A good scone is a treat, and if it's bursting with blueberries so much better, right? This recipe makes tender, buttery, flaky ones that are fantastic warm with a dollop of butter. If you start now and have them ready in an hour! The dough can be made ahead and kept unbaked in the freezer for whenever the craving comes.

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Scones are one of my favorite things to eat and bake.
They are not hard to make, and the ingredients are simple everyday staples, but it's all about the details: cold ingredients, working the dough as little as possible, correct oven temperature, etc.
I talk in other posts about my great-grandmother's recipe that I could never recreate, according to my family. So I went and found my favorite Buttermilk Scone recipe and decided to wing it.
Scones with added fruit are a great way to start the day, beautiful for a brunch table or an afternoon snack with your favorite cup of whatever you drink. Coffee for me, please and thank you.
Ingredient list
- Blueberries: fresh or frozen (without thawing) can be used with great results.
- Unsalted butter.
- All-purpose flour.
- Salt: I like to use kosher salt when baking. But regular table salt works just fine.
- Baking powder: is used as leavener to help the scones rise, so ensure it isn't expired.
- Milk: whole milk will give richer results. But reduced-fat milk can be used.
- Cream: heavy cream, whipping, or heavy whipping cream can be used.
- Egg: fresh, large.
- Vanilla: I use pure vanilla extract or pure vanilla paste when available, but a good vanilla essence (artificially flavored) also works and is infinitely cheaper.
- Cinnamon: any ground cinnamon you normally use works fine. I like Frontier Vietnamese cinnamon and Simply Organic Ceylon cinnamon.
How to make blueberry scones
It's all in the details.
The mixing of dry ingredients with butter can be made in 2 ways:
- By hand - a bowl where you integrate the cold butter with your hands or with a pastry cutter. This can take a few minutes as the butter needs to be the size of peas and small beans because it will be irregular.
- Food processor - the butter and dry ingredients are integrated by pulsing a few times. This is way faster and less messy (no hands involved), and the only thing to watch out for is not getting carried away and processing the butter too much.
Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl, and add the cold butter pieces. Integrate with your hands or with a pastry cutter. You can do this in a food processor but stop when the butter is about the size of peas or chickpeas. It will be uneven.
Lightly whisk the eggs and add them to the flour mixture with the milk and cream. Mix with a fork or spoon a little. You just want to moisten the dry ingredients.
It will look very dry, but if you take some of the mixture and squeeze it in your palm, it will come together. Add the blueberries and barely mix to incorporate. You don't want to crush them. Dump the mixture onto a clean surface. Some blueberries will be loose.
Gather the shaggy mass with your hands or a dough scraper, folding it onto itself several times until you can form a disk. It does not have to come together like a pie crust, so touch it as little as possible to create a disk that you can cut.
Cut the dough round with a kitchen knife or a dough cutter into 6 or 8 triangles.
Place them on a baking sheet and freeze for 15 minutes before baking. You can line it with parchment paper if you want to.
Vintage Kitchen tip: to get tender and fluffy scones, ensure the ingredients are cold, the oven is preheated, and you don't overwork the dough. If in doubt, put the scones in the freezer for 15 minutes before baking.
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Kitchen notes
- Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperature, equipment, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier.
- Baking time: remember that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as it can be, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer(like the OXO oven thermometer) to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend you keep track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
- Very cold ingredients: I’m not kidding when I say almost frozen butter, at least very cold. And don’t take the milk and cream half an hour before mixing the scones. Butter, cream, and milk belong in the fridge until you need to scatter and pour them.
- Don't work the dough much: it should come together but still have floury patches. You don’t need to work it until it’s smooth, like pie dough. It is an uneven dough with dry spots, and that’s good for flakiness later.
- A relatively high oven: they need that extra heat (and baking powder) to rise, despite all that butter and cream. And if you forgot to turn the oven on before you start mixing, please don’t leave the baking sheet with the cut scones waiting on the counter. Put them in the fridge or freezer for the ten or fifteen minutes it takes for the oven to reach its temperature.
Frequently asked questions
With this recipe! It's delicious and has easy-to-follow instructions (in the recipe card) and a step-by-step video above.
I have three main tips: very cold ingredients, not overworking the dough, and preheating the oven to the right temperature. If you want more details, read them in the Notes on the recipe card or in the post.
