Happy September, y’all.  (That’s my Texas roots showing.) We’re entering the last third of the year. Can you believe it? It seems like the time flew by although the summer heat in the northern hemisphere was something I’d rather avoid. But cooler temps are coming in over the next few days and it’s time to think about fall flavors.

I ran across this quick and easy scone recipe on AllRecipes.com and decided to adjust it to a low carb version. With the change in flour and other adjustments, it doesn’t resemble the base recipe much. One big change was using pecan flour in it.

I bought a bag of Fisher Nuts product and was delighted to see it is a zero-carb flour. Now, it isn’t great for everything you want to bake and it does have a nut grittiness to it. But for scones and some bread, it is a nice addition to the recipe. In this recipe, I used it for the larger flour amount and used almond flour for the rest.

The recipe has a variation on it using NuTrail Keto Granola in Cinnamon Pecan. More about that after the recipe. Also, both the craisins and pecans in this scone are optional. If you want to lower the net carb count, leave out the craisins or both. The pecans add very little to the count, but if you don’t like them, leave them out. If you can’t eat nuts, this recipe can be made with any low carb flour, such as Carbquik or DCC All Purpose Flour, that is not nut based.

Applesauce Scones with Pecans and Craisins

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons Carbquik or other low carb baking mix
1/2 cup Almond Flour
2/3 cup Pecan Flour
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 tablespoon Butter
1/4 cup Sugar Substitute
1 3.5-ounce container Unsweetened Applesauce
1 Egg, beaten
1 tablespoon Heavy Cream
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/3 cup Pecans, broken into pieces
1/3 cup Sugar-reduced Craisins

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees (F.) Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, mix the almond flour, pecan flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Slice butter into pieces and cut it into the dry ingredients until you have a crumbly mixture. Add the sugar substitute, applesauce, egg, cinnamon, and cream. Stir to mix the ingredients until all are incorporated. Do not over mix. Fold in craisins and pecans.

Scoop dough into 8 balls, place on prepared baking sheet, and press down gently. Pat the outer edges smooth. If desired, brush tops with additional heavy cream and sprinkle granulated sugar substitute over the top. Let sit on the counter for 30 minutes before baking.

Bake on the middle rack for 12-15 minutes. Serve warm with butter or clotted cream.

Makes 8 scones.

Note: Substituting pumpkin puree is 6.4 net carbs versus 6.6 net carbs for the applesauce.

The variation is almost the same. But in place of pecans, you use 1/4 cup of the Keto Granola Mix. (I purchased this at Sam’s Club. It also makes a very nice cereal for breakfast.) I used fewer craisins in this version, reducing the carbs a little. The Keto mix includes sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, coconut chips, almonds, pecans, butter, cinnamon, and is sweetened with a monk fruit and erythritol blend, so I didn’t add any pecans. Again, you can eliminate the craisins and go with the granola.

The other variation is I used less of the pecan flour and used a low carb baking mix for the bulk of the flour.

Keto Granola Scones with Applesauce & Craisins

1 cup Carbquik or other low carb baking mix
1/2 cup Almond Flour
1/2 cup Pecan Flour
1/4 Keto Granola Mix (Sam’s Club)
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda
2 tablespoon Butter
1/4 cup Sugar Substitute
1 3.5-ounce container Unsweetened Applesauce
1 Egg, beaten
1 tablespoon Unsweetened Coconut Milk
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 cup Sugar-reduced Craisins

Heat oven to 425 degrees (F.)  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Mix the low carb flour, almond flour, pecan flour, baking powder and baking soda in a bowl and add butter, broken into pieces. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients until you have a crumbly mixture. Add the sugar substitute, applesauce, egg, cinnamon, and cream. Stir to mix the ingredients until all are incorporated. Do not over mix. Fold in craisins and granola.

Scoop dough into 8 balls, place on prepared baking sheet, and press down gently. Smooth the outer edges with wet fingers. If desired, brush tops with additional heavy cream and sprinkle granulated sugar substitute over the top. Let rest on the counter for 30 minutes to allow the baking soda to work and the dough to relax.

Bake on the middle rack for 12-15 minutes. Serve warm with butter or clotted cream.

Makes 8 scones.