We are always dreaming up new scone ideas, and this one came to us recently! Chocolate croissants are a popular breakfast treat, so why not chocolate with scones? We figured it could work for breakfast or dessert! They are really delicious with a little drizzle of chocolate ganache and sprinkled with Swedish pearl sugar, which makes everything more fun and just a little sweeter! Scones are really easy to make and we hope you’ll add these to your morning menu!
We generally use the same basic dough for all of our sweet scones and then add different fruits, nuts, sweets, and flavorings. For these scones, we used Guittard’s coconut sugar-sweetened dark chocolate chips, and Trader Joe’s dark chocolate for the ganache. We also added toasted chopped pecans in the scone dough. We are huge pecan fans, and if you love nuts like we do, then by all means add them, but if not, just go with the chocolate. If you’re in the mood for making a big batch of scones, why not double it and freeze them for another time. They store well in the refrigerator and they freeze beautifully in baggies or airtight containers for several weeks, anyway.
When it comes to making ganache you can use either the microwave or the stovetop method. If you use the microwave, be sure to set the time for a little less rather than a little more than you need. You can always add more time if you need it to heat up the cream, but it’s hard to add less! So, we start with about one minute to heat the milk and go from there. And of course no two microwaves heat the exact same way, nor do they operate the same. You know when you use an unfamiliar microwave, your first question is always … how the heck do I turn on this microwave?! So, you will have to test this with your equipment at home to get the exact amount of time that works in your kitchen! You need it warm enough to melt the chopped chocolate or chocolate chips, but you don’t want to boil it. If you heat the cream over the stove, just heat it to scalding (just before boiling) and then add it to the chocolate. Stir until everything is well blended. Then cool it to room temperature before drizzling over the cooled scones.
Dark Chocolate Chip Scones
Ingredients
Scones:
- 2 1/4 cups flour
- 6 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 stick butter (4 oz.) cold and cut into small 1/2-inch cube pieces
- 3/4 heavy cream half and half, or milk (your choice)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup *toasted pecan pieces instructions for toasting pecans in recipe below
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips
- 2 tbsp. Swedish pearl sugar
Dark Chocolate Ganache
- 4 oz. dark chocolate chips or dark chocolate bar cut into small bits
- 4 oz. heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425⁰. Prepare a baking sheet with cooking spray or parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. With a pastry cutter, or your fingertips, cut butter into flour mixture until well blended and butter is reduced to tiny pea-size pieces. Stir dark chocolate chips and toasted pecans into the flour mixture.
- In a glass measuring cup mix cream and vanilla extract. With a large fork or spoon, stir cream into the flour-butter mixture. Blend well. (If you need a little more cream to form the dough into a ball, add just a tablespoon at a time.) Form into a ball, and on a floured cutting board, press the ball into a flat circle with your hands. The circle should be about 10-inches in diameter and roughly one-inch thick.
- Using a long knife, cut the dough into 12 even triangles and place them on the prepared baking sheet. Or, if you prefer larger scones, cut the circle into 6 or 8 even triangles.
- Place scones on prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for approximately 10-12 minutes, or until tops begin to turn golden-brown. Remove from oven and cool completely.
- *To toast the pecans, put them in the oven or toaster oven at about 325° F for approximately 5-7 minutes, or just until fragrant and beginning to look slightly browned. Be sure to set a timer and keep your eye on them, becasue the timing from perfect to burned is very short! I cannot tell you have many batches of nuts I have burned!!! You can buy a whole bag from Costco and toast them all at one time, while you have time to focus and then store them for later use. They are awesome in salads, topping soups, or eating all by themselves for snacking!
Make the Ganache
- While the scones are baking, it's time to make the ganache. Heat the heavy cream in a glass bowl in the microwave for about 1 minute, or just enough to be hot, but not boiling. Remove from microwave.
- Now, heat the chocolate chips in the microwave for about 30 seconds, just enough to warm them up and begin to melt.
- Pour the hot cream over the heated chocolate and stir until well integrated. Cool to lukewarm before drizzling over the scones.
- Using a pastry bag or a spoon, drizzle the ganache over the cooled scones. Immediately sprinkle the Swedish pearl sugar over the top of the ganache.
- Eat right away, or if you plan to store them, allow the ganache to set up or refrigerate for about 20 minutes, before wrapping them up for storing. These store very well in both the freezer and the refrigerator. Just place them in an airtight container with a lid or in baggies. When you reheat the scones for serving, heat them in a low temperature oven, maybe 300 F for 10-15 minutes or until edges are crispy and scones are heated through.