Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Scones: Another Tweaked Recipe

This past weekend I had a serious sweet tooth, so I decided to get my bake on. I realized we were out of butter, but I was determined that there was a way to work around this without having to go to the store. I remembered that I have coconut oil, so I Googled butter/coconut oil substitutions. Lo and behold, it's a no-brainer! You just use the same amount of coconut oil as you would butter. Yay for easy conversions! This was actually an eye-opening experience because that means that I can use coconut oil in place of butter for any baked good--anything to make dessert "healthy" is right by me (use refined coconut oil if you don't want any of the coconut scent, albeit faint).

To be frank:
Milk makes me gassy.
Butter can give me love handles.
Milk-filled, buttery scones: all of the above.

Solution:
Coconut oil and almond milk scones. Dairy and I don't get along too well, so almond milk has been an amazing substitute. Coconut oil has been used in our kitchen as well as in some of my skincare sessions (it's great as a makeup remover or a moisturizing mask). We stock up on these goods at Trader Joe's--really well priced in my opinion. Not only are they good for you, together they bake up some delicious edibles!

The scones came out more tender and lighter than your traditional scone, which I loved! Dave was also a big fan of these fall-flavored morsels of awesome. After I get home from work tomorrow, we're going to drop off some early Thanksgiving scones to some of our neighbors. It may seem like a nice gesture, but it's also partially selfish. I don't want them too easily accessible even though they are a bit less indulgent than your typical scone :).

Give this recipe a try; I don't think you'll be disappointed!

Ingredients:
(Recipe taken from here and tweaked by me)

For the Scones:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour 
• 1/4 cup and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar 
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 1 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice 
• 6 tablespoons of coconut oil (in solid form)
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree 
• 3 tablespoons almond milk
• 1 large egg 
• 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (you can always reduce or add more to your liking)

Glaze:

• 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon powdered sugar 
• 2 Tablespoons almond milk 
• 2 tsp cinnamon (less or more depending on taste)
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (less or more depending on taste)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and spray pan with cooking spray or lay down parchment paper.
2. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Add the butter and mix with a fork until the dough becomes crumbly. 
3. Fold in the pumpkin, milk, and egg. Form the dough into a rectangle on a lightly floured surface, making it about 4 inches by 12 inches. 
4. Use a large knife to slice the dough into three portions. Cut an X pattern (four pieces) in each portion so you end up with 12 triangular slices of dough. Place on prepared baking sheet.
5. Bake for 14-16 minutes. Cool on wire rack.
6. While the scones are cooling, make the powdered sugar glaze by whisking all of the ingredients until smooth. 
7. When completely cooled, drizzle the tops of the scones with the glaze (or you can dip them into the glaze if you'd like). Let the glaze set for about an hour before serving.

Enjoy!