Chai Infused Whole Wheat Scones

My love of tea began when I visited South Africa at the age of 18. It was in this beautiful country that I was introduced to tea time, where people actually stop what they are doing to enjoy a cup tea and munch on a rusk TWICE A DAY! Amazing. Why don’t we do this kind of thing in America???!!! We’d all be a lot happier, and probably healthier, people.

Since this trip, I’ve enjoyed tea time in Fiji, Australia, and St. Lucia and I still enjoy reminiscing with a cup of afternoon tea at home. In fact, specialty teas are something I like to buy as my souvenirs from my travels because it reminds me of my trip every time I have a cup at home.

This month, our Recipe Redux challenge was to create a recipe that incorporated tea. Being that I love tea time and am a baker at heart, my thoughts immediately went to baked goods, particularly scones. So I went to work trying to lighten up a scone recipe and infuse it with tea flavor.  I chose to use chai tea but you can use whatever flavor of tea you prefer. The final product is a delicious scone with really unique flavor. While I wouldn't necessarily eat these any ol' morning for breakfast, I would make these for a brunch in a heart beat, knowing that they are higher in fiber and lower in fat than a traditional scone without sacrificing any flavor. 

These scones taste the best when eaten the day you made them, but they still tasted good three days later. Enjoy!

 

Chai Infused Whole Wheat Scones

1 cup reduced fat milk

2 bags of your favorite chai tea

 

1 ⅓ cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 cup all purpose flour

¼ cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted, cold butter, cut into small cubes

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

 

3/4 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons of chai milk

Splash of vanilla

Directions:

1. Pour milk into a small sauce pan and add tea bags. Heat on low heat for 10 minutes. Milk should be steaming but not boiling or simmering. Remove from heat and discard tea bags. Pour through a fine sieve into a shallow bowl and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. This step can be done ahead of time.
2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together flours, brown sugar, baking powder, and baking soda. In a seperate bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together 1/2 cup chai milk, 1 egg and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Set aside
3. Add cold butter to flour mixture and mix in using your fingers. Press the butter into the flour using your fingertips. Continue until butter is incorporated throughout flour mixture. It will look mealy.
4. Add milk and egg mixture to dry ingredients and stir till combined and dough comes together in a sticky ball. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. 
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Scoop dough on to baking sheet in about 1/2 cup portions. Bake for 16 minutes, until tops are just turning golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool on rack. 
6. In a small bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons of chai milk, and vanilla to make glaze. Drizzle over cooled scones. Allow to set for a few minutes then serve. 

Makes about 10 scones. 

Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour

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Comments

[Tspbasil]

Ahhh - these would be lovely to sit down to a leisurely breakfast or tea time (I too enjoy tea time in South Africa - so so lovely :) I bet these smell amazing coming right out of the oven!

[plus.google.com/111430907332908774895]

Rusks! Love them. I too discovered them in South Africa. Agree - tea with rusks is a new tradition we should start...if we could only find rusks here! Oh, and your recipe looks AMAZING too!