Scones can be tricky to make...but not with our big fluffy scones recipe! In this post we will teach you how to make delicious, flavor filled scones with perfect texture every single time. Our scones recipe is made with buttermilk and contains all of the main ingredients that you need to make a batch of scones - you choose the add-ins that fit the flavors that you are craving or the ingredients that you already have in the house.
I've made a lot of scones over the years and they didn't always come our well. Most often they would flatten and spread out. I kept trying until I found the perfect recipe that always comes out perfect and I'm so excited to share it with you. Follow our detailed step by step instructions and images to make the best batch of scones that you have ever made! If you want a scone recipe that has already been created for you, be sure to check out our pineapple coconut scones or our lemon white chocolate scones.
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🧈 Ingredients
cake flour - I love the texture that cake flour creates - you can also use all purpose flour (plain flour) or a gluten free flour blend
sugar - adds sweetness to the scone and perfectly crisp edges
baking powder - gives the scones perfect lift and a light and fluffy texture
salt - balances the flavors in the scones
unsalted butter - for those flaky layers - be sure that your stick of butter is frozen
buttermilk or heavy cream - milk works too but I find the buttermilk and heavy cream each add depth and richness to the scones that I really love
eggs - pulls the scone together and helps to create that that perfect shape and structure
vanilla extract - creates depth and adds sweetness to the scone
Be sure to see the recipe card for the full list of ingredients and detailed recipe instructions.
🥣 Instructions
Combine dry ingredients (flour, sugar, salt and baking powder) in a large mixing bowl.
Use your cheese grater to grate the frozen butter directly into the dry ingredients. Use a fork to work the butter into the dry ingredients.
Add the liquid ingredients (buttermilk, egg and vanilla) to the dry ingredients.
Gently fold in the fruits, nuts or chocolate that you will be using for your batch of scones.
Turn the scone dough out onto a floured board. Fold the dough over itself 2-3 times until the dough comes together.
Use your hands to make a 6-7 inch circle with the dough.
Cut the dough into 8 triangles.
Arrange the triangles on a quarter sheet pan and refrigerate or freeze for 30-60 minutes.
Brush the chilled dough with additional buttermilk or heavy cream.
Bake scones at 400° for 18 to 20 minutes. Garnish baked scones with a homemade glaze or a dusting of powdered sugar.
Hint: When adding fresh fruit and berries to your recipe, always freeze the fruit for 30-45 minutes. The frozen fruit is less likely to break apart as you mix it in and the scones come out best when the dough is nice and cold - the frozen fruit helps to keep the dough cold.
🍫 Substitutions
All Purpose (Plain) Flour - if you don't have cake flour around, you can use all purpose flour instead. Use 2 cups and leave out the additional 2 tablespoons of cake flour called for in the recipe.
Gluten Free Flour - we've had great luck using a gluten free flour blend in place of all purpose flour in our scone recipes. We prefer King Arthur Measure for Measure when making gluten free scones.
🍋 Variations
There are so many delicious flavors that you can add to a scone recipe. Use our basic recipe as a jumping off point and make the scones the way that you want them! We have listed some possible add ins and flavors for you here and have also linked to some of our favorite scone recipes.
- Berries - mix in 1 cup of your favorite berries (we actually used blueberries when we photographed this recipe)
- Fruits - peaches, mangos and pineapple all make nice additions to a scone - dice fruit into ½ inch pieces - freeze on a sheet pan before adding to your dough
- Chocolate - add your favorite variety of chocolate to the scone dough - mini chips and larger chunks of chocolate are my favorite
- Nuts - add ½ cup of your favorite nuts - some ideas are toasted coconut flakes, pecans, sliced almonds and walnuts
- Dried Fruits - mix in ½ cup dried cranberries, raisins or dried blueberries.
