Vegan Apple Cinnamon Scones

This recipe could also be called "The Easiest Scone Recipe You'll Ever Make." Seriously.

I don't know about you, but what I dislike most about making traditional scones is needing to cut in butter. Sure you can use a food processor, but I still think it's annoying.

From a health standpoint, traditional scones definitely aren't far up there on the "good for me" list. They tend to be full of butter (saturated fat) and bleached white flour (hello, blood sugar spike!). One cinnamon chip scone from Panera has 530 calories and 27 grams of fat - geez! I certainly wouldn't recommend them. So does that mean scones are forever off the menu? Certainly not! Well, with these scones at least!


What makes these so easy, is that all you need to do is stir and - voila! - prep is done. These scones are made with olive oil (healthy monounsaturated fats), whole wheat flour (hooray for fiber!), and fresh fruit. I threw in a few leftover cinnamon chips for fun, which may not be the healthiest but oh well. The cinnamon chips make them more of a non-vegan mini dessert.


Vegan Apple Cinnamon Scones
Makes 14 scones

Ingredients:

• 2 cups white whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup agave nectar
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup hot water
• 1 cup diced apple (about 1 medium apple)
• 1/4 cup Hershey's cinnamon chips - optional

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a baking sheet.
2. In a bowl, whisk the flour with baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Stir in oil, agave, and vanilla. Stir in hot water, then apples and cinnamon chips (if using).
3. Scoop 12-14 mounds of batter onto prepared baking sheet. Shape into triangles if desired.
   
4. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden. Let cool & enjoy! 
   
    

Nutrition information (based on 14 scones with cinnamon chips):
Serving size: 1 scone
Calories: 148.8 kcal,   Total carbohydrates: 22.0 gm,   Fiber: 2.4 gm,   Total fat: 6.3 gm,   Protein: 2.5 gm