Thursday, April 14, 2011

Oatmeal Date Walnut Scone


I have barely baked in days.  That makes me so unhappy.  The thing is, my mother in law came to visit and stay with us for the week.
Yup...stay with us.
It is hard to have a family member come and stay for an extended visit in a small apartment in Manhattan. My mother in law and I knew we were going to be in tight quarters, and so intuitively, we were both on our best behavior because we both love the same guy.
I did though, feel a bit like Mr. Roarke on Fantasy Island....
Smiles, everyone, smiles. 

So because I knew I wasn't going to have time to bake all week,  I wanted to spin out something awesome and delicious, that would freeze great and get us through the week.
One of my very favorite things to eat, is the Oatmeal Date Walnut Scone from Whole Foods Market. I have walked blocks and blocks and across Central Park, just to have one with a cup of coffee.
Finally, I simply replicated, and adapted slightly their ingredients, and made my own terrific version.  If you know that scone, you will love this one... and if you don't know it, it will soon be a favorite of yours too.
They are awesome and freeze fabulously for an anytime yum~

Oatmeal Date Walnut Scone
Please read recipe all the way through before beginning.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silpat mat.
Makes about 8 scones.

In a medium bowl, whisk together:
2 cups whole wheat organic pastry flour
3/4 cup rolled oats (I use Bob's Red Mill gluten free rolled oats)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
4 teaspoons baking powder

Into the flour bowl "cut in" with two knives or a pastry cutter (or your fingers!)
1/2 cup cold Earth Balance buttery spread
The flour mixture will become crumbly with pea sized pieces of "butter".

Mix in:
3/4 cup chopped pitted dates ( I use organic medjool)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Then mix in gently with a spatula:
1/2 cup organic sugar
3/4 cup organic rice milk
2 teaspoons organic vanilla
1 tablespoon of zest from a fresh orange

You should now have a soft dough. You can bake it right away and your scones will spread a bit, or you can refrigerate the dough for 20-30 minutes which will result in a "fuller scone". Use a 1/2 cup measuring cup to scoop portions onto the parchment lined baking sheet.
Bake 18-20 minutes at 350 degrees or until browned and toasty looking.  Allow to cool on a wire rack and enjoy.
These freeze really well, just wrap individually and they will keep until ready to eat.  Leave on the counter to defrost or heat in the toaster oven for 5-10 minutes.  It will taste like it just came out of the oven again!  Smiles!







18 comments:

  1. I'm gonna try this soon. I totally dig the Home Foods Date-Oatmeal-walnut Scone!

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  2. Yes The Whole Foods Vegan Scone is my favorite .. Not happy when they are out . THis recipe looks awesome!

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  3. as a vegan engaged to a meat and cheese-centric man i can safely say there are few things that we BOTH LOVE as much as those darn whole foods scones!!!! he recently found a different website/recipe for similar scones but i found this one and at the mention of those infamous treats i knew this was the recipe we would try..... ours are cooling on the counter as i type!!!!! cant wait to devour them! thanks for the recipe!

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    1. we just split a warm scone from our batch........ oh goodness i may never buy another from whole foods again! THANK YOU FOR THIS SIMPLE AND DELICIOUS RECIPE!!!!

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  4. Made these tonight........my, oh, my....delicious....

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  5. THANKYOU THANKYOU THANKYOU....I WORK AT WFM AND LOVE THESE SCONES. MONTHS AGO I TRIED TO FIND THE RECIPE BUT COULD NOT...JUST NOW, WHEN I TURNED ON MY PHONE I GOT TO THIS SITE...FOR THE VERY SCONE I LOVE, AND BY THE WAY JUST FINISHED EATTING!!!!! CAN'T WAIT TO TRY IT!!!!!

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  6. Hi, I just had a Whole Foods oats and date scone for the first time today and it was sooo good. first thing i did when I came home was google a recipe and yours came up, I can't wait to give it a try, but was wondering what the orange zest was for? can i sub lemon zest? or leave it out completely? or would that change the flavor/ texture of the scone? i don't remember tasting anything "orangy" in the whole foods scone so basically i am wondering if it's essential to the recipe

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  7. These are amazing. I love you!

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  8. Thank you!! I just ate the scone from Whole Foods today, and I wanted to learn how to make it at home. Now I can! I can't wait to try out this recipe :-D

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  9. I had the Whole Foods vegan oatmeal walnut scone last week, and it was love at first bite. I'll be trying your version soon! Thank you!

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  10. Thankyou so much for this recipe. It came out wonderfully. I made 3 alterations. I used half the sugar, Earth Balance Organic Coconut spread, and only half the whole wheat pastry flour so used organic all purpose flour. Happy sconing!

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  11. I made this and they are very good.. going to make another batch today.

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  12. I have been addicted to their vegan datte nut scones. I used to have a love affair with their chocolate chip scones, but after I tried the vegan date nut scone (bc they were out or the chocolate chip scones), I slowly switched over to date nut and haven't looked back ;-) I was just thinking today how much cheaper it would be if I made my own. I look forward to making these scones. Thanks!

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  13. Vegan Oatmeal Walnut Date Scones?
    Order: One Dozen

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  14. How to Order Vegan Oatmeal Walnut Date Scones for delivery to Jacksonville Florida? Thank you

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  15. The Whole Foods near my house stopped selling these. Crushed, I browsed the internet for a recipe. This is a perfect replica (or perhaps even better)! I'm not vegan so I made them with butter for the vegan spread and kefir for the rice milk, and they came out delicious. Thank you!!!

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  16. Have made this both vegan and non-vegan--both were a delicious rendition of what was once a Whole Foods icon. Thank you for the recipe!

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  17. So excited to finally have this scone back in my life!!! I was crushed when Whole Foods stopping selling them. WOOHOO!

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