On Wednesday I go shoppin'... Wheat Bran Scones

... and have buttered Scones for tea!

When I make scones I don't actually sing that song, I made up my own scone song. It only has two words: Mega (sometimes pronounced Mecha) and Scone. Feel free to sing your own version.

A few notes for this recipe:
My scones come out a bit more like American biscuits (Yes, yes, flaky like me.)if you'd like your scone to be a bit more crumbly, cut the butter into the flour more than I recommend.

Wheat bran can be purchased at most grocery stores in small-ish amounts. Due to the oils in wheat bran, it does go rancid if you leave it out for any length of time (2 weeks in a cabinet = bad). As far as I know, it doesn't seem to make you sick, it just tastes weird.
I store opened bags of wheat bran in a large ziplock in the fridge. This seems to last much longer... somewhere around 2 months. If you don't use wheat bran much or are just now starting to use it, get used to it a little. Try tasting a small amount and smell the bag just after you open it. Later, if you're unsure of your wheat bran you'll have an idea of what it was like before and you can taste a little bit, if it tastes bitter then, It's no good boss.

I'm sure there are other uses for wheat bran... I have a killer bran muffin recipe that I'll try to remember to post. Sometimes I mix a little into spaghetti sauce or breadcrumb mixes to sneak in the fiber. Really you can put it on anything...

You know, I write phrases like "sneak in the fiber" and I feel the need to cut myself.

Some of these steps may actually be unnecessary but it's how I makes 'em.

Ingredients
3 cups Flour
3 Tbspn sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1 1/4 cups buttermilk (fat free works fine)
1/2 cup wheat bran
1 egg lightly beaten (for an egg wash)

Gather ye shtuff while ye may
1. Set out all your crap
2. In a bowl add 1/2 cup wheat bran and 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
3. Stir well to moisten all wheat bran, set aside in fridge to soak bran
4. Pre-heat your oven to 425F degrees (220C)

Cut in
1. In another large bowl mix 3 cups flour, 2Tbsn sugar, 2 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp soda, 1/2 tsp salt. If you're able to, put this bowl in the freezer for 2 minutes.
2. Cut cold butter into small chunks (1/4- 1/2" cubes)
3. Squish butter into flour with your fingers OR cut it into flour with 2 knives/pastry blender until butter chunks have decreased in size by at least half (a few larger chunks of butter are ok, this will create steam layers in your oven and make the dough "flaky") I will attach a pic next time I makes 'em

Mix and Roll out
1. Dump cold buttermilk/wheat bran mix into the flour/butter mix
2. If you want to add dried fruit/nuts or whatevs, this is the time to do it
3. Stir just until a sticky dough forms
4. Scrape down your bowl and turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface
5. With a floured rolling pin or your floured hands, gently knead or press the dough into approx 18x12" rectangle (over-working the dough will result in a tough chewy scone)
6. Fold the rectangle in half (this makes layers), cut it into triangles with a sharp knife. The triangles will expand a little bit so keep that in mind when you decide how large to cut them.

Bake
1. Place scones on a baking sheet lined with parchment about 1-2 inches apart (You can also use a buttered/floured baking sheet. If the scones are touching, those areas will be a little more dense and moist.)
2. Brush tops of scones with egg wash
3. Bake for 14-18 minutes until they're golden brown
4. Cool on a rack