As an 11-year-old, I announced to my dad that I wanted to visit all 30 Major League Baseball stadiums with him. Instead of brushing off my grandiose statement as a childhood fantasy, he took me seriously, and we immediately began brainstorming the rules that night. After a short discussion, we settled on a few key guidelines.
»» We would always root for the home team, unless they were playing the Oakland A’s or San Francisco Giants. (We lived in Northern California and had to support our boys!)
»» We would stay for the entire game—or at least the first 9 innings—unless travel plans dictated otherwise.
»» We would purchase a scorecard at each stadium for me to meticulously pencil in every player’s at bat.
»» We would save the ticket stubs and snap lots of pictures so I could eventually compile a scrapbook.
»» Others could join us at games, like Mom and my brother or grandparents and friends, as long as the two of us attended together.
»» We would visit new stadiums as MLB retired the old ones, making our goal a lifelong dream.
Every winter, we’d plop down on the sofa with the family laptop, pulling up 5-10 teams’ home schedules and tracing our fingers across the screen, trying to figure out where they overlapped and whether those games fit into Dad’s work commitments. We aimed to visit at least 2 stadiums—sometimes more, sometimes less. Last summer, we flew out to the East Coast to see the Phillies, Orioles and Nationals; the season before, we hit up the Rangers and Astros; and one epic August during my high school years, we visited the Brewers, Cubs, White Sox, Tigers and Indians in a big 1-week, 5-game sweep.
However, we decided to put our summer trip on hold this year… Because the Oakland A’s ticket office contacted us, asking if we were interested in season tickets! With Daddy’s incredibly long work hours and how much I blog, we couldn’t quite justify an entire season’s package—plus I’d need to drive almost 2 hours to meet him at the ballpark for every game. Not exactly feasible. Instead, we settled on a mini season ticket package with mainly weekend games, as well as Monday holidays and Opening Day.
Since I mentioned my dream to Dad as a 6th grader, I’ve always wanted to go to Opening Day, and this year I finally got my chance! But with an unlucky twist of fate, I fell sick last week with a sore throat and slightly nauseous stomach, followed by an ugly cold. My body refused to recover in time, so I was forced to watch the first game of the season from my comfy couch at home. At least I wasn’t freezing cold and sniffling alongside 36,000 other fans and giving them all my germs!
If I miraculously healed somehow in time for Opening Night, I knew Dad and I would be up late and definitely wouldn’t have the energy to make a wholesome breakfast the next morning. Always prepared, I baked these healthy beauties before the game began with two of Daddy’s favorite flavors.
Coconut Coffee Scones! Full of warm cozy flavors with a fun tropical twist, these tender pastries will tempt you with their aroma alone—reminiscent of coffee shops and peaceful early mornings with your hand curled around a tall steaming mug. Slightly crusty on the outside with soft moist interiors, these satisfying scones will bring a smile to your lips with each and every bite.
Most people typically view scones as a breakfast “splurge”—unhealthy, densely packed with buttery calories and not much else. But they haven’t met these guys! This clean-eating recipe contains only 2 tablespoons of butter for all 8 scones, and they’re made with entirely whole wheat flour. Even so, they still turn out light and moist, not dense and dry like you’d initially expect.
Sound too good to be true? It isn’t—I promise! Their incredibly tender texture results from my secret weapon in healthy baking: Greek yogurt. Greek yogurt provides tons of moisture while keeping the fat and calories low; plus you sneak in a little extra protein too!
For a nice mild coffee flavor, use 2 teaspoons of instant coffee. Do NOT use regular coffee grounds; you need the “just add water to dissolve” instant variety. This amount imparts a seductive background taste, not as powerful as Dad’s morning cup of straight black, but still smooth and noticeable. For a stronger flavor, add another ½ to 1 teaspoon of instant coffee, but make sure it all dissolves!
To create the lightly crusty exterior, brush the scone dough with a little milk and maple syrup just before popping the tray in the oven. It fills your kitchen with a mesmerizing maple aroma while they bake, almost reminiscent of a tall stack of fluffy buttermilk pancakes. Stay close to the oven though! With a high temperature, the scones finish fairly quickly, so keep an eye out for those beautiful golden spots on top.
Even if we didn’t cheer ourselves hoarse last night, these skinny Coconut Coffee Scones still hit the spot this morning. Subtly sweetened with the most addictive moist interiors, I savored every fluffy bite and reached for seconds—even thirds!
Scones just might become a post-baseball breakfast tradition…
P.S. Have you entered the Immaculate Baking Giveaway yet? Just 2 days left to win an awesome swag package!
These healthy scones are so moist and tender! Lightly flavored with coffee and flecked with sweet coconut, they’ll be the star of any breakfast. Store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Preheat the oven to 425°F, and lightly coat a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a small bowl, stir together the yogurt, 10 teaspoons of milk, instant coffee, 8 teaspoons of maple syrup, and vanilla until the instant coffee has completely dissolved. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or the back of a fork. Stir in the coffee mixture until just incorporated. Fold in the coconut.
