The things I do for you people! Well, okay, I do them for me, and rather transparently most of the time, but sometimes, sometimes like perhaps during season in which one is upping the ante on output and is concerned about this ante’s effect on quality, I’m fairly certain I’m going a little further than I typically would. What I mean is, on Sunday night, as excited as I was about this new cookbook we purchased and pleased with the outcome of our lentil stew, I couldn’t quit while I was ahead and also baked the orange cranberry scone recipe, to bring to work on Monday. Yes, I spoil my coworkers rotten.
But… I don’t… I didn’t love the results. One, they were heavy; heavy, and pretty dried out by the next morning. Now, I know scones aren’t supposed to last forever, but I expect to get at least twelve hours out of them. Call me picky. Second, they weren’t sweet enough, but for this, I will take some blame. I don’t really care for a sticky, saccharine breakfast pastry, and while I understand this to be de rigeur in coffee shops, I just can’t handle that kind of excess first thing in the morning. So, when Ina called for a glaze on top, I skipped it, opting instead to increase the sugar amount in the scone by one tablespoon. It didn’t do the trick, and in the end, I resented a recipe that required a glaze or it just didn’t come together. My third point of contention with the scones was that they tasted of baking powder, like a biscuit, but with none of a biscuit’s charm or bright buttermilk flavor. Finally, they were still in a container on my desk on Wednesday, which as we all know among ravished cubicle-dwellers – who sop up leftover, processed corporate-catered pastries as if those lemon-poppy mini-muffins tasted anything but rank – is the ultimate nail in a baked good’s coffin.
Next!
Normally, this is where this post would end; I would sign off with a “better luck next time” and harbor great intentions to try a new scone recipe soon, but every time I would come across one, it would bring up the unsavory memory of those leaden, dry things and skip it. This time, luckily for all of us, I will so arrogantly say, I persevered, and dug into the basic cream scone recipe from the America’s Test Kitchen cookbook last night, the one boasting a promise that it had passed exhaustive rounds of testing with flying colors. (Frankly, shame on me for not using their recipe first.)
These scones are the height of scone perfection, a pastry dream-come-true, should you be as odd as I am and occasionally dream a little dream of scone. They are moist and structured, but still soft and light, ever-so-slightly crisped exterior. They have just the right level of sweet, and I didn’t need to sugar or glaze or really anything them to make them work. Sure, the book offers variations on the recipe, but the basic one, the very first one, is all I will ever need.
And now, with my scone quest fulfilled, I can move onto bigger and better things, like pickle parties and planning Sunday night’s dinner. And by “planning” I mean, “taking Monday off.”
Dreamy Cream Scones
America’s Test Kitchen Cookbook
2 cups (280 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour, preferably a low-protein brand such as Gold Medal or Pillsbury
1 tablespoon (15 grams) baking powder
3 tablespoons (40 grams) sugar
1/2 teaspoon (3 grams) fine sea or table salt
5 tablespoons (70 grams) chilled, unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1/2 cup currants (about 80 grams; I used dried cranberries, and chopped them into smaller bits)
1 cup (235 ml) heavy cream
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425°F.
2. Place flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in large bowl or work bowl of food processor fitted with steel blade. Whisk together or pulse six times.
3. If making by hand, use two knives, a pastry blender or your fingertips and quickly cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few slightly larger butter lumps. Stir in currants. If using food processor, remove cover and distribute butter evenly over dry ingredients. Cover and pulse 12 times, each pulse lasting 1 second. Add currants and pulse one more time. Transfer dough to large bowl.
4. Stir in heavy cream with a rubber spatula or fork until dough begins to form, about 30 seconds.
5. Transfer dough and all dry, floury bits to countertop and knead dough by hand just until it comes together into a rough, sticky ball, 5 to 10 seconds. Form scones by either a) pressing the dough into an 8-inch cake pan, then turning the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, cutting the dough into 8 wedges with either a knife or bench scraper (the book’s suggestion) or b) patting the dough onto a lightly floured work surface into a 3/4-inch thick circle, cutting pieces with a biscuit cutter, and pressing remaining scraps back into another piece (what I did) and cutting until dough has been used up. (Be warned if you use this latter method, the scones that are made from the remaining scraps will be much lumpier and less pretty, but taste fine. As in, I understand why they suggested the first method.)
6. Place rounds or wedges on ungreased baking sheet and bake until scone tops are light brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool on wire rack for at least 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
oooo…recipe recipe recipe…we need it for Sunday breakfast!!!!!
You are so efficient! You bake not one batch, but two. Bravo to you Deb. I can’t wait for the recipe. (I’m trying your lentils this weekend, btw.)
Can’t wait for the recipe. How is the America’s Test Kitchen Cookbook? I’ve been wanting a new cookbook for a while now. Would it be worth my time?
Hi Deb,
I have made these scones many times and love them but now I need to make them for a crowd. 160 people to be exact😳any suggestions on keeping them fresh as I try and make them ahead of time?
If you’re baking it the day you form them, I’d just keep them in the fridge while you do so. If you want to make them a few days in advance, I would freeze them and bake them from the freezer, or leave them in the fridge for a few hours to defrost, and then bake them.
