Roasted Pear and Chocolate Chip Scones

Happy holiday season, y'all!  You're probably planning on bringing treats to your office, or will attend some sort of potluck event during the coming weeks.  Rather than bringing some Christmas-themed sugar cookies, why don't you try something new?  How about some sophisticated pastries with roasted pears and dark chocolate?

Try Smitten Kitchen's Roasted Pear and Chocolate Chunk Scones!  They're wonderfully flaky and just barely sweet.  The pears add some moisture, while the chocolate chips get all melty and gooey.  I made a few changes; mostly added more flour, and used half-and-half instead of heavy cream.  Cut the dough into 8 triangles, and you can freeze any unused dough overnight and throw it in a bag until you're ready to bake them up.  Just do the egg glaze before baking, and add a few more minutes to the cooking time.

Roasted Pear and Chocolate Chunk Scones by Smitten Kitchen

3 firmish pears
3 c. all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
1/4 c. granulated sugar plus 1 1/2 Tbsp. granulated or coarse for sprinkling
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
6 Tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1/4 c. half-and-half
1/2 c. chocolate chips
2 large eggs, 1 for dough, 1 for glaze

1. Heat oven to 375°F. Peel and core pears. Cut into 1-inch chunks. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange pear chunks on parchment and roast until they feel dry to the touch and look a little browned underneath, about 30 minutes. Slide parchment paper with pear chunks onto a cooling rack (or onto a plate in the fridge or freezer to speed this up) and cool to lukewarm. Leave oven on. Line baking sheet with another piece of parchment.

2. Whisk flour, baking powder, 1/4 cup sugar and salt together in the bowl of an electric mixer. Toss in cooled pear chunks, bits of butter, half-and-half and 1 egg. With the paddle attachment, mix the dough on low speed until it just comes together. Don’t overmix. Add the chocolate chips and mix for 5 seconds more.

3. On a very well floured counter, pat out dough into an 8-inch round. Cut into 8 generous wedges and transfer to baking sheet at least two inches apart. Whisk remaining egg in a small dish with 1 teaspoon of water and a pinch of salt. Brush each scone with egg wash and sprinkle with remaining tablespoon of sugar.

4. Bake scones until firm and golden, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack.