Recipe: Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Scones

I love pumpkin.  Why?  Because it is so versatile.  It’s flavor is so subtle that, if done correctly, you can add it to anything and not even be able to tell that it’s a component in the list of ingredients.  In addition, it makes a fantastic substitute for eggs, oil, and butter.  And in the case of these scones, that’s what I did.  I removed the egg and the 4 tablespoons of butter that I normally incorporate into the mix and, instead, used pumpkin.  The whole intention for this one was to have a pumpkin flavor scone.

Right in line with that…I contemplated what might pair well with pumpkin.  I finally decided on some semi-sweet mini chocolate chips.  Perfect.  And the scones themselves?  Moist, chewy, and delicious.

Recipe: Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Scones

Servings: 12
Time: 20-25 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2-1/4 cups Pamela’s Baking & Pancake Mix
• 1/3 cup sugar (I used Truvia)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp pure pumpkin (I used Libby’s)
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips (I used Hershey’s)
• 2/3 cup milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°.

Mix the dry ingredients together.

Add the pumpkin and almond milk.  Mix together with a fork.  Dough will be thick.

Drop large, tall dollops of dough (scones will spread when baking) onto lightly greased baking sheet.

Bake for 15-17 minutes.

~*~*~

One of the best things I discovered about baking with pumpkin is just how many calories it saves you in the end.  By replacing the egg and the butter with pumpkin in this recipe, I cute a total of 425 calories out of the entire batch as a whole.  That’s amazing!

I think the next time I make these, if going for more of a pumpkin flavor, I’ll add 3/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, a dash of ginger and a dash of cloves to really bring out some flavor.  But, on their own…as they stand…really, really delicious!!