Hi Deb. If I were to bake these from the freezer, how much longer would they need in the oven? Thank you!
It’s usually just 2 to 3 minutes longer.
Thank you very much. They were perfect!
The gram weight of 1 cup ap flour is 120 grams. This recipe calls for 2 cups flour but says weight is 280 grams. Is this an error?
I’ve never had a cup of flour weigh 120 grams before — my cups clock in at 130 to 135 grams, hence the weight here.
Deb you keep reading my mind! Today, I had an awful craving for scones…so I bought some frozen ones that I just have to pop into the oven at home. Now, I have lovely pictures to look at while my scones sit in the work freezer. I pray that they won’t be poached!
Ooh, and a bit of clotted cream to go with it, perhaps? Delish looking… thank you… and yes, work is kicking my butt too :( But it’s almost time for the weekend… thankfully.
I live and die by my Best Recipe cookbook, but will check out the A’s Test Kitchen one – if they include scrumptious photos (as your blog does) that might push me over the line!
I love when smart people cook. Also, it is only a matter of time before you have your own foodnetwork show. Deb cooks the books (I never said I wasn’t cheesy) – where you cook from famous cookbooks just as the recipes describe with an in-studio audience who taste tests the food. Dare to dream right?
Ah, yes, the Cook’s Illustrated cream scone. I’ve had great success with that recipe, even when I swapped the AP flour for half whole wheat, half pastry. Tenderness incarnate…
If i use pastry flour, do i still need the baking powder?
Pastry flour doesn’t usually come with baking powder in it, so yes. But if yours does, it might not need it.
I am also a fan of Ina’s and have all of her cookbooks, even the new one. I had tried her scone recipe previously and was similarly disappointed. It was one of the very few times I did’t fall in love with one of her recipes. Can’t wait to try the one you recommended, I love my New Best Recipe book also! By the way, I tried Ina’s Frozen Berries with Hot White Chocolate and found them scrumptious. It’s from her new book and a keeper if you love white chocolate like I do. Deb, I have only recently discovered your blog, and look forward to reading it everyday. Cheers!
I’m glad you carried on and posted this amazing looking, great recipe!
the pictures are so mouth-watering -how do you do it every time??-
I love scones (see my search for the perfect scone…!) This recipe is however really different from my one, am certainly going to give it a try! =)
I made the Test Kitchen scones for a class full of sophomores , and they were DEVOURED in minutes. Seriously, when 15-year-olds are giving the thumbs-up to a recipe that doesn’t involve chocolate or Doritos, what other affirmation do you need?
(New reader of the blog, by the way, and so glad that someone pointed me toward it!)
Highly recommend Gordon Ramsey’s “perfect scone” recipe. I used to go to Claridges for afternoon tea as a treat when I lived in London, and the scones were always the highlight. So when I found Ramsey’s recipe for said morsels of genius, well…the mixing bowl was down from the shelf double quick. The scones are perfect, the man does not lie. Now all I have to do is source clotted cream in NZ and my expat dream will be complete…
Ah. I’ve been making this recipe for years and love it. So simple. So perfect. When I started reading the post and saw that you were dissappointed in your scone recipe I was going to send you to this one and say, “Don’t ever bother trying to find a better one.” So imagine my delight as I read on. I love everything about your site (I’m smitten!) and now I know I can trust your taste and opinions, because they as perfect as my own. I will add that since I have kids to please, I often substitute currants with tiny chocolate morsels and win their favor. I’ll halve the dough and make some for them and some yummy grown-up variation for me.
You inspired me, Deb – and i made my first batch of scones ever on Friday night after work for yummy breakfasting all weekend long. Only thing was frozen blueberries didn’t quite add the punch of flavor I was hoping for….definitely fresh next time.
I have a question. I made these last night, and they ended up tasting great, but the dough was really sticky. Is that how it’s supposed to be? When I pressed it into the cake pan, there was no way it was coming back out, so I just scored the dough and baked it in the cake pan and they turned out fine. I’m just really confused by the dough. I guess I was expecting it to be a little closer to biscuit consistency.
Christine – So, did you make it?
Kelli – How did the lentils come out?
Jessie – Love the cookbook. There are many now, but I started with the one that was first recommended to me years ago. I can’t imagine not liking any of them.
Jenifer – Frozen? Meh! You must try these, too.
Yvo – Mmm, clotted cream. I wish!
Nancy – Both books should be of equal quality because (I think) they are tested in the same kitchens, with the same methods.
C – I would totally love my own cooking show. Of course, there is no marketing angle to cooking from famous cookbooks for Scripps, so I am sure they’d have no interest. Le sigh. I was all excited for the inevitable debssmittenkitchenshowsux.blogspot.com!
Luisa – Now that sounds like more wholesome breakfast idea. I’d actually love to try them with whole wheat pastry flour, something I hear endlessly good things about.
Ivyfalls – Thank you!
Julia – You should. I can’t believe what a following it has. I wish I had more right now.
