Whole Wheat Banana Chocolate Chip Scones

Wow, this week has gotten away from me.  Friday already?  Spring is truly upon us!  Between cleaning and redecorating and getting the garden ready and everything else we seem to cram on our plates post-hibernation, it's easy to become a little overstimulated.  A.D.D. may be the more accurate diagnosis.  In times like these it's nice to have easy "go to" recipes which can be easily adapted to whatever you have in your pantry or to whatever is in season.  I just made one of those recipes - scones. 

I have made these so many different ways and they are always a hit.  I usually get up early on Saturday mornings to workout and stay longer then usual, so I like to have something ready for the kids to have for breakfast when they wake up.  These are perfect for that.  Even better, they freeze beautifully, so we can enjoy them on Saturday morning and then freeze the rest to pull out on some obsure weekday where we need to get around earlier than usual.  Tonight I made a banana/chocolate chip version sweetened with agave.  So good.  I had to test one of them to make sure they would be acceptable.  Sometimes I like using apples and maple syrup or pears and ginger or raspberries or blueberries - possibilities are endless!  It truly is a "go to" recipe for me.  Although, Logan asked me tonight with anticipation if I was making scone-cakes again (my mess up from last week that we all loved).  The real scones may not be as popular anymore!

Whole Wheat Scones
This recipe is adapted from BabyCakes Raspberry Scone.  I have made them so many different way, so I've written up the basic recipe and then listed some suggested add-ins.

Basic recipe:

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour or whole spelt flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup coconut oil plus more for brushing
1/3 cup agave nectar plus more for brushing
1 tbsp vanilla
1/4 cup hot water.

Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add oil, agave nectar and vanilla. Stir to a dry batter and then add hot water. Add extras (see variations below). Drop 1/4 cup of batter 1 inch apart onto a parchment lined baking sheet and brush with more coconut oil. Bake at 350 degrees for 14 minutes. Rotate pan 180 degrees and bake 7 minutes longer. Remove from oven and brush with agave nectar.  Cool completely.

Note:  These freeze very well. You can either bake them and freeze them individually or drop the batter onto the pan and freeze them individually unbaked. When you want to bake one just bake at 375 degrees for 14 minutes, rotate 180 degrees and bake 7 minutes longer.

Add in ideas:
- 1/2 cup unsweetened dried fruit - currents, raisins, dried cranberries, chopped dates, chopped figs, etc.
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- Maple syrup or honey in place of agave nectar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
- 1 cup any fresh fruit (chopped strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, chopped apples are all good)
- ½ cup oats (may need to add some more hot water)