so made them with olives in lieu.
Yum!
Thanks Carrie, you are an absolute star!
carrieAwesome, Rebecca!!! Love this (hate olives though!) :-)
LindsayThis sounds delicious, however I despise coconut in all its forms. What could be substituted for the coconut milk?
I really miss scones – my mum’s cheese scones from an old family recipe are TDF but I can’t eat wheat these days.
carrieLindsay – your wheat-free Cheese Scones are right here: https://carriebrown.com/archives/21158 !! :-)
You cannot taste the coconut milk AT ALL. However, you can use whatever milk you fancy instead. We do not reccomend soy milk, and cows milk is not especially SANE with it’s sugar content. Hope that helps!
LindsayThanks so much Carrie! I might give unsweetened almond milk a try.
Ahhh cheese scones (yes I’m from Britain) double thank you! our old Scottish family recipe includes a pinch of Colman’s mustard powder for added piquancy.
carrieThunbs up on the mustard!! Add away, Lindsay.
Britton...Excellent, thank you!
Where do you acquire your xanthan gum? What is this stuff?
Cheers!
HannahHi Carrie! These look so incredibly delicious (as do all your recipes!!). One question, Jonathan Bailor lists them as SANEr on the forum rather than SANE. Is that because of the sun dried tomatoes? Could you sub in fresh tomatoes or would like be a mess?
carrieHi Hannah! They ARE delicious! ;-) JB calls them SANEr because while they don’t have anything inSANE in them, they are not particularly hign in protein or fiber. Fresh tomatoes would not make them any SANEr, and you would have a big mess! They also would not have the knock-your-socks-off flavor, etiher. Hope that helps! The good news is, they are so filling you likely can’t eat many at one sitting :-)
VivianHi Carrie, I’m planning on making these scones as a side dish for a dinner party tomorrow night. Think i can add some ground flax seed to the recipe or leave it as is?
Looking forward to it :-)
Cheers!
carrieHi Vivian! I wouldn’t try the switch before a dinner party since I can’t promise you it will work. You could *probably* switch out a couple of ounces of the almond flour with ground flax seed, but you will likely have to alter the liquid accordingly. I’d make them as is for tomorrow and fiddle with the recipe when you don’t have guests :-)
VivianHi Carrie, these were a bit hit at my dinner party! I made them again tonight as i had a bit of an upset tummy all day and was really craving some BRAT type foods and these scones were perfect! This kids loved them too! And they usually dislike tomatoes!
Thanks heaps!
Vivian
carrieSo happy you got the kids eating tomatoes, Vivian!! Great job :-)