- Flavors - vanilla is a classic but you can also add cinnamon, nutmeg or cardamom for a nice twist
- Citrus - both the fresh citrus zest and juice are nice additions to a scone - add about 2 tablespoons of zest and 2 tablespoons of juice to a scone recipe
⭐️ Glaze and Garnish Ideas
- citrus glaze - combine ½ cup of confectioner's sugar with 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed citrus juice
- chocolate - drizzle melted milk, white or dark chocolate over baked scones
- vanilla or almond glaze - combine ½ cup confectioner's sugar with ½ teaspoon vanilla or almond extract and 1.5 tablespoons of milk
- dust with confectioner's sugar
❤️ Scone Recipes from Maple and Thyme
Favorite Tips and Tricks for Baking Perfect Scones
- Use Cold Ingredients: I can't emphasize this enough! You need cold butter, cold cream, cold eggs and cold vanilla. I even sometimes throw my flour combination into the freezer for a few minutes just to make sure everything is super cold. All of my scone recipes start with a stick of frozen butter that I grate into the dry ingredients.
- Don't Be Afraid to Mix the Dough: I've had good luck when I turn the dough onto a floured board when it has just about come together. Then I like to fold it over itself 4-5 times until all of the extra flour has been incorporated into the dough and the dough has an even consistency flecked with butter.
- Refrigerate or Freeze Your Dough Before Baking: Give your dough triangles a rest in the refrigerator or freezer for 20-30 minutes before baking.
📦 Storage
Store baked scones for 1-2 days in an airtight container at room temperature.
I find that scones are best when they are freshly baked. You get those dreamy crisp edges and tender middles. In my opinion, scones don't keep well so it's best to bake scones fresh on the day that you plan to enjoy them. Because of this, I prefer to keep unbaked dough in the freezer and bake scones when I want them.
To do this, you'll want to freeze the cut scones until they are completely solid and then transfer the frozen dough to a storage bag or container. When you are ready to bake the scones, you transfer the number of scones that you want to your baking sheet, brush with heavy cream and bake 400°. Be sure to add a few extra minutes to the baking time if the dough is frozen solid.
For complete, step-by-step instructions on how to freeze scones visit our post - How To Freeze Scones - An Easy to Follow Guide.
🤓 Frequently Asked Questions About Baking Scones
Yes! Plain flour is all purpose flour. Whenever a recipe calls for plain flour, be sure to use your favorite all purpose flour. This will only have flour in it, it's not self rising and it's not cake flour.
The secret to making scones rise is using fresh baking powder and cold ingredients. Be sure that your baking powder has not expired and keep everything cold! Cold eggs, buttermilk and you can even chill the flour. Be sure to use frozen butter too as mentioned above.
📖 Recipe
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Foolproof Scones Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter frozen
- 2 cups + 2 tablespoons cake flour can also use 2 cups all purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ½ cup buttermilk can also use heavy cream
- 1 cup mix-ins chocolate, berries, nuts or dried fruits
Instructions
- Place your stick of butter in the freezer.
- While the butter is freezing, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl.
- In a large glass measuring cup, whisk together egg, buttermilk and vanilla. Store in the refrigerator until needed.
- Remove frozen butter from the freezer and use your cheese grater to grate the frozen butter directly into the dry ingredients. Use a pastry cutter or fork to work the butter into the flour mixture.
- Pour the buttermilk and eggs over the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Add any mix-ins to the dough. Gently fold into the dough. It's okay if they are not well combined.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and fold the dough over itself and then flatten it to incorporate the mix-ins. Do this 4-5 times to be sure that the ingredients are evenly distributed throughout the dough. You want the dough to come together and look uniform with flecks of butter throughout.
- Form the dough into a 8-10 inch circle and use a bench scraper or sharp knife to cut the dough into 8 triangles.
- Arrange triangles on a quarter sheet pan and place scones into the freezer for 15-20 minutes before preheating the oven to 400°.
- After the 20 minutes of chilling, arrange the scones on a parchment lined, half sheet pan. Brush the scones with buttermilk and bake at 400° for 18-22 minutes or until golden brown.
- Top baked scones with the garnish of your choice (confectioner's sugar, a glaze or melted chocolate).
Nutrition
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Sharron Colwell
Moist, simple recipe. I used raspberries and they turned out great. Bravo
Amanda Smallwood
Thanks so much for the feedback Sharron! Sounds delicious! xo Amanda