Saturday, December 7, 2013

Mommy Time...Cherry Chocolate Scones

There are days, even weeks, that I need mommy time even more than others. My husband works long hours, sometimes ten hour days seven days a week. Which, of course, makes my time with my lil man overwhelming, especially five months into the little brother baking time.

Not everything is easy, and I understand that better than most people. Does that mean that I don't get Tina Fey's character in Date Night when she tells her husband about her fantasy? You know the one...a hotel room all to herself with a can of Sprite. Because I do.

But, sometimes I need to do something, and challenge myself. Some of my happiest memories involve being in the kitchen with my mom. Not having her around and being a mom has been incredibly hard....I miss her terribly, and there are days when I need to feel her around me.

So, this week, I took nap time to try something new. Scones.



I found this recipe in a catalog for my local grocery store, and thought chocolate and cherry scones from scratch? Oh yeah!

I tweaked the recipe a bit, substituting fat free half and half and adding dark chocolate chips. And, in reality, there was so much icing, that next time, I'll definitely cut that part in half...unless I have a few cookies just begging for something special...

Scones:

Double Chocolate Muffin Mix
1/2 Cup Flour
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Ginger
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
1/4 Cup Unsalted Butter
1/2 Cup Dried Cherries
Zest of 1/2 Orange
1/4 Cup + 3 Tablespoons Fat Free
Half and Half
1 Tablespoon Baking Cocoa
1/2 Cup Dark Chocolate Chips

Glaze:

1/4 Cup Fat Free Half and Half
Zest of 1/2 Orange
2 Tablespoons Baking Cocoa
Pinch of Salt
1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar

Preheat oven to 375. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray. Combine first five ingredients, then add cold butter in cubes with flour. Use a fork or pastry knife to mix while making butter into small pea-sized pieces. Add cherries, orange zest, and dark chocolate chips. Then, add half and half, dough will seem dry.

On flat surface (I used wax paper so that I could also flip an edge over to help kneaded the dough), dust with cocoa powder then knead for a few minutes. Shape into a circle, then cut into wedges (6-8, depending on how big you'd like). Place two inches apart on greased sheet, bake for eighteen to twenty minutes. Cool.

For glaze, combine ingredients and whisk until smooth. Once scones have cooled, drizzle on scones.

This recipe works with any muffin mix (blueberries, anyone?), and you can change the additions to suit your taste (crushed peppermint candy canes, white chocolate chips, dried raspberries)...

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