peppermint white chocolate scones

It wouldn't be a holiday if I didn't make scones. I only wish I could tell you that I made these scones with discounted candy canes - but I can't. I bought the candy canes full price from CVS about 3 weeks before Christmas and then they proceeded to sit on my stairs until yesterday. 

Honestly part of the delay is that grating the butter seems really arduous these days. Grated frozen butter is the key to good scones - but it's also a lot of work. However, in hindsight I would rather grate butter than unwrap a box of candy canes and then try to smash them into little bits. I'm pretty sure that the kitchen is covered in a fine layer of candy cane sugar dust - and then some flour because I also get that everywhere.

This scone recipe is pretty good - so here are a few things about it:
  • DESSERT V BREAKFAST // this recipe skews more towards a dessert than a breakfast. Yes, I did still eat it for breakfast but the extra white chocolate flavor just kind of pushes it out of the morning meal realm. 
  • PEPPERMINT FLAVOR // The peppermint flavor is not heavy here - so I might recommend adding in some peppermint extract if you have it. I actually like the flavor profile that exists currently but it is more of a "candy cane scone" than a "peppermint scone"
  • SMALL BITS // I gave up breaking down the candy cane into smaller bits - but it is absolutely worth the effort. The smaller bits would have enabled me to put more candy cane in the recipe - and the smaller bits would melt down more while baking. 

Here's how it goes.
  1. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and baking soda in a bowl.
  2. Add the butter and mix until combined.
  3. In a separate bowl, combine the milk and egg and then mix into the flour bowl. 
  4. Dump the dough onto a generously floured surface. Knead it until you get a bit of a dough ball. As a friendly note, the dough will not feel as solid as pizza, bread or pie dough... it always feels a bit loose. You can feel the little grated bits of butter pretty clearly.
  5. Once you have your dough baby, roll it out into a 12x12 -ish square. I'm never precise. Then, fold it up like a business letter. Put it in the freezer for 5 minutes.
  6. Roll out your dough once last time into a larger rectangle kind of like before. Then spread the candy cane and white chocolate chips on the dough and kind of gently press them into the dough. Note: I would normally spread the filling all over the dough but given how sharp and large some of the pieces were I focused on the middle.
  7. Now roll your decorated dough up like a cinnamon roll. Once you have the roll, then using the palms of your hands kind of gently flatten it down a bit. Using a sharp knife cut the dough into squares... then triangles. Lay those baby triangles on a parchment covered cookie sheet
  8. Brush the tops of each scone with melted butter and sprinkle with extra candy cane bits. Since the dough is still very cold from the freezer, the butter will actually harden on top of the scones.
  9. Bake in preheated 375F oven until they rise and turn a light golden brown, about 10-15 minutes.
Shopping List (adapted from this original recipe)
2 1/4 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup frozen butter, grated or cut into tiny cubes
3/4 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 cup candy canes, crushed
1 cup white chocolate chips

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