chocolate, cherry and almond scones

Name: Chocolate, Cherry and Almond Scones
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Yield: 16
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 5 cup(s) all purpose flour; 1/2 cup(s) sugar, plus more for topping; 2 tablespoon(s) baking powder; 2 teaspoon(s) kosher salt; 12 tablespoon(s) butter, cold, cubed; 1 1/2 cup(s) pitted, quartered fresh cherries (can use 2 cups if you like); 2 cup(s) heavy cream, plus more for topping; 2 large eggs, whisked smooth; 1 tablespoon(s) almond extract; 1/2 cup(s) sliced almonds; 4 ounce(s) chilled almond paste (optional); 3 ounce(s) high quality dark chocolate, 1/4 to 1/2" chop

review

Private Recipe by

Annacia *

@Annacia

Moose Jaw, SK

This one is an adaptable crowd pleaser with crunchy, toasted nuts on the outside and soft pockets of sweet almond paste, juicy cherries, and slightly bitter molten dark chocolate on the inside. You can easily scale the recipe up or down, depending on how many you need to feed, but I like to have some in the freezer for the occasional surprise visit.

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yield 16 serving(s)

prep time 30 Min

cook time 15 Min

method Bake

Ingredients For chocolate, cherry and almond scones

5 c

all purpose flour
1/2 c

sugar, plus more for topping
2 Tbsp

baking powder
2 tsp

kosher salt
12 Tbsp

butter, cold, cubed
1 1/2 c

pitted, quartered fresh cherries (can use 2 cups if you like)
2 c

heavy cream, plus more for topping
2 lg

eggs, whisked smooth
1 Tbsp

almond extract
1/2 c

sliced almonds
4 oz

chilled almond paste (optional)
3 oz

high quality dark chocolate, 1/4 to 1/2" chop

How To Make chocolate, cherry and almond scones

1
Pit and quarter the cherries. Rinse them under cold water until the liquid that runs off is noticeably clearer. Chop the almond paste finely. Chop the chocolate to preferred size, no larger than 1/2". Return the cherries and almond paste to the refrigerator.

2
Preheat your oven to 425 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment.
3
Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large steel bowl. Cut in the butter until there are no chunks larger than a small pea. The mix should look coarse. Whisk together the eggs, cream, and almond extract in a separate bowl.
4
Gently toss the quartered cherries and the chopped almond paste in the flour mixture until they are individually coated. Stir in the chocolate chunks.
5
Make a well in the flour mix and pour in the liquid ingredients. Gently fold to incorporate until the mixture has almost come together. Turn out on a floured surface and gently press the mixture into a cohesive mound, folding gently if there are any dry pockets left.
6
With a pastry scraper, divide the mound into two equal halves. Gently pat each into a circle approximately an inch and a half high. Slice each disc into 8 equal wedges. Transfer to the parchment lined baking sheets.
7
If baking immediately, brush the top of each scone with heavy cream. Top each with a few sliced almonds and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. If they're looking anemic, switch to convection for the last five, but watch them carefully! They probably won't take the full five minutes to get enough color and you don't want to burn the nuts. Serve warm.
8
If you're saving them for another time, cover tightly with plastic wrap and transfer to the freezer until frozen solid. Then transfer to an airtight plastic bag to save space. When cooking from frozen, reduce baking temp to 400 and increase baking time by 3 to 5 minutes.
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