Max – Not bad! Though my inner 15-year-old thinks that these would be divine with chocolate inside them, as well. :)
Samphire – If you have it, let me know. I’d love to do a comparison. Thanks!
Pam – I love that this recipe has such a following! I only wish I’d found it sooner.
Meghan – You might even want to try dried blueberries – I’ve been seeing them around a lot lately.
Jessie – Yup, the dough was mighty sticky, so I just patted a bit of flour on my hands and the work surface. Of course, shame on me for giving you guys pressing-in-the-pan directions when I’d never tried that method myself first. I suppose they want you to flour it very well first, but didn’t mention. I’ll have to recheck tonight. Glad they worked out anyway!
wish I had read this comment first – dough came out a mess so I lined it with parchment paper. [used an 8 inch square pan to make smaller pieces for a brunch.] I only hope it’s not over-handled.
I found your scone blog through flickr and google. It looked sooooo good I had to bookmark it on my blog for later use. This buttermilk scone recipe is one I’ve tried and really like.
Ooooohhhh…..! Deb, I baked a batch of these creamy scones this evening and they are to die for! So light! I like them better than the buttermilk scones. Thanks again for sharing! I added some orange zest to my dough mix and made bite-size scones. Will take more pictures tomorrow when there’s better lighting before posting.
Hi Deb,
try Nigella Lawson’s scones (from “How to be a Domestic Goddess”) They are perfect – and she also tells you what to do to make them rise so high. All other recipes I tried just left me with rocks in funny shapes. (If you don’t have the book and can’t find the recipe on the www, let me know).
Thanks for all the wonderful things you are sharing!
These made my day!
I’d had a huge craving for scones with my tea, but the last time I made them was a disaster (a huge amount of baking powder made them taste metallic). This recipe is a godsend! I made baby-scones, and they reheat very well. Perfect for a tea-time snack!
:}
i made this recipe last night and served them this morning to my editorial staff. the scones were a HIT!!!
i had three people ask me for the recipe (and I gave them the smittenkitchen website address telling them it was my favorite online recipe kitchen) and everyone came up to me saying how wonderful they were.
i couldn’t believe how easy they were to make, either.
thanks Smitten Kitchen!!!
Okay, so I made these twice last week. And while I thought they were awesome and delicious and easy(!!!), my bf said they tasted too biscuity. My dough never got really sticky, either. What should I do next time? I added more liquid the second batch and they came out slightly better but I’m afraid to add tooo much more liquid. Thanks!
These turned out wonderful and were so quick to make! I’ve been making a lot of scones lately, and these were by far the best. They easily split in half and were so tender and flavorful that I just enjoyed them plain. I chopped up a 1/2 cup of moist prunes to sub for the currants with much success.
After cutting the scones into shapes, I flash-froze them for a half hour, then wrapped them individually and stuck them back in the freezer. I plan on baking them straight from the freezer (adding a minute or two, as Dorie suggests) for a quick breakfast. Thanks so much for the post.
Oh these were fantastic! Super easy to make and, best of all, the cooking time is so quick that you don’t have to wait long to savor these scones. I ate them with lemon curd to counter their light sweetness, and it was absolutely delicious.
Dear Internet:
I was hired by a co-worker to bake a whole crap load of scones for a big bridal shower. I tried the following recipes:
http://www.yankeemagazine.com/recipes/search/onerecipe.php?number=2457 (too tough)
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/cranberry-orange-scones-recipe/index.html (too dry! I think I must have done something wrong here. FOUR eggs? 3/4 of a POUND of butter? and THEN cream? How could they be dry! Perhaps I overcooked them? But I was careful? Bah!)
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/CRANBERRY-ORANGE-SCONES-15682 (was good)
But this recipe that Deb of smittenkitchen has highlighted here made the best scones by far. By. Far. They melt in your mouth. They are delicious. I just got back from delivering my hours worth of scone labor and everyone was thrilled.
Thank you, Deb!
I made these scones, and they were wonderful! I love them. This recipe is definitely a keeper!
I love scones, and I love to hear of others’ adventures!
These scones look great and i can’t wait to try them. I’m from England so i’m always in search of a good scone recipe.
This one from Delia Smith is also very good:http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/database/richfruitbuttermilks_67262.shtml
Hi,
I’m making these scones right now. Thanks for a cream-based recipe. I ran out of buttermilk and was thinking of going to the store, but now I get to use up my extra heavy cream.
Also, a tip for all the fellow “by hand” scone bakers – you can freeze your butter and then grate it into the dough. It’s much easier than cutting the butter in. It’s also faster (which keeps the butter colder).
Keep up the great work. I love your site!
Just made these last night. You’re right, this is the only recipe Ill ever need. I added bits of dried apricot and apples to mine: perfect!
I didn’t have any heavy cream and used a mix of lowfat milk and greek yogurt. And added raspberries. They are really delicious – have made them two days in a row.
Scone-makers of the world unite! You’re going to have to trust me here, but this is really the answer.
3 cups self-raising flour (or normal +baking powder)
1 cup pouring cream
1 cup lemonade
Mix. Spread out. Cut. Bake. Eat.
