Ingredients
Caramel sauce
Topping
Method
1.Make caramel sauce, then topping.
2.Preheat oven to 220°C (200°C fan forced). Grease a large oven tray, line with baking paper.
3.Peel, core and chop apples into 2cm (3/4-inch) pieces. Place apples in a small saucepan with sugars, spices and the water, stir to combine. Bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low, cook, covered, for 10 minutes or until apples are tender. Cool. Drain apples, discard liquid.
4.Meanwhile, combine flour and extra caster sugar in a large bowl, rub in butter until mixture resembles crumbs. Add buttermilk, using a dinner knife, cut through mixture mixing to a soft dough. Bring dough together gently on a well-floured surface until no longer sticky.
5.Roll out dough on a well-floured piece of baking paper into a 20cm x 40cm (8-inch x 16-inch) rectangle. Position the dough so a long side is in front of you. Spread apple mixture evenly over dough, leaving a 2cm (¾-inch) border on the long side closest to you, scatter with nuts, then drizzle with ¼ cup of the caramel sauce. Using the paper as an aid, roll up dough firmly from the long side, carefully place roll on tray, bringing the two ends together to form a ring. Using a sharp knife, cut eight equally spaced slits into the outside of the ring, towards the centre, cutting three quarters of the way in, (refer to image as a guide). Brush scone ring with buttermilk, sprinkle with topping.
6.To make caramel sauce, stir ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Simmer for 5 minutes or until thickened slightly.
7.Bake ring for 20 minutes, cover loosely with foil halfway through cooking to prevent over browning. Serve scone pull-a-part warm, drizzled with warmed caramel sauce and roasted pecans.
TOPPING Combine ingredients in a small bowl. The dough is quite soft so it does need to be handled gently. If you have trouble, or it’s a hot day, refrigerate the dough at any stage for about 15 minutes for it to firm-up.
Note
