Chocolate Chunk Scones

Where oh where have I been.  I can't believe it has been so long since I updated here and frankly, I'm fairly disgusted with myself.  I had so many great ideas and such a flurry of energy going too.  Then, just ppppbbbbllltttt - nothin' - bad day turned into bad week and so on.  Sorry!!

I have no good reason since it's just the way my life is and it's really nothing new.  I just had a funk I guess, and a bit of angst and self-pity followed by a healthy dose of self-loathing for the pity party.  Lame.

I think that is the key problem right there though.  No free time and a complete lack of motivation with myself.  Do you ever just have those times where life gets so overwhelming that you just want to shut it all down and give up on even trying?  Yeah. I told you it was a real pity party.  I didn't feel like sharing my lousy attitude at the time, but I feel like I'm starting to rebound so now I'm back!

Anyway, I don't really mean to bore you with all the details here about kids and school and work and life and doctors appointments and colds and sick kids and stress and blah blah blah, because, frankly, I'm tired of it all and that's what I come here to try to get away from.

What I DO want to share with you is this recipe for Chocolate Chunk Scones - a surefire way to help yank yourself out of pity party doldrums.  Besides, I'm sincerely hoping that, like me, you can be bribed into forgiveness.  I brought chocolate after all. Heavens knows it works on me! ;)

Slather a little cherry or raspberry jam on your scone for an extra little treat!

I made these scones a while back and they were so heavenly.  Light, fluffy, chocolatey, not too sweet and so melt-in-your-mouth tender - just like a good scone should be as far as I'm concerned.

I upped the ante with my scones by using really good bittersweet chocolate chunks.  The sugar topping was an additional super fun component too though.  I had some Swedish Pearl Sugar I picked up a while back and have been hoarding a bit.  It was so fun to use and the kiddos got a real kick out of it.  They thought it looked like little snowballs on top of the scones.

As far as I'm concerned, baked treats are good all of the time, but there's just something about the Fall weather that really makes me want to have something warm from the oven for breakfast.  These chocolate chunk scones definitely fit the bill!

Chocolate Chunk Scone Recipe

Adapted from the King Arthur Flour website

2 1/2 cups cake flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

3/4 cup heavy cream

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons pure vanilla

9 ounces semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chunks

sugar pearls or raw sugar for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Line or lightly grease a baking sheet.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder.  Add the butter pieces and using your fingertips or a pastry cutter blend the butter into the flour until the mixture is unevenly crumbly.

In another bowl whisk together heavy cream, eggs, and vanilla.  Set aside 2 tablespoons of the mixture to use as a wash on the outside of the scones before baking.  Add the rest of the cream-egg-vanilla mixture to the dry ingredients along with the chocolate chunks.  Toss together with your hands or a fork to mix and form a moist dough.

Transfer the sticky dough to a well floured rolling mat or other work surface.  Gently pat and round the dough into a 7-inch circle.  Cut the circle into 8 equal triangle portions using a sharp knife.  Use a spatula to place the scones onto the baking sheet, leaving about 2-inches between triangles on the sheet.  Brush the scones with the reserved egg/cream mixture, then sprinkle heavily with the pearl or raw sugar.

Bake the scones for 22 to 25 minutes, until golden brown.  Remove the pan from the oven and serve them warm.  Keep them stored in an airtight container.