No joke, this is the very very best recipe for scones – and also a very traditional Australian recipe – which are a staple of country cooking here. It used to be said that a good countrywoman (always a woman in those unenlightened days) was someone who could get some scones into the oven before the kettle had time to boil – the idea being that if someone “dropped by” from “next door” (sometimes an hour’s drive or more, in the North) then you better be able to get them something tasty pretty quickly.
So please – I implore you – if you are a scone fan, just try this once. You’ll be worried by the soft dough, but ignore it and just chuck them in a very hot oven, in whatever shapes you chose, and the soft, billoughy, just a touch sweet texture will blow you away. I can’t help thinking of scones as a quintessially Anglo-Australian thing – I think yours are a little harder? but seriously, you’ll never look back.
And the variations are only limited by your imagination – don’t bother refining hte mix, it can take any additions: chopped dates and a swirl of maple syrup? apricot and almond? savoury, with cheese, paprika, and perhaps beer instead of lemonade?
I have just tried this receipe.My dough was quite buttery and soft.And my scones never rose.They became hard biscuits.What should i do to make it rise?
Mehr, I suspect what happened was a matter of translation. I’m guessing you’re in the US, like me. For some reason “lemonade” outside the US refers to a fizzy carbonated beverage, such as Sprite, or some other lightly lemon flavored bubble-filled drink. So if you used US homemade-style still lemonade then you’d be lacking the carbonation that adds lift in Australia.
A friend and I ate these with some homemade lemon curd and they were delightful! Thanks so much for always putting up such great recipes.
Sorry for commenting on an entry that’s three years old – but I was looking for something simple to bake for the first time in my tiny new apartment, and I just made these. But I forgot a few things in my “apartment startup” grocery shopping – namely salt! – and I typically eat pretty healthily so didn’t have any heavy cream.
I made these with salted butter (hoping for that to make up for the lack of salt) and – get this – a cup of 3.25% strawberry yoghurt and a couple of splashes of milk to give the dough the right texture. I ended up with slightly strawberry-flavoured scones. They’re a bit rubbery – next time I’ll follow the recipe – but yum! A success for the first baked goods in this apartment :)
Just wanted to let you know that I just make these scones for a St Patricks Day dinner with my family. They turned out wonderfully. Light and soft with gentle crisp crusts. Thanks for the recipe! I added some chopped dried cranberries and the zest of a lemon. Tastey.
My little dream of scone has finally come true!
I subbed half buttermilk for the cream because it was laying around. With lemon curd and blackcurrant preserves (fresh off the plane from France, as a traveling gift from one very smart boyfriend), these were so good I almost fell over in the kitchen.
Thanks for sharing this recipe with us!!!
hello! me and my grandkiddies made these together they’re sure somethin! eat em up diggy dogs!
hey girlz! you should like totally make these things! theyre like so totally delicious! yumm… live love laugh!
hi these remind me of my new song its called scrumpchious scones! omg!
Yum! I just finished making these and have just enjoyed the irregular little one that I made with the dough scraps. They are divine- so light and fluffy yet moist and creamy. And soooo easy to make and the flat smells gorgeous- I’m almost sorry to decimate the baking smell when I start to mash garlic for the arroz con pollo!
I just made these with fresh strawberries and 1/4 cup whole wheat flour to sub for 1/4 cup of AP. They are wonderful! I love your blog.
Made these just now, and they are delicious! I didn’t have cream, so I subbed with plain yogurt and a little bit of whole milk, and it adds a slightly tangy flavor to the scones, which works perfectly. I also made them bite-sized and rolled them in sugar before baking. Thanks for this recipe!
My girls and I made these on Sunday and they were super good. We used strawberries instead of currants. We probably broke all kinds of baking rules too! We used previously frozen strawberries that we thawed and cut up… It added moisture to the mix and I probably should have cut some cream out but didn’t. Still good, just didn’t hold together as well as regular scones. Also, we made ours in a muffin tin instead of cutting them out. VERY good.
~K
I made these this past weekend for the husband with chocolate chunks and they were the absolute best scones ever… I think I might try to fold in some rhubarb this weekend… wonderful recipe! I love scones.
Making these right now and looking forward to it! My first smitten kitchen experience….Can’t wait! Love your smitten kitchen.
I <3 Deb’s scones! Love the blueberry/fresh fruit ones from you visit to the North Fork this fall (exactly 2 weeks before my own trip to the North Fork for the first time on a wine tasting trip!). I have a scone fanatic now, they’re so easy and just so damn tasty! Thank you!
I’m baking these tomorrow with my toddler’s preschool class, and then we’re churning our own butter to spread on top. Should be quite the experience, me and a bunch of 3-year-olds, baking scones…
ohhhhhh these are soooo good!!!! I’ve made these before but with a little orange zest. It gives it just the teeniest bit more umph.
:D
Well, the preschool experiment was a success! (Though I’m not sure which they liked more–the scones or the homemade butter.) Thanks so much for the recipe.
I just made these and they are warm out of the oven. I already tried a piece :-) They are delicious!! Thanks for the recipe.
