Chocolate Doesn’t Last Forever

And neither does cream, that is why I was compelled, compelled, I say, to make some milk chocolate pecan scones. Woe is me!

My favorite type of scone is a cream scone, and I like them flaky, not cakey. Scones are a great way to use up buttermilk or cream, fruit, zest, and of course, chocolate. You see, chocolate doesn’t last forever – you have to use it up, especially white chocolate, which has a shorter shelf life. Dorie Greenspan’s scone recipe is wonderful, and I have used variations of it several times, but I wanted to try something different.

So, I found myself with several large hunks of milk and white chocolates left over from my voluminous Christmas baking, and a pint of cream which was screaming that its expiration date had just passed. I got to work, and after consulting several books, I came up with the following recipe.

I decided to live on the wild side and used Buttery Sweet Dough Flavor from King Arthur Flour for the flavoring instead of vanilla extract. The scones were fantastic, with rave reviews from Master Chow, a die-hard walnut fan! Will wonders never cease? The great thing about scones is that the raw dough freezes really well, so you can make and shape them, then pop them in the freezer (well wrapped), to bake whenever the urge hits you.

A couple of hints/thoughts: (1) Don’t overwork the dough. (2) If you don’t have a food processor, a great way to incorporate the butter is to use a box grater and grate the frozen butter into the dough. (3) You can make 6 or 8 scones. I flattened out the dough a bit more than I normally would, and made 8 because our sugar intake has risen alarmingly between Tuesdays with Dorie and the Daring Bakers.   Recipe after the jump . . .

Chocolate Pecan Scones

2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
3-4 Tbsp. sugar (use the lesser amount for less sweetness), plus 2 Tbsp. to sprinkle on top of scones
1 Tbsp. baking powder
zest of one lemon (2 tsp. of grated orange zest instead of lemon would be great in this)
1/4 tsp. salt
4 Tbsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces and frozen
1 large egg
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, plus 2 Tbsp. for glaze
1 tsp. Buttery Sweet Dough Flavor
3/4 cup chopped milk or semisweet chocolate
3/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Position rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Butter a baking sheet, or line with parchment paper or a silpat.

In the bowl of a food processor, place the flour, the 3-4 Tbsp. of sugar, baking powder, zest, and salt, and pulse several times. Add the frozen butter and pulse until the mixture is crumbly, but don’t go overboard – you want little bits of butter throughout the mixture.

In a separate container, place the egg, 1/2 cup of whipping cream, butter, buttery sweet dough flavor (or use vanilla extract instead) and beat with a fork until mixed. Pour through feed tube of the food processor and pulse a few times until just barely combined. Do not overmix.

Turn dough out onto floured board, and mix in chocolate and pecans. Pat dough into a disk about 1 to 1-1/2 inches thick. Cut the dough into six pie wedges, and place them on the baking sheet.

Brush the top of the scones with the remaining cream and sprinkle with the 2 Tbsp. of sugar. Do not let the cream run down the sides of the scone – this can retard rising. Bake until golden brown and firm to the touch, about 20 minutes. Baking time may vary according to your oven, so be sure to check a bit earlier. The raw scones freeze well. You can bake them straight from the freezer, but be sure to adjust the baking time.