Pumpkin Praline Chocolate Chip Scones

For many people, scones are like a religion. I’m serious. There are many different interpretations of any holy text, and likewise there are so many conflicting opinions as to what a scone actually is. Some people think of a scone as hard, thick, and seemingly stale. Others, on the other hand, consider the best scones to be biscuit-like, soft on the inside, buttery and delicious. Thankfully, these scones follow the latter-mentioned school of thought.

Another aspect of scones that is debated vehemently between different sects of the scone-baking religion is the process by which the best scones are made. Some believe the dough needs to be refrigerated, the tops of the scones need to be brushed with egg whites and sprinkled with turbinado sugar, and many other rites must be done, which I’m sure do yield great results, but all the extra steps and ingredients make the idea of baking scones seem daunting. These pumpkin praline chocolate chip scones were made under an alternative scone beliefs system, in which making scones is simple and there is no agonizing waiting for the dough to chill.

Finally, the last analogy between scones and religion is that scone-lovers are reverent of good scones, and zealously dig into the pastries, dutifully savoring each bite in the name of all things sconely. This tradition will be a pleasure to observe with these delightful, healthy pumpkin praline chocolate chip scones.

Pumpkin Praline Chocolate Chip Scones

based on Cranberry Scones from Sandra’s Easy Cooking

makes 14 medium-sized scones

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 tbsps baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsps salted butter (that’s what we happened to have in the house. I’m pretty sure unsalted would work too.)
• 1 tbsp all-vegetable shortening
• 3/4 cup Libby’s Pure Pumpkin
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp vanilla (I had planned to use a teaspoon but we ran out 😦 )
• Dash of cinnamon
• Dash of nutmeg
• 10 pecan pralines (I bought one of those cute little bags of pecan pralines in the food aisle at CVS. For more info on that experience, see this post.)
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees C). Spray a cookie sheet generously with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Mix thoroughly.

Cut in the butter and shortening. It is okay if there are still some small chunks of butter in the mixture.

Add the eggs and pure pumpkin. Beat the eggs into the mixture. Add vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg and mix until all the dry stuff has combined with the wet stuff. The dough will seem a bit sticky.

Plop the dough onto the prepared cookie sheet, and roll it out into a circle about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Use the combined forces of a sharp knife and your fingers to separate the circle into 14 separate balls. If you want smaller scones, I might even divide them up to 16 or so. Try to space them out evenly on the cookie sheet.

Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

May you have a spiritual and meaningful (and delicious!) scone eating experience. 🙂