Cherry Amaretto Scones with Cream Cheese Frosting

Hi, I’m Chef Lilly a mom and wife who loves to create delicious, healthy, home cooked recipes for my family and friends! I am excited to share with you all a family favorite. There is nothing more delicious than a home cooked treat! My Cherry Amaretto Scones will win over your taste buds and your family’s senses as they are greeted with the mouthwatering aroma it creates as you walk in the door. Do you want to know the secret to perfect scones?

 

Dried cherries get boozed up in amaretto before being baked in folds of fluffy almond rich scones. Here is the secret to perfect scones! Once you add the liquid, combine the ingredients together lightly and do not over do it, stop as soon as the liquid and dry ingredients have become one. If you mix too much they will toughen up. Scones are also best fresh out of the oven. But, lightly toasting them the next day will refresh them nicely enough to enjoy day-old.

That being said, on weeks when I make scones for my little family, I mix up all of the batter and make just enough scones to satisfy us that morning, usually one for each of us. Then I store the dough in the fridge. The next day I bake up more while we are preparing for school.

The Amaretto Cream Cheese Spread is a simple bonus and a great way to use up the cherry-amaretto soaking liquid. Please note, the alcohol bakes in the scones and cooks out when you simmer it up for the cream cheese spread so I personally feel comfortable serving it to my children. If it makes you uncomfortable in any way or you simply don’t want to bother with the amaretto substitute the liquor with apple or cherry juice instead.

 

Cherry Amaretto Scone Ingredients

• ½ cup amaretto, or cherry or apple juice
• ½ cup dried cherries
• 2 cups flour, all-purpose (your favorite gluten-free flour blend could work instead)
• 1 cup almond flour, blanched is preferable but not required
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ cup butter, unsalted, cold & cut into pieces, chill again until ready to use
• 1½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup sliced almonds, or another favorite nut, chopped up
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 4 ounces cream cheese, optional

Directions

1. Pour the amaretto over the dried cherries and rest for at least 15 minutes up to overnight.
2. Preheat the oven to 375.
3. Toss the flour, almond flour, sugar, butter pieces, baking power and salt together. Using a pastry blender, a fork or your trusty hands, smash, press and blend the mixture together. Once the butter is crumbled in and smaller than pea-size, toss in the nuts.
4. Strain the cherries and pour the amaretto into a small sauce pan (if making the amaretto cream cheese). Toss the strained cherries into the scone mixture.
5. Now it is time to add the liquid. Combine about 1 tablespoon of the leftover amaretto with the buttermilk. Pour into the dry mixture and fold just until combined. Do not stir, mix, beat or blend. Simply ensure the ingredients are just barely clinging together and that is all.
6. On a baking sheet lined with parchment, drop a nice sized blob of raw scone on to the pan. Give each scone a few inches to raise. For the photo, I put two oblong blobs together and pinched the bottom to make it more like a heart.
7. Just prior to placing in the oven, sprinkle each scone with a pinch of sugar or we used raw turbinado sugar for a crunchier texture.
8. Bake for 18-24 minutes until the bottoms are golden brown and the tops are lightly golden.
9. While the scones bake, heat the remaining amaretto until it has reduced in half and become syrupy. Turn off the heat and add the cream cheese, whipping together. When the scones are hot out of the oven, spread on this cream cheese and devour.

There you have it! A treat your family will be asking more of! I hope you truly enjoy these Cherry Amaretto Scones  as you nourish your family with whole foods and create memories you can cherish for a lifetime. If you enjoyed this yummy recipe you may also enjoy my cherry smoothie , coconut lime bars or my menu planning service that makes the job of “Mom” so much easier!