Oh dear. These are seriously, seriously delicious. I used 3/4 cup of blueberries instead of cranberries and the result was OMG AMAZING. This is actually the first time I’ve ever attempted scones, but I just told myself that this is a rich, baking-powdered pie crust and chilled everything, including the mixed dry ingredient. (The butter I stuck in the freeze AFTER cubing.) These are wonderfully light, have an amazing flavor with just a hint of sweetness – I can’t think of any way to improve them. (Knowing me, though, I won’t be able to resist screwing with them in some way… Perhaps some lemon zest?)
I’m so glad someone else recognizes the superiority that is Test Kitchen! After trying this recipe on faith that it would be as good as their strawberry ice cream (with the secret ingredient, Vodka), I have since found it difficult to choose between it and my own recipe that I spent years perfecting! I have had a passion for Scones since Scrooge McDuck raved about them in a book I had as a kid. You can’t go wrong with these, even though everyone will ask ‘what those funny little biscuit things’ are, they will also ask ‘if I pay you, will you please make some more?’ : ) Thanks for posting this, and for all of the other recipes that are quickly filling up my summer’experimental food’ calendar!
Wow. I made these yesterday, plain, without cranberries (as the only ones I had were about 8 months old) – even my English brother-in-law approved!
Very easy, I patted the dough into a round (1 inch thick) then cut it into 8 wedges before transferring to baking sheet lined with parchment. I am terrified of rolling pins, but hope to one day try rolling and cutting…
They did collapse sideways, but didn’t stick to each other and had a “rustic” look.
Shall try them with orange peel and cranberries next! Tks Deb
Wow, these were great! Easy to make and a major hit … Deb you make me look like a pro. Excellent with clotted cream and jam, yum!
these were great – easy easy fast and came out perfect!
Deb, I want to make these for my coworkers too! These look great! One question, though: how should I store them to keep them fresh for the next day? Just an airtight container?
That would work, but just to note: these are definitely best on the first day. (But, a good enough recipe that they’ll taste better on the second day than any other scone would.) Do you have any ability to make the dough, cut and lay it out on your baking tray in the freezer overnight and just bake them in the morning? I’ve done this when short on time and gah, freshly baked scones are always the best.
How long would you bake them for Deb, if frozen?
Just give them a couple extra minutes.
Just made these with chocolate chips and subbing in homemade plain whole milk yogurt for the cream – just delicious and much much healthier! Highly recommend substituting some or all of the heavy cream for yogurt. If the dough is too sticky to roll out you can also do drop scones, just put a spoonful of dough on parchment paper!
Thanks for the tip, Deb! I’ll probably try freezing them the night before.
I made these last night substituting Pamela’s gluten free baking mix for the flour and adding dried cherries and chocolate chips. Holy crap they were SO good – especially if you dip them in the leftover cream as you eat them – mmmmmmmm. Thank you, Deb!!!!!
Being Scottish and therefore born with not a silver spoon in my mouth but a scone I have inherited the secret to perfect scone making…..it’s not the recipe that’s important-it’s the handling. Once the butter/marg has been rubbed in and the sugar, sultanas (or whatever) are added – the stage from adding the milk and achieving an elastic consistency to cutting out must be seconds more than minutes. The lighter handling at this stage results in a lighter scone. So from the bowl to the surface – to the baking tray needs to be as light and quick as poss.
I’ve been making scones weekly for about 50 years. Always use sour milk (in the old days before fridges we always had some). Can’t imagine any scones more delicious than mine with just sultanas. Cream?? Seems such a luxury for such a basic thing as scones. But, hey, I’ve got to try. Scots frugality will mean I have to wait till there is spare cream!
Someone told me this trick and I was wondering if anyone knows if it’s true. If you take two cookie sheets and layer them on top of each other, THEN put the scones on the sheet, they’ll brown better on the bottom and have less a chance of burning. Is it true?
I was trying to find a recipe to use up some heavy cream I had, when I stumbled upon this little gem. Instead of currants, I used blackberries (each halved), added an extra tablespoon of sugar, and the zest of one whole lemon. Holy deliciousness batman! These are not dry at all. I had some issues forming them, so I just made them look ugly. I wanted to eat them too bad to spend time making them look pretty. :)
OMG, I made these last weekend and flash froze them in individual portions then heated a few up for my weekly playgroup on Tuesday. Absolutely amazing! Thank you for posting this recipe. It totally takes me back to my childhood when my mom, sister and I would go to Printers Inc cafe for scones, coffee and books. I love that I know have them in my freezer for whenever I need an afternoon pick me up.
These look fabulous and found this while searching through your fall squash recipes by chance. This scone looks yummy and very similar to the ones I make from the Zune Cookbook. The Zuni’s one adds a touch of orange zest which really brightens the flavor.
These are fantastic! I made them in no time after stumbling out of bed Sunday morning. I substituted chopped fresh cranberries for currants and they turned out absolutely perfectly — light and not too sweet. I should probably chop the cranberries the night before when I’m not so sleepy and have less risk of the loss of fingertips in the chopping process. I think next time I might run an egg wash over the top and a sprinkling of sugar to give them just a little sparkle. Thanks for such a terrific recipe.
