Sweet Potato-Blue Cheese Scones

Okay, so these aren't the most beautiful of scones...but they are sooooo delicious! They're perfect with a big bowl of soup. Great flavor and lots of veggies to boot. These have the perfect amount of whole wheat to be hearty without being heavy, and the blue cheese sets everything off with a delightful tang.

These are also perfect for the ARF/5-A-Day Roundup over at Sweetnicks. Go check out the other yummy fruit-and-veggie dishes there!

Sweet Potato-Blue Cheese Scones (from the Esalen Cookbook)
Makes approximately 1 million scones (a/k/a you might want to halve this)

1 large yellow onion
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 medium-sized sweet potatoes
8 oz. can artichoke hearts in water
1 3/4 c all-purpose flour
1 1/2 c whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp sea salt
pinch cayenne pepper
1 c unsalted butter
2 1/2 c grated Asiago cheese
1/2 pound crumbled blue cheese
2 T chopped fresh sage

1. Chop the onion into 1/2 inch dice and saute in a skillet with a small amount of oil until brown. Peel and chop the yams into 1/2 inch cubes and lightly steam until cooked but still firm. Drain artichoke hearts and cut into quarters. Put the onion, yams, and artichoke hearts in a large bowl and set aside.

2. Sift flours, baking soda and powder, salt, and cayenne into a mixing bowl. Cut butter into 1 inch chunks and then cut butter in to the dry ingredients. Butter should be about the size of peas or smaller. Gently fold in the Asiago cheese and half of the blue cheese.

3. Mix the sage into the yam mixture and fold the mixture into the dough. Briefly mix until the dough comes together. You may need to add a little water or milk to get everything to hold together. The dough will be chunky and have a sticky texture.

4. Scoop out portions of dough to the size of scones you would like. Place on a greased baking sheet. Flatten each scone a bit and make a small depression in the top. Place bits of blue cheese into the depression on each scone. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, until the scones are light brown. Serve warm or reheat leftovers in the toaster.