I fell in love with Jess’ blog, Cupcakes and Kale back in October. She was like one of the cool kids and I found myself tinid in my attempt to “hang” with her.  What first caught my eye was her Creamy Cauliflower Alfredo Pasta–I was 2 months new to the whole vegan cooking and this recipe blew my mind. Find your way over to Jess’ blog–her recipes are beautiful, keeping health in mind; and her photos will have you licking the screen.

hello there dear fork & beans readers!  i’m oh so happy to be here today on forks and beans!  like many of you, i came to know cara through her vegan mofo creativity last fall and i’ve been been coming back ever since for daily doses of her wit, amazing spirit and just all around sweet self.  {and the sweet treats she’s always coming up with… those don’t hurt either.}

a few months back i shared a recipe for the most amazing scones on cupcakes and kale.  bursting with a light, lemony flavour and melt in your mouth crumbs, they were simply such a great start to my day that i had to name them good morning lemon scones.  however for those with gluten sensitivities i figured they wouldn’t make for such a great start… but then right around that same time a certain someone named cara asked me to do a guest post - and um, hello, of course i said yes!  so i thought the kind thing to do would be to make these new household favourites gluten-free as a thank you.  thus, i present you with the new and improved, good morning gluten-free lemon scones!

good morning gluten free lemon scones
makes 10-12 

  • 1 cup gluten-free flour blend {i used bob’s redmill}
  • 1/2 cup brown rice flour
  •  1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 3/4 tsp xanthan gum
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 4 oz vegan shortening {1 earth balance stick}
  • 1 flax egg {1 tbsp ground flaxmeal + 3 tbsp hot water: mix & wait 5 minutes}
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • scant* 1/2 cup almond milk + 1 tbsp
  • 1 tsp organic cane sugar

*all told you want a 1/2 cup of liquid, so add your lemon juice to a measuring cup and then top it up to 1/2 cup with the almond milk.

directions
preheat your oven to 400f.  in a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients.  using a pastry cutter {or if you don’t have one, you can use 2 forks like i did} cut in the shortening.  add in the flax egg and mix lightly, followed by the zest and milk/lemon juice mixture.  mix until the dry ingredients are just incorporated.  the dough will be very wet and sticky and that’s just fine.

flour your hands & working surface well and gently form the dough into a round and pat it down to about 3/4″ in thickness.  using a well-floured biscuit or cookie cutter {i used one 2.5″ in diameter} cut out scones one at a time and place them onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.  form together the scraps, pat out again and cut out more scones until you’ve used all of the dough.  alternatively, you can also form your scones by cutting them with a well-floured knife as i did with these pumpkin scones.

finally, brush each scone with the remaining 1 tablespoon of almond milk and sprinkle the sugar over them all – this step is totally optional but the almond milk wash makes them nice and shiny, and a little sugar crunch never hurts!

bake for 12-15 minutes et voila!

these are best enjoyed still warm from the oven, so don’t resist the temptation to nibble on one straight from baking sheet {trust me, it’s worth it} and they’re also perfect with a little jam.  so make them for brunch, share them with friends, or eat them all yourself.  i won’t judge.  good morning indeed!