Just made these, with the 8-inch pan wedge method, for a Sat. AM treat. DELICIOUS. Cream is what makes scones, apparently…we have a great scone bakery (in Ottawa, Ontario, which is such a much smaller city, you might not expect a dedicated scone bakery) called Scone Witch…pricy but worth it…these are ALMOST as good :-) Thank you for sharing and all the beautiful work you put into the blog.
OMG…I have a new name for these…Better Than Sex Scones! I have no other words to describe them (other than my son also had me put in 1/4 cup of white chocolate chips along with the cranberries and the two worked great together!). These are going to be my Holiday gifts to my friends…5 wedges wrapped in clear cellophone with a pretty ribbon around it :)
This is the second day in a row I baked these scones…per my mom’s request. Its a really delicious and quick recipe. It definitely tastes more biscuity than scone to me, but I already have requests to flash freeze some before I leave.
woohoo! i made the dough last nite – using dried cranberries instead – and flash freezed them. just popped a few in the oven for some christmas day tea and WOW – really really good. buttery, light, just the right amount of sweet. i’ve never made scones before and have always been afraid to – no more! even my hubby liked ’em and he’s not a scone type of guy. thanks!!
Made these this morning with chocolate chips and I am embarrassed to say i’ve eaten most of the batch. I was surprised that they were very biscuit-y and was wondering how to give them more of a crumble. Also I noticed that many other scone recipes include eggs – what effect do the eggs have on a scone–would it be more cakey? Next time (and that will be very soon) I will add a simple glaze or add sprinkling sugar. Thanks for demystifying the scone – it will be my new go-to recipe….
Diana — An egg would make it more cakey or even spongy, a little less light/crumbly. I have one scone recipe on the site with an egg that’s not half-bad or excessively cakey, but I still think cream scones hold their ideal texture longer.
Just made these as a New Year’s morning treat for my husband, who loves scones. He hates raisins, craisins, and all similar things in baked goods so I made them plain. Only had salted butter so I used that and then skipped adding any extra salt. And since I didn’t want to dirty an 8″ pan, I just very lightly rolled these out to an 8″ round and cut them into wedges from there. I’m not big on scones at all, but I must say, these are delicious – and very light and crumbly – mine didn’t come out biscuit-y at all – and just the right amount of sweet. Thanks for another great recipe!
Also just made these today pretty much stuck to the recipe (since cranberry scones were my craving anyway) and DE-LICIOUS. I like the texture of the scones so much I’m going to keep making this over and over until my house is the land of scones and tea.
Thanks much!
I hate scones but these were very good. I made them with cinnamon chips from King Arthurs Flour and they were amazing.
Deb! you are my go to girl… my LIFESAVER! ha :)
i woke up yesterday craving scones and had no dried fruit or anything desirable to put in my scones but then i found this recipe which was exactly what i was looking for! I ended up adding a tsp of cinnamon and a splash of vanilla to the batter and topped them off with cinn/sugar while baking and ended up with the most perfectly moist scone!! so THANK YOU!
I know that this is loooooooong after the original post, but I made scones from America’s Test Kitchen cookbook this weekend, and was curious to see if you had another scone recipe…lo and behold they’re the same one!
These are fabulous. I added a heaping teaspoon of orange zest with the butter as was recommended by the book for cranberry scones, and it gives the dough that extra little zing that makes them perfect. I also lightly glazed them with leftover buttermilk and dusted with sugar before putting them in the oven; might try a dusting of sugar in the raw next time, but it might make them too sweet.
Hi Deb,
Love your blog and your dedication to finding the perfect scone. Would you say the America’s Test Kitchen scone was on the flaky side or crumbly, biscuity side? I’m looking for a flaky scone myself. Thanks!
Rosemary
I wouldn’t say either; they’re moist. Maybe more like a biscuit but less dry and/or airy.
Hmm, I just made these today and got a flaky product, which is what I wanted. But the drawback is that they tasted floury to me. Also, this dough was harder for me to get it to come together than another recipe that I recently tried. Did anyone else have problems getting it to come together?
http://theblogthatatemanhattan.blogspot.com/2007/01/perfect-scone-song.html
I think I’ll try Gordon Ramsay’s recipe, which someone recommended on this page as well. Thanks for all your help!
Hi from Russia!
Dear Deb, I hope you`ll read my comment. You`re definitely a great cook, a was inspired by your recipe. I`m just starting cooking, may be this is the main obstacle)) Things I`ve got at the end were toooo saulty (it`s only my fault) and sodden. I`ve got only one question: were did I go wrong?) I mean, putting a whole cup of cream makes the dough sticky, hard to form and to cut. How did you manage this?
I hope you could give me an advice, Deb!
Thanks in advance,
you are welcome in my city Saint-Petersburg in Russia!
Hi Maria — I would love nothing more than to visit St. Petersburg one day! It does make for a sticky dough. You want to handle it gently on a well-floured counter and try not to work too much flour it or they get dense. Really, just gently pat it into a circle and cut it into wedges and get them in the oven. Bake them until they’re slightly brown at the edges. Hope that helps.
