Chocolate Scones

Last year I posted a scone recipe and told anyone who read the post that if they had only eaten dry, hard scones, then they needed to try the ones I made. I still stand by that comment. After the success of my almond scones, I tried some new recipes. Here is one of my favorites. Decadent, rich, chock full of chocolate flavor, these scones will melt in your mouth and make you want to reach for another one.


Chocolate Scones

▪ 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
▪ 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
▪ ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
▪ 1½ teaspoons baking powder
▪ ½ teaspoon baking soda
▪ ¼ teaspoon salt
▪ 1¼ sticks (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces
▪ 5 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped into 1/3-in. to 1/2-in. pieces (1 cup)
▪ 1 large whole egg, plus 1 large egg yolk
▪ ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream
▪ sanding sugar, for sprinkling

Line a baking sheet with parchment; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with a few larger clumps remaining. Fold in the chocolate.

Whisk together the whole egg and 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon cream. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture; using a rubber spatula, fold in, working in all directions and incorporating crumbs at the bottom of the bowl, until dough just comes together.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured pastry cloth (or other work surface). Divide dough in half and gently pat into two circles about 1 inch thick. Using a sharp knife or a pastry wheel, cut the circles into eight equal sized wedges. Place wedges about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze until the dough is very firm, at least 1 hour or overnight. (At this point, you can freeze the unbaked scones in a resealable plastic bag until ready to bake, up to 3 weeks.)

Preheat the oven to 375ºF. In a small bowl, lightly beat the egg yolk with the remaining tablespoon of heavy cream; brush over the tops of the scones and sprinkle generously with sanding sugar. Bake on parchment lined cookie sheet, rotating sheet halfway through, until the sugar on top of the scones is golden all over, or a cake tester inserted in the center of a scone comes out clean, 25-30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. They are best eaten the day they are baked.


Notes:
It is important not to overwork scones. This is what make them tough. Handle them as little as possible. If the edges are a little ragged, that's ok!

What I love is that these are make ahead morning treats. All you have to do on the morning you need them is preheat your oven and bake as many as you want! Bake them right out of the freezer, DO NOT THAW! And if you aren't making the whole batch at once, you can even just brush cream, no egg yolk, over the top before sprinkling on the sugar. Also, check at 20 minutes - occasionally a smaller scone will bake this quickly.