German Scones Recipe

The presents are unwrapped and our bellies are full. I am prepared to not have a decent conversion with my husband for the next couple of weeks because he will be too preoccupied by his new Xbox 360. All of the preparations we've made (or should have made!) over the last months are finished, and we can now put our feet up and take some welcome time off.

I love the holiday season. It just brings out the best in everyone. And I'm always sad when it passes. But this Christmas, I have been thinking a lot about how things change as we get older. I have realized that Christmas is a lot like Disneyland. It's a blast when you are a kid. And I'm sure that it is a whole lot of fun when you are older and you take your own kids. But when you are in the in-between stage, like I am, it's still fun, but it doesn't quite have the same magic. I kind of feel like that is how Christmas is - it's so much fun anticipating Santa's visit when you are a kid, and I'm sure that when you have your own kids, you feel that same magic watching them as experience Christmas morning. But when you are in that in-between stage, you still love Christmas, but it almost feels like something is missing.

Although we don't have kids yet, I decided that this Christmas would be the Christmas that we start our own fun and traditions. I figured now would be the time to start, and also so that I could try to bring some of the child-like magic into our Christmas.

Well, this was the first Christmas morning that we have spent with just the two of us (3, if you count the dog, and we always do!!). So we started with the first of our new Christmas traditions - German scones for breakfast!! It also helped that I got a nice new fryer as a gift!

If you don't know what German scones are, I won't be surprised. My husband has begged and begged for me to make scone for him for the longest time now, but he didn't want what most of the world knows scones to be. German scones are more like a mixture between fried bread and donuts. My husband didn't even know that these weren't what most people know scones to be. I had my mother-in-law email me a recipe for them a few weeks back, but when I went to get the recipe yesterday, I couldn't find the email. So, thank goodness for the internet. I did a quick Google search, and only a handful of recipes came up. Looking through them, they were all exactly the same, so I figured I couldn't go wrong. (While over at the in-laws today, I looked at my mother-in-law's recipe, and hers was the exact same recipe as well!!)

The beautiful thing about this recipe is that you can make the dough, let it rise, and then stick it in the fridge overnight. That way, if you made them for Christmas morning, you don't have to dirty up your kitchen on Christmas morning, and all you have to do is fry them up. And they are delicious!!

If you notice from the picture, I learned a trick while watching a news program on Christmas Eve - if you poke a hole in the middle of the scone before you fry it, they are a lot easier to turn. These things really puff up when they hit the hot oil, and without the hole in the middle, they become a bit hard to turn because they are so top-heavy. These are really good served with some cinnamon honey butter, and it's a cinch to whip up while the scones are frying.

It was a great Christmas - my husband said that it has been his best Christmas. I'm not sure if I could give all of the credit to the scones, but they certainly did make our morning!!

By Deborah

German Scones

Ingredients:

2 packages dry yeast
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup butter
2 teaspoons salt
3 eggs, beaten
4 1/2 cups flour

Directions:

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the 1 tablespoon of sugar; set aside.

Pour the boiling water over the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, the butter, and the salt. Add the eggs, mix well. Add in the yeast mixture and 2 cups of the flour. Beat with a mixer until smooth. Add the remaining 2 1/2 cups flour and mix in. Let this rise for 1 hour (I just kept it in the mixing bowl) and then refrigerate until cold.

Roll out very thin (about 1/4 inch) on a floured surface, and cut into 3 inch squares. Fry in hot oil until brown, then flip and fry until both sides are browned and puffy.

Serve with butter and honey, cinnamon honey butter, jam, or coat them with granulated sugar.