Thanks for your help, Deb!
next time they will be brilliant like yours!
oh my goodness! Made these last night for an easy valentines day breakfast, paired perfectly with mimosas. These are so soft and light, I don’t know if I can ever go back to a non-cream scone. Thanks for another great recipe!
Looks like a good recipe. Could you flash freeze this dough and bake it off at a later date?
Adam — Yup. I do so all of the time with this recipe. I’ll bake them directly from the freezer the morning I need them for a brunch or whatnot. Just needs a couple extra minutes baking time.
Wow, I made these with fresh-ground whole wheat flour, sucanat honey crystals, and dried blueberries and they rivaled PopTarts in flavor (we like PopTarts but avoid them because of trans fats and presevatives and high sugar) ad we so crumbly and good. YOM! I cannot wait to try them with apples next and strawberries when they’re in season!
How does one add fresh fruit? The dough came out extremely wet and thought I had made a grave mistake and redid the dough. They turned out much like a lighter-version biscuit, I thought scones were meant to be more moist. They took a very long time to brown.
I just made these for breakfast, substituting whole milk for the cream (I just couldn’t get myself to use it!!), and they came out perfectly good! One thing: these were a bit cakier than I thought they’d be, as I’d really expected something “shorter”. Very good, though, and my husband devoured them!
For future reference—the “short” texture comes from fat (i.e. “shortening”) so if you substitute milk for cream you’re eliminating some of the fat. This will tend to make them cakier and less short.
I just made these for breakfast, but they turned out tasting like baking powder. All of the other comments say that these taste so amazing, so I’m wondering where I went wrong? Thanks, and I love your blog!
Chelsea — Did you use an aluminum-free baking powder? It makes a difference. Read more.
This recipe is awesome! I made these to bring to my office this morning and this is now my go-to scone recipe. Thanks!
I just want to say that I used this recipe to make my first entry on my own blog. I changed your method and used a method I learned in a cooking class, but used the same ingredients. They were great! Thanks for this :)
i made them just now and they’re truly melt in the mouth. i followed the patting on cake tin method and instead of wedges sliced them into squares and spaced them a bit apart. delish is an understatement. thanks loads for this wonderful recipe.
Have you tried the Joy of Cooking recipe for cream scones? It is dead simple (no cutting in of butter) and I get raves every time I bake them. Easy to alter with additions of lemon zest/blueberries, orange zest/currants, or whatever suits your fancy! I’ve made a dry mix for Christmas gifts–all you do is add cream to have delicious fresh scones…
thank you for this recipe! i just made these about an hour ago and had some for breakfast. they we’re okay with my morning tea, not amazing but that’s because i didnt have heavy cream and made a substitute instead. i also didnt have unsalted butter, but was desperate to make them, so i used salted butter. i also used cranberries instead, but they were still a good, comforting treat. and they do look adorable with the heart-shaped cut-outs i used :)
These were great. I didn’t use the book’s method, with the pan and wedges, but cut them out too. Raisins also made it that much better. Probably the best scones I’ve ever made!
Made these today and used the pan method and cream fresh from the farm. I used dried cherries and 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract. They turned out AMAZING! Hands down the best scone I have ever made.
And surprisingly easy! Thank you for the recipe!
WOW! I know you’ll appreciate someone finishing up a cooking project around midnight. I just finished a batch of these scones and it is a good thing I’m committed to bringing them to work tomorrow or I wouldn’t have been able to stop at one! I patted my dough into a 6 x 9 rectangle; cut it into six 3 inch squares and then cut the squares into triangles (12 pieces). They are the perfect size! One was a little too crumbly so I worked just a little and then reshaped it. As you promised, it was a little more lumpy but still delicious!
hi deb!
i’m sure you’re busy but thought i’d throw this out there…. loved these scones. i served them to faculty wives and board members, and they raved, especially when i told them how easy it was! but it tasted a bit salty to me, and then noticed you had another recipe for cranberry & meyer lemon scones — which recipe is a better base for the scone? btw, tried and loved your kale chips, oatmeal raisin cookies (it replaced my Martha Stewart one).
Sharon — Both are awesome, seriously. But this is my standard. Don’t miss the other though, when you’re craving those flavors.
I made them this morning and they were amazing. Probably the best scones I’ve ever made! Thank you for the recipe!
I made these last night as a gift for friends and they came out perfectly. I have tried several different scone recipes in the past but NONE are nearly as good as this one. I used fresh blueberries instead of dried cranberries which made it slightly difficult to knead the dough because the blueberries kept squishing but as long as I was careful and light in the kneading most of them kept in tact. I of course had to test them and mmm they were awesome! I will DEF be making these again soon :)
I made these over the weekend for a brunch party and it was a hit to say the least! I hope you don’t mind that I plagerize your recipe on my blog and link to this page. I also have another “best” scones recipe that you might be interested in testin ;)
I made these last week and they were delicious!! I am making them again, and this time and trying them with chocolate chips! Do you think soy mild would work instead of the cream? That is all I have in my fridge at this moment :)
These are my go-to scones. I’ve made them at least a dozen times since I found the recipe a little over a year ago. I just whipped up a batch using fresh cherries and will be drizzling some blue lemon spiked glaze for the upcoming holiday. love, love, love this recipe, i almost have it memorized. Thanks!
