Cheap Eats: Chocolate Peanut Butter Scones
Here at The Billfold, we love cheap and easy recipes. Here’s a cheap and easy recipe for scones by reader Selena Hoy.
Do you buy a pastry at the coffee shop on your way to work because you skipped breakfast and you need to get through the day and you DESERVE it, dammit? Yeah. Make a whole batch of scones for less than it would cost to buy one from the display case.
Ingredients
• 2 cups flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons margarine
• 1/2 cup chocolate peanut butter candy (or sub in your fave mix-in – I love dried cranberries or candied ginger)
• 2/3 cup soy milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees fahrenheit (220 degrees celsius). Combine the first four ingredients. Cut in the margarine with a pastry blender, or a couple of knives (I love my pastry blender, I got it at the 100 yen store, and it’s been working fine for years). Cut open the bag of peanut butter chocolate candy that you left in your car and is now melted into a big lump but that you can’t throw away because, chocolate! Chop the lump into bite sized pieces and toss with the flour mixture. Add the soy milk and vanilla, if using (I used vanilla soy milk, and omitted the vanilla). Mix until ingredients are combined—they may be a bit dry but should be able to be gathered into a ball. Squeeze the dough a few times to make sure it’s really sticking together, then form into a thick round. Score into wedges – I made eight. Drizzle a bit of soy milk on top, then sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.
If you’re the kind of person that doesn’t want to share or eat them all in one sitting (who ARE you?), then these freeze nicely and can be popped in the toaster oven for a few minutes for a beautiful fresh treat. A week’s worth of breakfast!
Got a cheap and easy recipe to share? Let us know.
Holy cow, this sounds delicious. I can’t buy scones in the city because they tell you exactly how many calories are in them (more than HALF of what I’m supposed to have for an entire DAY). I fear that making my own scones would ruin my (poor excuse for a) waistline.
I don’t know anything about baking. Can someone tell me whether regular milk can be substituted for the soy? Would I need to make any adjustments? (Not that I’m against soy milk, but I’m not likely to have it around like I would… every other ingredient. Except maybe baking powder.)
@bgprincipessa You totally can sub in regular milk and butter if you want! Soy milk/margarine are more shelf stable/vegan, but you can definitely sub things out. You could also make them a smidge healthier by using whole wheat pastry flour for half of the flour.
@selenana Ah! Your answer made me also realize that I ONLY have whole wheat flour. Is that bad? Does that affect baking processes?
@bgprincipessa Don’t use all whole wheat flour. They will come out super dense and rock-like. You could sub whole wheat PASTRY flour for part of the flour, but this is definitely not a place for all whole wheat. Buy a bag of all purpose flour. I’m usually willing to spend extra for King Arthur Flour because it’s what my mom always bought…
@bgprincipessa You could swap out a LITTLE bit of whole wheat flour, which would make them a little toothier without affecting the texture too much – say, half a cup. Any more and you will be, as Rachel Goldfarb says, turning them into hockey pucks. Also, if you really want to live it up, you could put in a whole cup of your mix-in of choice.
I really love scones. I don’t usually eat breakfast, but with these I think I can have the energy to face the day. And they keep a long time.
yay truly cheap eats!!
I really don’t understand the scone. They are always mega dry–even when you buy fancy ones in a London tea house. Just make a chocolate peanut butter cookie (or, even better, a brownie).
@jenfizz Fair enough, they are drier than some other baked goods. They’re also sturdier and somewhat less sweet than cookies or brownies – but I’m not gonna lie, I love me a brownie for breakfast.
Just made them, and they turned out perfectly. I subbed butter for margarine and almond milk for soy milk. I also added in more Reese’s than recommended – couldn’t resist :) So good for breakfast or as an afternoon snack.
@Laura J. Nelson@twitter Yay!