Blueberry Lemon Scones

Blueberry Lemon Scones are soft, crumbly, and bursting with flavor!

Most scones tend to be dry so we’ve developed a recipe that is perfectly moist and tender, as well as easy

Blueberries and lemon pair perfectly together, however this recipe is very flexible, so you can use almost any fruit you have on hand. Sprinkle with coarse sugar or drizzle with zesty lemon glaze

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Ingredients Needed

DRY INGREDIENTS:

• Flour and Sugar – the basics for any great baked good
• Baking Powder and Baking Soda – brings the lift and the rise to these scones
• Salt – to balance the sweetness in these scones, and any baked goods
• Lemon Zest – provides a bright burst of flavor

OTHER INGREDIENTS:

• Butter – unsalted is best but salted will work too
• Lemon Juice – fresh lemon juice will give the best flavor
• Buttermilk – we think this is the secret to tender baked goods
• Blueberries – fresh berries are preferred
• Heavy Cream – just a touch for brushing to top of the scones
• Coarse Sugar – a sprinkling gives the scones a sweet finish and a sparkly top

OPTIONAL LEMON GLAZE – this glaze is optional but an added bonus!

• Powdered Sugar – also called confectioners sugar
• Lemon Juice – fresh and sunny lemon juice makes the glaze zesty
• Vanilla Extract – we love to make our own – give it a try!

Qualities of the best buttermilk scones

• Soft and a bit crumbly
• Golden brown tops and edges
• Moist and soft on the inside
• Slightly sweet and packed with flavor

How to make Lemon Blueberry Scones

• Whisk all dry ingredients together, including the lemon zest.
• Scatter cold butter pieces into the flour mixture and mix together with a pastry blender or the back of two forks. (I don’t recommend using your hands to blend because the temperature of your hands is too warm and it will cause the butter to start softening.)
• Blend in the butter until the pieces are the size of peas. Be careful not to overmix because too much blending will develop the gluten and make the scones less tender.
• Add in the cold buttermilk, lemon juice, and blueberries and blend very gently. The dough will still be shaggy, which is OK.

• Lightly flour your work surface, turn the dough out, and gently knead for about 30-seconds,
• Shape dough into a large 1 1/2″ thick disk.

• Cut scones into 8 triangle wedges.
• Place onto a baking sheet, brush with cream, sprinkle with coarse salt and place the tray in the refrigerator for 15-minutes before baking

• Bake about 25 minutes. Scones should be lightly browned and easy to pull up off the baking tray and cool completely.
• If making lemon glaze prepare while the scones are cooling.
• Whisk together the powdered sugar, lemon juice and vanilla until smooth.
• Once scones are cool drizzle them with icing.

Tips for perfect lemon blueberry scones

Scones are easy to make but there are lots of small tricks that go into making the best scones.

• The colder the ingredients the better the results, so keep your scone dough cold.
• Start with frozen butter because it helps make the scones flaky. If it’s very warm in your kitchen you may want to refrigerate all of your ingredients before you start.
• Use very cold buttermilk
• Gently mix the dough by hand. The butter should be pea-sized after mixing the flour. The key to flaky scones is do not over blend the butter.
• The dough shouldn’t be too wet and should be able to stand up on its own.
• If you use frozen blueberries (or any fruit) do not thaw them before adding. Blending the berries with a teaspoon of flour will help them keep their shape during baking.
• Use fresh lemon juice and zest for a bright tangy flavor
• Chill the scones for 15-minutes before baking to get fluffy scones and avoid the chance of them overspreading in the oven.
• Make scone dough ahead of time, cut into shapes and freeze. Add about 3-5 minutes to the cooking time.
• If you want smaller scones, form dough into a rectangle, and cut into smaller wedges

Use this as your master scone recipe

Use the basic on the recipe card below and add or omit flavors for any type of buttermilk scones. The process for making the scones will be the same each time. Some favorite combinations:

• Cherries and almonds – we use this combo in our Cherry Almond Muffins
• Strawberries, raspberries, or blackberries
• Currants
• Dried ginger and rosemary
• Dried apricots, pineapple, cranberries
• Chocolate chips or chocolate chunks

Need a buttermilk substitute?

In case you don’t have buttermilk on hand it’s easy to make a substitution:

• The ratio: 1 Tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to every 1 cup of regular milk.
• Mix together and let stand for a few minutes

More breakfast and brunch ideas

• Buttermilk Pancakes
• Buttermilk Banana Bread
• Baked Churro Donuts
• Fresh Cherry Almond Muffins
• Cinnamon Coffee Cake with Apples
• Crustless Mini Quiche Bites

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Print Recipe

5 from 5 votes

Blueberry Lemon Scones

Freshly baked blueberry lemon scones are easy to make. Moist and bursting with blueberry flavor. Drizzle with icing for a sweet added touch.

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time25 minutes mins

Total Time45 minutes mins

Course: Bread, Breakfast, snacks

Cuisine: American, English

Servings: 8 scones

Calories: 334kcal

Author: Cyndy Ufkes – The Art of Food and Wine

Ingredients

Scone Ingredients

• 2 ⅓ cups All-purpose flour, plus 1 teaspoon for blueberries
• ¼ cup sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• ½ cup unsalted butter (4 ounces), very cold, Cut into ½" pieces
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• ¾ cup buttermilk, very cold
• 1 cup blueberries
• 2 Tbsp heavy cream
• 2 Tbsp coarse sugar, optional

Lemon Glaze, optional

• ½ cup powdered confectioners sugar
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• ¼ tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Scones:

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, Silpat liner or grease lightly.
• Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, lemon zest, and baking soda.
• Scatter the butter pieces over the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter, or the back of 2 forks, cut the butter into the flour until the butter is dispersed throughout, and butter is about the size of peas.

  Be careful not to overwork because you want the butter to stay very cold.
• In a small bowl toss cold blueberries with 1 teaspoon of flour to coat
• Add the buttermilk, lemon juice, and flour-coated blueberries to the dough and gently mix until just combined. The dough should be combined but rough and shaggy, and should hold together.
• Dust a work surface lightly with flour and turn the dough out onto the floured surface.

  With floured hands knead the dough for about 30-seconds. Shape the dough into a large disk about 1½" thick.

  Cut into 8 equal wedges.
• Place wedges onto prepared baking sheet, brush with cream and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
• Chill in refrigerator for about 15-minutes.

  Bake for about 25 minutes, or until tops are lightly browned.
• Remove scones from baking sheet and cool for about 15-minutes.

  Drizzle with lemon glaze and serve.

Lemon Glaze

• In a small bowl whisk confectioners sugar to remove any lumps.

  Slowly drizzle in vanilla and enough lemon juice to make a smooth glaze. If too thick add more lemon juice.

Nutrition

Calories: 334kcal | Carbohydrates: 49g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 37mg | Sodium: 459mg | Potassium: 98mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 431IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 98mg | Iron: 2mg