Scones

Ingredients

2 C flour

1/3 C sugar

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

1 C mini chocolate chips

1/3 C chilled unsalted butter

1 egg beaten

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 C heavy whipping cream (a few Tablespoons more is usually needed)

Procedure

Combine dry ingredients and then cut in the cold butter. (If you are using a food processor do not over process the flour and butter mixture. You want pea-sized and smaller lumps of butter.) Add the chocolate chips to the dry ingredients. Combine the wet ingredients and add them to the dry. Bring the dough together and lightly knead a few times on a lightly floured counter top like you are making biscuits. Form a circle with the dough (maybe 7-inch diameter?)and brush on a mixture of one egg with a tablespoon of cream added. Sprinkle tops of the scones with a coarse sugar if desired. Cut scones into eight pie-shaped pieces.

Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet at 375 degrees for 16-17 minutes until golden brown and not doughy in the center.

Special Notes

These are Susie's famous scones... yum

Almond dried cherry is very good too. Just use 1 tsp almond extract instead of the vanilla. Add a cup or more of chopped dried tart cherries and add sliced almonds a bit to the dough and the rest to coat the outside of the scones. I like to add white chocolate to these too.

Almond Joy is a favorite too. Add 1 C 60% dark chocolate chips, 1/2 C lightly toasted coconut, and 1 tsp almond extract.

Other ideas....dried blueberries, cinnamon raisin pecan, white chocolate cherry, nuts of all sorts, apricot.......

I made pumpkins scones by adding 3/4 C of pumpkin puree, 1 tsp cinnamon, a little ginger, and nutmeg. I reduced the cream to about 1/4 C. The dough was softer than usual but the scones turned out fine. I also would add pecans.

Recipe modified from The Joy of Cooking.