Chocolate Chip Scones

• Cake Flour: The base of the scones. Cake flour provides a softer, more delicate texture than all-purpose flour thanks to its lower protein content. Don’t have cake flour on hand? You can make your own; just whisk together 1¾ cups all-purpose flour and ¼ cup cornstarch.
• Baking Powder: Gives scones their lift, helping them rise and become light and fluffy.
• Granulated Sugar: Sweetens the dough just enough to balance the richness and chocolate.
• Cold Butter: Butter adds richness and helps create a tender, flaky texture in scones; keeping it cold ensures it melts during baking, forming steam pockets that lift and lighten the dough.
• Semisweet Chocolate Chips: Semisweet chips bring bursts of melty chocolate throughout—use a high-quality brand like Guittard or Ghirardelli for the best flavor.
• Egg: Helps bind the dough and adds richness.
• Heavy Cream: Adds moisture and richness to the dough, creating a soft crumb. Don’t swap it for milk or light cream—this is one place where the fat really matters.
• Vanilla Extract: Adds warm, subtle flavor that complements the chocolate.
• Demerara Sugar: Sprinkled on top before baking for a sweet, caramel-y crunch on the outside. Also known as raw or turbinado sugar. If you don’t have it on hand, you can substitute brown sugar or more granulated sugar.
• Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements

Step 1: Mix the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. Whisking helps evenly distribute the baking powder, which ensures the scones rise and bake evenly.

Step 2: Cut in the butter. Add the cold butter and use your fingertips to rub it in until the mixture looks very coarse—those little clumps of butter are what make the scones tender.

Step 3: Add the chocolate chips. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Step 4: Whisk the wet ingredients. In a small bowl, whisk the cream, egg, and vanilla until smooth.

Step 5: Combine wet and dry. Make a well in the dry ingredients, pour in the wet ingredients, and stir it all together. (Making a well helps incorporate the wet ingredients more gently, which reduces overmixing.)

Step 6: Mix the dough. Stir with a spatula until the dough mostly comes together—it’ll be sticky.

Step 7: Shape and cut dough. Lightly knead it into a ball. Be gentle and stop as soon as the dough holds together; over-kneading can make the scones tough. Press the dough into a ¾-inch-thick circle and slice into 8 wedges. For clean cuts, use a sharp knife.

Step 8: Prep to bake. Transfer the wedges to a parchment-lined baking sheet and sprinkle with the Demerara sugar.