Scones Recipe

This scones recipe is flaky, buttery, and easy to make! They’re deliciously customizable and perfect for breakfast and brunch.

Scones make for a delicious pastries, perfect for breakfast or brunch! Some of our other favorite breakfast pastries include Cherry Danishes, Homemade Pop Tarts, and Biscuit Donuts.

What is a Scone?

Scones are one of our favorite breakfast treats!! There are so many varieties to choose from, and this scones recipe can be customized any way you want!

The scone differs depending on where you live. For some reason, people who live in Utah make a sweet scone that is very similar to Fry Bread, but for the rest of the world, a scone is very similar to an American Biscuit.

A scone differs from a biscuit in the amount of sugar and fat. They’re also made into both sweet and savory scones.

A more traditional scone recipe is fairly plain and often topped with butter, jam, or clotted cream.

This blueberry scone recipe uses blueberries for extra flavor. Keep reading for more delicious flavor variations you might like to try!

How to Make Scones

Blueberry Scones are tender, delicious, and so easy!

PREP. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone liner and set aside.

DOUGH. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Grate the cold butter into the flour mixture, and mix gently with your hands to incorporate the butter.

In a small bowl, whisk together the sour cream, egg, and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, and mix gently with a rubber spatula until the dough starts to come together.

Gently mix in the blueberries, being careful not to crush them.

CUT & BAKE. Pat the scone dough out into an 8-inch circle about 1 inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Use a sharp knife to cut the dough into 8 wedges, and place the wedges on the prepared baking sheet.

Bake 15-17 minutes, until light golden brown.

Flavor Variations

I made the recipe with fresh blueberries, but it’s easy to customize the recipe to any flavor of scones you like.

Add ½ cup dried fruit or ¾ cup fresh fruit of your choice. Add different flavorings and even mix-ins like chocolate chips, raisins, or coconut.

Here are some of my favorite flavor combinations:

• Cinnamon Chip Scones – Mix in 1 teaspoon of cinnamon with the dry ingredients, then fold in ½ cup of cinnamon baking chips after the dough is mixed together. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar before baking.
• Blueberry Lemon Scones – Mix the zest of one lemon with the dry ingredients, then add 1 teaspoon of lemon extract with the wet ingredients. Stir in ¾ cup of fresh blueberries before baking.
• Cranberry Orange Scones – Mix the zest of one orange in with the dry ingredients, then fold in ½ cup of dried cranberries after the dough is mixed.

The flavor combinations are endless!

Recipe Tips

Cold ingredients. Cold butter is really important. In fact, using all cold ingredients is key to a successful scone.

• Grate cold, even frozen, butter to mix into the dough.
• The colder the butter the more steam can be released creating flakier air pockets and flaky layers inside a crisp crust. 
• Use cold eggs and cream as well so that the butter stays cold. Instead of using a cheese grater, use a pastry cutter to incorporate the butter into the flour.

Don’t overwork the dough. One reason is to keep the butter and other ingredients from getting too warm. The other reason is so you won’t over-activate the gluten.

The more you mix and knead the dough, the more the gluten is activated causing a denser chewier texture instead of producing flaky and tender scones. 

Crispy crust.

• Leave space. Make sure there is space between the individual pieces on the baking sheet. If the pieces are close together, you will have softer-sided scones. 
• Cool uncovered. If you cover the scones as they cool the moisture will create a softer crust. 

More Ways to Change it Up

Change the shape. I will often use cookie cutters when making biscuits. It’s particularly fun when using holiday shapes. The same applies for making scones!

• Instead of cutting the dough into 8 wedges, as the directions state, use a cookie cutter to stamp out your shapes.
• The bake time may need to be adjusted depending on the size of your shapes. Be sure all the shapes are similar sizes so they all bake at the same rate.

Glaze. Use different glazes on top of the blueberry scones. Make a simple sweet glaze by mixing 1 cup of powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons of milk.

To make it thicker use less milk, or more milk to thin it out. Flavor the glaze with almond extract, vanilla extract, orange zest, or lemon zest.

Storing Info

STORE UNBAKED. Shape the Best Scone recipe and store them in the fridge overnight to be baked in the morning. Cover the baking pan with plastic wrap before putting them in the fridge.

FREEZE UNBAKED. Place the shaped dough on a baking sheet then put it in the freezer. Once the scones are solid, transfer them to a freezer-safe storage container.

• Freeze for 3-4 weeks otherwise, the effectiveness of the leavening agents starts to decrease and the scones will not be as light and airy as you want.

STORE BAKED. Cool the Scones and store them in an airtight container on the counter for 2-3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

• Separate the scones with parchment paper or wrap them individually with plastic wrap to keep them from freezing to each other. 

Recipe FAQ

For more breakfast pastry recipes, try:

• Cranberry Orange Bread
• Quick and Easy Cinnamon Rolls
• Snickerdoodle Bread
• French Toast Bake
• Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
• Cherry Danish
• Homemade Pop Tarts