- Drop the dough into 8 rounded scoops onto the prepared sheet, and flatten slightly. Combine the remaining 1 teaspoon of milk and ¼ teaspoon of maple syrup in a small bowl, and brush on the scones. Bake at 425°F for 12-14 minutes or until light golden. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.
Notes: For a stronger coffee flavor, add an additional ½ to 1 teaspoon of instant coffee crystals.
Honey or agave may be substituted in place of the maple syrup.
Interesting combination.. bookmarked! 🙂
Thanks Hari! 🙂
I found you over in the comment section on Pinch of Yum, from her post about finding your voice as a blogger. I love your voice! And the story that accompanied this post. I’m a minor league fan and love a good baseball game. It’s so cool that you and your dad haven’t gotten to experience so many places and games together! My fiance will be incredibly jealous!
And, to top it off, this scone recipe sounds incredible! I saw scones the other day and have had a serious craving, I think these will have to make me cave 🙂
Happy blogging!
Thanks Chelsea! I really hope you enjoy the scones. 🙂 And yay — another baseball fan!! I don’t often encounter other ladies who enjoy the game very much. Most of my friends prefer the pretzels and frozen yogurt over watching the teams play! You must live close to a minor league stadium; I’m jealous of that! Who’s your favorite team?
I’ve found that, too 🙂 Minor league originally made me fall in love with it because of the great show for the kids, and then I came to love the game! I’m spending a year with my fiance in Cape Town, South Africa, where we’ve had to use cricket to supplement our love of baseball, but I originally started watching minor league when I lived in Eugene, OR- The Emeralds are definitely our favorite team! Then we moved to Portland where we became loyal fans of the Hillsboro Hops, too! I’ve also watched the Vancouver Canadians play and root for them when they aren’t playing my teams. Whose your favorite team?
Wow, South Africa?? That’s incredible! A few people I knew in college are spending a year in South Africa too, for a Christian missionary-type program. I’m not sure what city they’re in, but I know they’re enjoying themselves! A year without baseball would be so hard for me… I’m so impressed by how you and your fiancé are doing that! 🙂 Eugene and Portland are such gorgeous cities, although I never got a chance to see minor league games there. I’ve lived in Northern California my whole life, so the Oakland A’s are my favorite team! (Closely followed by the San Francisco Giants. Which is 100% okay because they’re in different leagues!)
It has definitely been a blast so far! I’m an even bigger football fan (having gone to U of O) so missing football season is going to be rough. I actually wrote a post about our first cricket match, it was incredibly interesting!
http://ducksoven.blogspot.com/2014/03/cricket-match.html
My fiance has a huge soft spot in his heart for the As and has been dying to go to a game for years! Hopefully we’ll find a way to make it to one eventually! Enjoy baseball season and have a great time with your dad. Again, I think it’s so cool that you two started that tradition together!
Oh no, good luck when football season rolls around! Maybe you can figure out a way to stream games through the internet. I’ve done that with baseball and hockey before when I was desperate. It’d be fun if you and your fiancé could see an A’s game! Their stadium isn’t exactly the prettiest, but the boys always put on a good show for the fans. 🙂
Thank you for the ice recipes.
You’re welcome Liz! 🙂
What a great idea to visit all of the baseball stadiums with your Dad. I’m sure you both share a special bond because of that! I absolutely love how you take high calorie recipes and turn them into clean eating creations. These scones look delish!
Thanks Gayle! It’s been really fun spending lots of quality time with my dad. He works incredibly hard — even nights and weekends! — so I really appreciate how willing he is to make time for these trips. It’s something I’d love to pass on to my own (someday) kids too!
YUM! What a fantastic flavor combo… I think that when I worked at Starbucks, I liked to put coconut syrup into my coffee once in a while… but I bet it’d be even better in a scone! <3
This is just TOO funny Andrea — I actually put coconut extract in my coffee a week or two ago, which is where this recipe inspiration came from! We’re twins!!
Hahaha… I was wondering how I subscribed to something called ‘Amy’s Healthy Baking’ without actually visiting the site but… now I get it! Nice! Love the new, fresh look Amy! As for these scones? Yum. I love anything with coconut in it so I would easily devour a few of these 🙂
Did you receive my Banana Cake post? I tried to explain everything there, but I’m really sorry for the confusion Laura!! Unfortunately I already polished of a batch of these scones, but I’ll definitely set some aside for you the next time I bake them! 😉
These scones are just gorgeous Amy! Coconut and coffee sound so yummy together! Pinned!
Thanks so much Trish! 🙂
You know I love these….coffeeee!! They would pair wonderfully WITH a morning cup I might add!! I love your tradition with your dad, every time I read about it I get all warm and fuzzy!
You’re totally right Brittany — I need to make these again just so I can drink coffee at the same time. Life = perfect. And we’re going to the A’s vs Mariners game tomorrow afternoon! Sorry, but I’m going to be rooting against you… 😉