Make sure they are cold before going into the preheated oven and that you use good baking powder. They need all that to have that first surge in the oven that makes them rise. Fluffiness also has to do with the recipe. Some are dense due to more butter and/or add-ins (the double cheese scones recipe, for example), and others are lighter, like the buttermilk scones recipe.
Overworking the dough too much, not preheating the oven well, and using old baking powder are the most common reasons I see people make.
Freezing scones
Scones freeze like a dream. You can keep a batch in the freezer and bake it to order!
Freeze the already cut scones (I do it on the baking sheet) until they are rock solid, and then transfer them to a bag. That way, they will take up less space in your freezer and free up the pan.
When you crave warm, fluffy scones, bake them directly from the freezer in a 375°F/190°C oven.
Related recipes you might like:
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Blueberry Scones
Scones that are bursting with blueberries, this recipe makes tender, buttery, flaky ones that are ready in an hour and can be frozen.
- Total Time: 60
- Yield: 6 large
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup white, granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoons (90g) unsalted butter, cold
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons milk, cold
- 2 tablespoons cream (whipping, heavy, or double), cold
- 1 ½ cups blueberries, fresh or frozen (directly from the freezer)
Instructions
Make sure the butter cubes, cream, and milk are as cold as possible. I like to put them in the freezer for 10 minutes before starting.
By hand:
- Stir together flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large bowl.
- Add butter and integrate using your hands or with a pastry cutter until it’s the size of peas. Don’t overwork it. The butter should remain cold. If it’s starting to become extremely soft put the bowl in the refrigerator or freezer until the butter becomes cold again.
Food processor:
- Put the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and cinnamon in the bowl of the food processor. Pulse a few times to integrate.
- Add cold butter pieces and pulse on/off until the butter is the size of peas. The only thing to watch out for is not getting carried aways and processing the butter too much.
- Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.
For both methods:
- Beat slightly the egg and add to the butter mixture together with the milk, cream, and vanilla.
- Mix lightly with a fork or spoon. It will be floury but, if you take some of the dough in your hand and squeeze, it will come together.
- Add blueberries and mix lightly, trying not to crush them.
- Transfer this whole shaggy mass to a clean surface.
- With your hands (I use a cornet to aid me) start bringing the dough together, folding it onto itself as best as you can. Don’t knead it as you would a pie dough. It only needs to be patted into a rough circle. (I recommend you watch the video in the blog post for guidance). There will be floury patches.
- Cut in half and each half in 3 wedges with a kitchen knife or the cornet.
- Transfer to the prepared cookie sheet and pop into the freezer for 10 minutes or the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375°F/190°C.
- Bake for 10 minutes and turn the oven down to 350°F/180°C and continue baking for about 20 minutes, until the top is golden and dry.
- After 30 minutes, take out the sheet and check that the scones are done by carefully lifting the top of one and checking that the inside is done and not still raw. Bake for 5-10 more minutes if needed.
- Let cool on a wire rack.
- Store at room temperature for 1-2 days and warm slightly in the oven before eating.
Notes
Liquid: you can use half and half instead of milk and cream.
Freezing: unbaked scone wedges are great to have in the freezer. Simply baked them directly without thawing them.
Flavorings - I like vanilla and cinnamon, but it's up to your palate to use all of them. Or add lemon or orange zest.
Very cold ingredients. I’m not kidding when I say almost frozen butter, at least very cold. And don’t take the milk and cream half an hour before you start mixing the scones. Butter, cream, milk, they belong in the fridge until you need to scatter and pour them.
Don't work the dough much. It should come together but still have floury patches. You don’t need to work it until it’s smooth, like a pie dough for instance. It is an uneven dough, with dry spots, and that’s good for flakiness later.
A rather high oven. They need that extra heat (and baking powder) to rise however they can in spite of all that butter and cream. And if by any chance you forgot to turn the oven on before you start with the mixing, please don’t leave the baking sheet with the cut scones waiting on the counter. Put them in the fridge or freezer for the ten or fifteen minutes it takes for the oven to reach its temperature.
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 30
- Category: Scones
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: International
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ⅙
- Calories: 375
- Sugar: 21 g
- Sodium: 117.3 mg
- Fat: 14.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 55.6 g
- Protein: 6.1 g
- Cholesterol: 67.3 mg
Keywords: blueberry scones
angiesrecipes says
They are our favourite too, esp. the one with berries! Yours look so amazing!