Ingredients
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon Chinese 5-Spice powder
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons chilled, unsalted butter
3/4 cup spiced pecans, chopped
6 ounces chocolate, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces (I used Ghirardelli semi-sweet, but you can use whichever brand or cocoa percentage you love)
1 cup heavy cream
Instructions
Heat oven to 425 degrees with a rack in the middle position
Place flour, baking powder, sugar, spices and salt in large bowl. Whisk together. If using a particularly sticky batch of pecans, mix with some flour.
Use a pastry blender or two knives and quickly cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few slightly larger butter lumps. Add pecans and chocolate, mixing to prevent clumping.
Stir in most of the heavy cream with a spatula and mix until a dough forms.
Transfer dough to countertop and add the leftover cream to the bowl to help scrap up leftover floury bits, then add that to rest of the dough. Knead dough by hand just until it comes together into a rough, sticky ball. Press ball flat on a lightly floured work surface and form scones how you like.
Transfer wedges or rounds to an ungreased baking sheet and bake until tops begin to lightly brown, roughly 13-15 minutes. Remove from oven and let scones cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Key Points About Ingredients:
- Chinese 5-Spice powder is a bold blend of star anise, cloves, cinnamon, Sichuan pepper, and fennel — just half a teaspoon adds a complex, warming depth that elevates these scones far beyond the ordinary.
- Spiced pecans add a satisfying crunch and a layer of sweet heat; if your pecans are especially sticky or glazed, toss them lightly in flour before mixing to prevent clumping in the dough.
- Using chilled, unsalted butter and working it in quickly is the secret to flaky, tender scones — warm butter melts into the dough instead of creating those desirable steam pockets that give scones their lift.
- Heavy cream acts as both the fat and the liquid in this recipe, producing an exceptionally rich, moist crumb that keeps the scones from drying out even after they cool.
- Chopping your chocolate by hand into rough quarter-inch pieces means you get irregular shards and melty pockets throughout each scone, far superior to uniform chocolate chips.
Key Nutritional Insights:
- Each scone provides a meaningful source of energy from the combination of butter, heavy cream, chocolate, and pecans, making them a satisfying indulgence best enjoyed in moderation.
- Pecans contribute heart-healthy monounsaturated fats as well as manganese and copper, two trace minerals important for antioxidant function and connective tissue health.
- Semi-sweet chocolate adds a small but notable amount of iron and magnesium per serving, along with flavonoid antioxidants associated with cardiovascular benefits.
- The heavy cream and butter contribute saturated fat, so pairing one scone with a piece of fruit or a protein-rich beverage can help round out the nutritional profile of your snack.
- These scones contain no trans fats when made with natural butter, as the small amount of naturally occurring trans fats in dairy is structurally different from industrially produced trans fats.
Nutrition Facts
- Serving Size1
- Amount per serving
- Calories320
- Standard DV% Daily Value*
- Total Fat21 g72 g29.17%
- Saturated Fat10 g20 g50%
- Trans Fat0 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat3 g
- Monounsaturated Fat7 g
- Cholesterol38 mg300 mg12.67%
- Sodium178 mg2300 mg7.74%
- Total Carbohydrate30 g275 g10.91%
- Dietary Fiber2 g28 g7.14%
- Total Sugars11 g
- Added Sugars9 g50 g18%
- Sugar Alcohal0 g
- Protein4 g50 g8%
- Vitamin D (Cholecalciferol)12 mcg20 mcg60%
- Calcium72 mg1300 mg5.54%
- Iron2 mg18 mg11.11%
- Potassium115 mg4700 mg2.45%
- Vitamin A340 mcg900 mcg37.78%
- Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid)0 mg90 mg0%
- Vitamin E (Tocopherol)1 mg15 mg6.67%
- Vitamin K3 mcg120 mcg2.5%
- Vitamin B1 (Thiamin)0.12 mg1.2 mg10%
- Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin)0.08 mg1.3 mg6.15%
- Vitamin B3 (Niacin)0.9 mg16 mg5.63%
- Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine)0.04 mg1.7 mg2.35%
- Folate28 mcg400 mcg7%
- Vitamin B12 (Cobalamine)0.1 mcg2.4 mcg4.17%
- Biotin2 mcg30 mcg6.67%
- Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid)0.3 mg5 mg6%
- Choline18 mg550 mg3.27%
- Phosphorus95 mg1250 mg7.6%
- Iodine6 mcg150 mcg4%
- Magnesium22 mg420 mg5.24%
- Zinc0.6 mg11 mg5.45%
- Selenium8 mcg55 mcg14.55%
- Copper0.2 mg0.9 mg22.22%
- Manganese0.5 mg2.3 mg21.74%
- Chromium2 mcg35 mcg5.71%
- Molybdenum8 mcg45 mcg17.78%
- Chloride55 mg2300 mg2.39%
