Alex got me the Smitten Kitchen Cookbook for Christmas, and although I've only read a little of it, it's a great cookbook so far. I was excited to try these whole wheat raspberry ricotta scones from it.
Why this recipe in particular? I bought an incredibly excessive amount of ricotta cheese for our Christmas lasagna, and since I don't like cheese that much, I had no idea what to do with it other than find recipes that incorporated it into baked goods. Plus, this recipe has raspberries (which I love) and whole wheat flour (which makes me feel healthy).
Plus, I just love scones.
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My second recipe attempted from the Smitten Kitchen Cookbook (affiliate link) was Whole Wheat Raspberry Ricotta Scones, which are also featured on the Smitten Kitchen website. (I already talked about the amazing Maple Bacon Biscuits that I made from the cookbook.)
Overall, these delicious scones had a clean, cream flavor from the ricotta and the heavy cream. They're not incredibly sweet, so they felt healthy-ish to eat (although they were certainly not low-fat given the butter, ricotta, and heavy cream!). They're moist, and they didn't have the same texture as usual scones. Rather, I'd say they're more like biscuits - softer and pillowy from the ricotta cheese, and not so crumbly.
These scones were good enough that I made 2 more batches of them later on, one of which is in the freezer, waiting to be baked once baby is here.
How to Make Scones
Start by combining your flours, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Cut in butter using a pastry cutter (affiliate link) (or two knives criss-crossed). Use the pastry cutter to cut in the raspberries.
Since I used white whole wheat flour, I didn't really notice the whole wheat flour, but it wouldn't have been very noticeable had I used more assertive regular whole wheat.
If you use fresh raspberries, you have to cut the fruit in gently. It's a bit harder with frozen raspberries, but they're small and soften up quickly. Both work.
Mix together your ricotta and milk in a measuring cup, then pour into the dry ingredients. Use a rubber spatula or a fork to gently stir the dough together.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. The flour is especially important because the dough becomes more wet (as the raspberries thaw or fall apart) while you handle it. Pat it into a square.
Use a bench scraper (affiliate link) (my preference) or a butter knife to cut the dough into 9 scones. You can cut into wedges instead, if you'll miss that triangle shape.
Separate the scones on a silicone mat (affiliate link)-lined sheet. You don't want the scones too close together because they'll puff out.
Bake for about 15 minutes, until they're lightly golden along the edges. The scones are fragile while warm, so wait 10 minutes before serving.
Baking Frozen Scones
Don't want to eat all your scones at once? Good idea! Bake only the ones you want to eat immediately. Place the rest on plastic wrap or waxed paper on a plate, and freeze.
Once the scones are frozen, remove them from the plastic wrap and place them in a freezer bag. Be sure to label it with the baking time and temperature!
Usually I bake frozen scones for a few extra minutes, but with these, check them at the suggested baking time of 15 minutes.
I wouldn't make these scones all the time, but they are a great excuse to buy a larger carton of ricotta cheese than you might otherwise need for whatever you're cooking.
Want other things to make with extra ricotta? Try Ricotta Pound Cake, or using it as filling for something like Paczkis.
Interested in other recipes? I save and share recipes I like or want to try on my Pinterest page - follow me there! You can also check out my Facebook page for more recipes and helpful tips. I'm also happy to try to help troubleshoot my recipes there.
Have you tried this recipe? Or have a question about it? Rate it or leave a comment below! (PS: rating my recipes helps other people find them too!)
In the past:
One Year Ago: Gluten-Free Lemon Cornmeal Pancakes, Vegan Maple Donuts, Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies
Two Years Ago: King Cake
Three Years Ago: Kung Pao Sauce, The Cookie-Cake-Pie
Four Years Ago: Chocolate Chunk Scones, Chocolate Stadium Cake
Five Years Ago: Vanilla Pudding, Tilapia Cakes, Banana Oatmeal Pancakes, Stadium Cake
A fluffy, delicious, easy-to-make scone. Extra moist with ricotta, healthier with whole wheat flour, and pretty and flavorful with fresh or frozen raspberries.
- 1 cup whole wheat flour (125 grams)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (125 grams)
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ cup sugar (55 grams)
- ½ teaspoon salt (skip if you use salted butter)
- 6 tablespoons butter (84 grams)
- 1 cup raspberries (~110 grams frozen; from 1 small carton if fresh)
- ¾ cup ricotta cheese (186 grams) (whole milk or part-skim, both are fine)
- ⅓ cup heavy cream or milk (75 grams) (I use 2% milk)
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Mix together flours, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Use a pastry cutter to work in the butter until it is in small pieces and the mixture is meal-like.
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Add raspberries and cut in with pastry cutter, until the berries are in pieces. (If using frozen raspberries, do not thaw. They soften quickly as you cut them.)
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In a measuring cup, whisk together the ricotta and cream or milk. Pour into the flour mixture and use a rubber spatula to fold together the dough. Use your hands (or your spatula, as I did) to gently knead the dough to make the dough uniform, to ensure that berries are spread out.
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Turn dough out onto a well-floured surface. (The dough is pretty sticky otherwise.) Flour your hands and pat the dough into a 7-inch square. Cut dough into 9 squares. Brush off excess flour and place scones on a parchment-lined or Silpat-lined baking sheet.
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Bake at 425F for 15 minutes, until lightly golden along the edges and a toothpick inserted into the center of the scones comes out clean. Cool briefly (about 10 minutes) before serving.
Do not thaw frozen raspberries before using.
Both white whole wheat and regular whole wheat flour work here.
This dough is very sticky, but work with it gently. Using a rubber spatula instead of your hands helps.
You may freeze these and bake them later. You will need to test them at the recommended baking time (15 minutes) using a toothpick for doneness.
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen and The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook
Recipe updated 10/25/2019
[Recipe, text, and photos revised October 25, 2019.]
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