A few months back, my aunt and uncle got me a Kitchenaid Stand Mixer as a graduation gift. I wanted to make them something as a small thank-you, so I asked for requests. In response, they said either raisin scones or banana bread would do.

Now, if you’re a regular reader you’ll know that I’m pretty anti-raisin, but very pro-banana bread. So I mixed the best of both worlds. Being unfamiliar with how to bake scones, I was afraid of them turning out too crumbly, dry and dense. To my recollection, I don’t even know if I’ve ever tasted a scone. I figured if I used bananas, it would give me a safe cushion to work with—they’re moist, add flavour and change things up a bit.

I followed this recipe from The Kitchn, and have added a couple of small notes alongside the recipe that I hope you’ll find useful. Full disclosure: I made these the week I had my wisdom teeth removed so I couldn’t really try them, but my boyfriend, aunt and uncle all had good things to say.

Ingredients

Makes 8 scones

For the scones:

• 2-3 very ripe or thawed frozen bananas (about 1 cup mashed)
• 2-4 tbsp. milk
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 tbsp. white granulated sugar
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 4 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

For the glaze:

• 1 tbsp. salted butter
• 2 tbsp. milk
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4-3/4 cup confectioner’s sugar

Method

Mash the bananas and then add enough milk to make one total cup (if necessary). Stir in the yogurt and set aside.

Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and ground cinnamon in a large bowl. Work the cubed butter into the dry ingredients using a fork, pastry cutter, your fingers or a mixer until no large pieces of butter remain.

Pour the banana-yogurt mixture into the bowl with the flour and stir just enough to incorporate all of the flour. Fold in the walnuts, if using. This will make a fairly wet dough.

Line a dinner plate with a piece of wax paper, lightly grease it, and turn the dough out on top. Pat it into a disk about 1-inch thick and cover with another piece of greased wax paper. Place the plate in the freezer and leave the dough for about 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Peel off the top layer of wax paper and invert the scones onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Peel off the second layer of wax paper. Slice the scones into eight wedges (you can use a pizza cutter, plain dental floss or a regular knife) and pull them apart a little to give them some room to expand. If the scones are sticky as mine were, pat the tops and bottoms very lightly with flour so they can maneuver easier. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the scones are firm to the touch and turning golden brown on the edges. Transfer to a wire rack to allow the scones to cool completely and cut apart any scones that baked together with a sharp knife.

To make the glaze, melt the butter and the milk in the microwave for 30 seconds. Add the brown sugar and vanilla, and stir until the sugar has melted (heat for an additional 15-30 seconds in the microwave if necessary—careful not to overdo it). Whisk in the confectioner’s sugar, starting with 1/4 cup. Add more confectioner’s sugar if desired to make a thicker glaze. I did since I was afraid it would be too drippy, and it turned out perfectly.

Just before serving, drizzle the glaze over the scones. The glaze hardens fairly quickly; it only takes a minute or two. You can either serve the glaze right away or store it for later.

The glaze can make the scones a bit sticky/less fresh if kept for longer than a few hours, so store any scones to be eaten later un-glazed. When you want to glaze them later, just heat up the mixture for 30 seconds or so and it will be ready to be drizzled.