Banana Scones

I baked these a little while ago. Excellent.

Start with this recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/scones/

3 c. all purpose flour (not bread or pastry)
5 tsp baking powder (not soda)
1/2 tsp salt (not kosher)
3/4 cup shortening (butter would taste better but is plenty expensive)
1 c. milk
1 egg

Then modify it.
1/2 tsp Allspice
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch each of cloves and nutmeg
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 ripe banana

Flour, sugar, baking powder and salt are all right as they are. Add spices, then stir dry ingredients with a fork BEFORE adding any wet ones. Swap butter for butter crisco, cut into mix. Add mashed banana, cut into it as well. Add wet ingredients (milk, egg, vanilla) and stir. Mix will rapidly thicken into a heavy paste. This is fine.

Instead of kneading, use two large spoons to drop plum sized lumps of batter onto greased cookie sheet, 12 to a sheet. The edges will bake together but they still separate easily. Increase cooking time to 17 minutes but keep it to 400'F, center rack.

Serve with bitter tea or coffee. If you happen to have the makings for a bitter chocolate mocha, use that, or a pumpkin pie spice mocha. The outside is crisp, the inside tender like cake. Ideal for a cold Fall morning.

Total prep time is about 25 minutes including baking.


UPDATE:
Enhance the above recipe with 1/4 cup Greek yoghurt. I used honey, but vanilla would work too.
Add: 2 T chopped dried apricots
2 T dried cranberries
2 T semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips

The end product is more flavorful than cake and has better texture, and the sour apricot and cranberries and bitter chocolate form a nice balance to the sweetness of the scone and banana. Bake time is the same.