Naturally Sweetened Gluten Free Chocolate Scones

These naturally sweetened gluten free chocolate scones are super chocolatey, tender, moist, and made with pantry staple ingredients like almond flour, tapioca flour, cocoa powder, and coconut sugar! Ready in less than an hour and totally irresistible!

The best gluten free chocolate scones

These gluten free dark chocolate scones = a chocolate lovers DREAM!

And not only are they gluten free but also grain free, paleo friendly, and naturally sweetened. Woot!

I am not much of a baker (ringing endorsement for this recipe, I know – ha!), but when I set my mind to developing a baked good recipe I am extra thorough in my recipe testing process.

And I have made these scones over, and OVER again. To make sure they turn out perfect every time, and, because, well they’re delicious!

This recipe is a riff on the first gluten free scone recipe I made for NK – Gluten Free Maple Pecan Scones. They became such a favorite treat at our house I couldn’t resist making a chocolate version too.

Recipe testing notes

Gluten free flours

Unless you’re using a gluten free flour blend that is already pre-mixed and measured, gluten free baking almost always requires more than one type of flour to get the right texture.

In this scone recipe I use almond flour and tapioca flour. Almond flour provides a nice tender “crumb”, and the starch content in the tapioca flour helps the scones hold together and retain their shape while they bake.

To chill or not to chill the dough

When it comes to testing a recipe, I’m always looking for the method that works the best with the least amount of effort. To keep things simple and straightforward for all y’all.

So I tested baking these scones with and without chilling the dough, and found they really turn out much better if the dough is chilled before baking.

When baked without chilling the scones spread out in the oven and don’t hold their shape as well.

The good news though, is that the only needs to be chilled in the freezer for 15 minutes, so you don’t have to wait hours or overnight before you can start baking!

Why you’ll love these gluten free dark chocolate scones

• They’re made with pantry staple ingredients.
• 100% naturally sweetened.
• They are PACKED with chocolatey goodness.
• No dry scones here – these dark chocolate scones are moist and tender through and THROUGH!

Ingredients

• Almond flour: A grain free flour alternative that’s made from ground almonds. My favorite brands are Trader Joe’s, Thrive Market, and Bob’s Red Mill.
• Tapioca flour: My favorite brands are Bob’s Red Mill, Thrive Market Brand, and Anthony’s Organic Tapioca Flour.
• Cocoa powder
• Coconut sugar: Coconut sugar is one of my favorite natural sweeteners. Why do I love it? It’s exchangeable at a 1:1 ratio to refined sugar. These days it’s also readily available at most grocery stores. My favorite brands are Trader Joe’s brand, Thrive Market Brand, Terrasoul, Navitas, and Big Tree Farms Organics.
• Ghee or coconut oil: Two pantry staple fats that can usually be substituted 1:1 for any type of fat in baking. There’s so many amazing brands out there but I usually buy mine at Thrive Market.
• Eggs
• Non dairy milk: I used almond milk for this recipe, but any type of non dairy milk should work.
• Vanilla
• Dark chocolate for the glaze: For this recipe it’s important to use high quality dark chocolate so that it melts nice and smooth. For a naturally sweetened dark chocolate Hu Kitchen Gems are where it’s at – they are sweetened only with coconut sugar and soy free. Hu gems can be purchased on Amazon or Thrive Market.

How to make gluten free chocolate scones

There are a few important steps in making sure that these dark chocolate scones turn out *just* right. But don’t worry – I’ve got your back with some step-by-step instructions the whole way through. I always suggest reading through the recipe at least once before you start baking so the recipe flows smoothly.

Step-by-step instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and whisk together egg, almond milk, vanilla extract, and lemon juice or ACV. Place in the freezer for about 10 minutes.
2. Melt ghee or coconut oil: While wet ingredients are chilling in the refrigerator melt the ghee or coconut oil. Set it aside to cool slightly while you prepare the dry ingredients.
3. Whisk together dry ingredients, set aside.
4. Stir ghee or coconut oil into chilled wet ingredients: After egg and almond milk mixture has chilled for 10 minutes, stir in the melted ghee and mix with a fork until little balls of ghee have formed and hardened. Break apart with fork if it gets too clumpy. 
5. Combine wet and dry ingredients: Pour ghee mixture into the bowl with dry ingredients. Mix together with a spatula until combined. Once combined add chocolate chips and stir to incorporate.
6. Form dough into a 6 inch disc: Generously sprinkle tapioca flour on your work surface. Dump dough out on top of tapioca flour. Sprinkle the top of the dough generously with tapioca flour, flip it, and sprinkle the other side as well to coat. Pat dough, and form into a 6 inch disc.
7. Chill disc of dough: Transfer disc of dough onto a plate and move to the freezer to chill for 15 minutes.
8. Cut dough in 6 triangles: Once dough has chilled, cut into 6 equal triangle shaped pieces. Carefully move each one to a parchment lined baking sheet, several inches apart from each other. 
9. Brush scones with almond milk: Lightly brush the tops and sides with remaining 2 tablespoons of almond milk.
10. Bake scones! Move to the oven and bake at 350 degrees for about 22 minutes. Until edges are firm and tops are nice and crackly. 

A few notes on the recipe

• These scones are a delicious treat to enjoy with your morning coffee or as an afternoon snack!
• They will keep stored on in a sealed container on the counter for 3-4 days, or frozen for up to 2 months.
• For the best results, make sure to follow each of the steps closely. After dough is mixed and formed into a disc, chill it again! You will be able to cut it into triangles much more easily, and it will spread less when it bakes, giving your scones a more structured look.
• Tapioca flour is your friend! It adds a certain amount of structure by holding things together in a baking recipe (what gluten usually does) and also produces a nice crisp edge that everyone loves. Also, with sticky doughs like this, you can use it the same way you would use flour on your countertop, hands, the dough itself to keep it manageable. Such a win!

Love these scones? Be sure to check out some of our other naturally sweetened treat recipes!

• Salted Gluten Free Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies
• Gluten Free Maple Pecan Scones
• Dark Chocolate Espresso Chickpea Flour Cookies
• No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies
• Easy Gluten Free Banana Bread

If you enjoyed this recipe, we’d love it if you would take 5 seconds to rate and review it below! It’s also super helpful for other readers if you share any modifications you made to the recipe. 

Thank you for sharing your kitchen with NK. We’re so grateful you’re here!

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