Raspberry and White Chocolate Scones

 

I hope you like raspberries and white chocolate!

When I sent Sam and her dad to the local berry farm for strawberries on the 4^th, they came back with a half-flat of not just strawberries but raspberries, too. Usually I make raspberry freezer jam, or have time to bake and play in the kitchen. This week however, we’re in the middle of preparations with Sam’s sister Becca to move her to Arizona and I couldn’t fathom how I was going to make use of those delicate raspberries.

So after all the Independence Day food and fun was over, I looked for raspberry recipes. Not just any raspberry recipe, though. My requirements were:  easy, baked, and with white chocolate.

I found two competing recipes for Raspberry White Chocolate Scones,  recipe number 1 and recipe number 2, so I do what I always do and got creative! I compared them item by item, and chose what I knew would be the combination and proportions of ingredients I wanted … this time anyway.

I went with the least sugar and highest salt, so the dough would contrast more with the white chocolate. I went with the most raspberries; always a good idea! And I went with the simplest directions.

I used real white chocolate; you can use vanilla baking chips if you want. I am a self-confessed chocolate snob. I like my white chocolate to actually be white chocolate, which contains cocoa butter. I usually keep Baker’s White Chocolate squares  on hand as the best trade-off between snobbery and price ;)  It is actually very good white chocolate, and the fact that it is packaged like baking supplies means people don’t usually eat it all for treats!

I think white chocolate has to be one of my favorite baking ingredients. It doesn’t take over from other flavors, but it enriches them with its sweet, almost-buttery flavor.  When I chopped the white chocolate, I used a fork to pick up the chunks for the recipe. All the small bits left I kept to sprinkle over the top of the scones hot out of the oven. Mmmm, melty!

Scones are not the place to try for low-fat adaptations. Be sure to use the full amount of butter or they won’t be scones and they won’t be moist! I wanted them to be fluffy and steamy straight from the oven and stay moist through the day, so I made sure to fluff in enough of the milk…

… then I realized the abundance of berries was going to add even more liquid. Therefore, my scone dough spread more than usual as it baked, and the consistency was slightly muffin-like. Oh darn ;)  Sometimes getting creative with recipes means unexpected results.

The chunks of white chocolate are a delightful insinuation of creamy sweetness into the tartness of the baked raspberries, and the sugar-crusted top gives a crunch that distracts you from the raspberry seeds. The sprinkle of the white chocolate crumbs over the top reminds you to pay attention for the larger chunks inside.

Sure enough, the tender dough, when I could find bits that weren’t loaded with berries or white chocolate, was not too sweet and had just the right saltiness that I was looking for. It was not an “Oh, salty dough!” thing, it was a “Mmm, this is a great balance with the white chocolate and raspberries.”

 

Raspberry and White Chocolate Scones

(although somewhat un-scone-like)

2 to 3 oz white chocolate, chopped to equal ½ c. or ½ c. white baking chips

Set aside the shavings and crumbs from chopping the white chocolate

1 ½ c. fresh raspberries (use at least 1 c. but not more than 1 ½ c.)

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2 c. all-purpose unbleached flour

1/3 c. sugar

2 ½ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp baking soda

¾ tsp salt

8 Tbsp (1 stick) butter, very cold and sliced into pieces

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½ c. sour cream

4 – 8 Tbsp milk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease, spray, or line with parchment a baking sheet or 12” pizza pan.

Cut the butter into the combined dry ingredients using your preferred method. Gently toss in the white chocolate and raspberries. Combine 4 Tbsp. milk with the sour cream; gently toss ingredients to combine them into a moist crumbly mixture. Add additional milk 1 Tbsp. at a time as needed to incorporate the dry ingredients.

In the bowl, gently gather dough together, handling as little as possible. It will be sticky. Turn it out onto the pan and pat into a disk about 8” across. I made mine a little thinner in the middle, thicker at the edges. If your dough is not too sticky, cut the disk into 8 sections, leaving them in place.

Sprinkle top with 1-2 Tbsp sugar. Bake about 15 minutes until edges are golden and the middle is done when tested with a toothpick. Sprinkle with any reserved white chocolate crumbs.

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You should mix up a batch of these marvelous Raspberry and White Chocolate Scones and enjoy those fresh raspberries while they last! If you want to go to a bit more trouble and keep most of your raspberries intact, use the prep instructions from the second recipe link above.

If you have a fresh raspberry recipe to share, I’d love to give it a try! (especially if it also includes white chocolate…)

Gail