Roast Pear and Chocolate Scones, for Breakfast.

So, Northern California was a rainy mess the other week. But, alas, a rainy mess does not stop a farmers market from happening. So, despite the rain being heavy enough to put the area under flash flood warning, we set up our stand, and stood outside selling organic produce. My partner at the stand, and myself, were soaked through. Needless to say, when I got home all I wanted was tasty and filling warm food. And a Hot Toddy. Because, I've suddenly realized Hot Toddy's are tasty and warming. My friend Frances has to be credited with the Hot Toddy revelation. She drinks them often. I'm quite sure if you want to know where the best Hot Toddy in San Francisco is, Fran is your gal. Although, frankly she's likelier to tell you it's best to just come cozy up in her kitchen with the kettle on, and she'll make one. Probably whilst feeding you some delicious baked good. Go Fran. On Sunday I drank my wonderful Hot Toddy, accompanied by a fresh pepper pasta dish. It cured me. It did not cure the need to eat tasty filling food and drink Hot Toddies. That's in full swing, as evidenced by the fact that I awoke on Monday morning (Monday is effectively my Saturday), poked around on a food blog, and by 8:40 had already decided I was making Roast Pear and Chocolate Scones. This is despite the fact that I was missing 1/3 of the main ingredients, I make an attempt not to include chocolate in breakfast, don't really bake generally, and had never made scones before. But don't "Roast Pear and Chocolate Scones" sound like they could just cure anything? By 9 I was coring some Bosc Pears.


 I wasn't even that sure how to core a pear. I looked online and it said to use a teaspoon measure to scoop out the seed studded middle of the pear, and then cut the stem out with a knife. Easy enough. I chopped the pears, popped them in the oven to roast, and walked to the market to get the missing ingredients. The city was glowing in the sun, post rain. I then came home and commenced making scones.

Scones that were so tasty. So so tasty. So tasty, that out of the six I made, I ate five. Dean snagged one. Now that's not usually the way I roll. I'm more of a large dinner, light breakfast person. A health shake for breakfast person. Maybe a fried egg and rice if I'm really hungry. I've been known to grab a pastry for breakfast, after yoga. Nope. I did none of that. I simply ate these scones. No yoga. The recipe is from Deb Perleman of Smitten Kitchen, and I think Deb is amazing. I mean, the woman made the recipe for these scones, and convinced me I too could make them. Genius. I've since made Apple and Cheddar scones, which are also delicious. I managed to only eat one and a half, because I froze most of the dough and only baked two. I feel that's progress.  



Roast Pear and Chocolate Scones

3 firm Pears (I used Bosc)
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar plus more for sprinkling
1 1/2 teaspoons  baking powder
1/2 teaspoon  table salt plus additional for egg wash
6 tablespoons  cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1/4 cup  heavy cream
1/4 cup  semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped (or chips)
2 large eggs, 1 for dough, 1 for glaze

 Pre-heat your oven to 375. Peel the pears, core them and chop into bitesize pieces. Place them on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Remove them from the oven and let them cool. Placing them in the fridge will speed this up. Leave your oven on. Next in a large bowl, mix the flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt. Then add in the butter. I don't have any kind of electrical mixer so I chopped the butter and incorporated it into the flour by hand. Then add the egg, heavy cream, and pears. Mix with a wooden spoon till everything just about comes together. Add the chocolate chips and mix a little more. Take care not to over mix the dough. 

Take the dough, and on a well floured counter top, press it into a 6 inch round. Then cut the round into 6 triangles. At this point you can freeze the scones, and just bake one at a time whenever you're in the mood for them. This is recommended to avoid eating all of them in one go. When ready to bake the scones, brush them with a glaze of 1 whisked egg, 1tsp water and a pinch of salt. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.