Perfection! I made them with whole milk. My butter was frozen, so I shaved off 5 tablespoons and mixed it in. It never fully incorporated which made for lovely little pockets of lightness in the scones. I had 3/4 cup of currants, but I cant wait to try in a week when the blueberries come in season. SOoo good! Thanks as always.
I just tried your scones this morning. They are SO delicious. I didn?t add any fruits (my family doesn?t quite care for them) and I put a very light white chocolate drizzle. It was SO delicious. The best scone recipe I have ever came across. This one is going into my book of favorites.
Love and Blessings from Hawaii
Kainoa
Mmm with a cup of jumbo blueberries!
I have made this recipe well over 20 times in the past year and still LOVE them! This is what I give to all my friends for xmas presents and they anxiously await their delivery. My boys and I have found that the most delicious way to eat them is with homemade whipped cream and honey (my 8 year olds idea and I LOVE him for it!). Just wanted to share.
I just tried this recipe today with chocolate chips and i must say, it was a really good scone which replicates the scones i’ve been having in uk!
I made these scones yesterday with cherries and orange zest. Fabulous!
I tried this recipe yesterday with chopped dried cherries and it came out so incredibly well! I also put the remaining scones in tupperware and ate one for breakfast the next day – it was still moist and delicious.
I needed shortcakes for some strawberries I bought today and decided to try this recipe because it looked so simple. These are wonderful! Light, flakey, moist and rich; they were perfect as the base for my fruit. Since I was using it as a shortcake, I used vanilla sugar in them and it made them dessert worthy. Thanks, Deb.
Made these this morning. Amazing, just as described. And with a food processor, practically no work.
Can I just chim in here a month late to say that I too made the Ina Scones last week and was totally disappointed! Even the ones that didn’t burn in my incredibly hot oven (see blog post) were basically un-delicious. Just made your recipe and waiting for them to cool — they look great! Thanks for helping me feel better about my Ina catastrophe.
Deb.
O_M_G
I know this is very late to comment, but I just made these for the first time. In fact, it’s the first time I’ve ever made scones. After making the first batch, getting a million thumbs up from my tummy, and then 2 million more thumbs up from the tummies of my husband and roommate, I immediately went to the kitchen and made 2 more batches, one for each of our families for xmas morning (from frozen dough, of course). Thank you for making my first scone baking experience the best one ever. I will never deviate to another recipe!!
FYI – I used 1/2 cup of buttermilk and 1/2 cup of whipping cream because I didn’t have enough whipping cream and wow, the tiny bit of tartness really compliments the sweetness of these scones.
awesome recipe! Thank you!!!!!!!
I was wondering how many scones this will make if you use the cut out method?
Depending on the size of your cutter but for a fairly standard one, 8.
Oh My God!
These are the best things i have ever tasted!
Thank you sooooooo much!
I made these this morning for a freshly baked breakfast and they were amazing in terms of both taste and texture. I subbed fresh blueberries for the currants. Next time I make them with blueberries, I will probably add some grated lemon peel
I just made these for a dessert potluck and I couldn’t believe how easily they came together and how delicious they are. Thanks for sharing it!
This is one of my favorite recipes from one of my favorite cookbooks. I add an extra tablespoon of sugar. I place the wedges on parchment paper on a thin cookie sheet and baste them with beaten egg mixed with a teaspoon of water and sprinkle coarse sugar on top. If you use half cream and half buttermilk, add 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda. For blueberry scones, add a teaspoon of lemon zest. Cranberry and pecans, add a teaspoon ground orange peel. Next is apricot walnut.
I love drop scones, can I use this recipe and make drop scones instead of forming into a round or cutting them out?
I just made these, my first attempt at scones. I used cranberries and added orange zest from one orange. The result was heavenly! So easy to make and so good!
Just made a quarter recipe with White Lily flour ( I live in the south! ) so I could try it – Thank God I only made a quarter recipe – these are to die for seriously!Probably impossible to stop eating more…….. Am going to make the full recipe when I get my organic cake flour from Anson Mills later this week – will make individual ones and freeze them and then just get out one for me and one for hubby!
I made these following the directions; I had to cut in the butter (with knives) as I didn’t have a pastry cutter…took a while, also I baked them for 13 min. but they were just lightly golden, cooked for 4 more minutes. Still DELICIOUS! Defiantly will do again when I get a pastry cutter.
Wow wow wow.
Just made these using dried cranberries and lemon zest and they are amazing. Light, airy, melt in the mouth – perfect with clotted cream and lemon cued for lunch!
Now to resist the rest of the batch…
I’m way late to this party, but Oh Mah Gawd…. these are outrageous! I made them as directed (although all I had was all-purpose bleached flour) and they are phenomenal. I pressed them with my hands into a slightly bigger than 8 or 9 inch circle and them cut them like a pie into 12 pieces. They are still a very satisfying size. I flash froze them so we can have them fresh for breakfast… although that won’t stop me from making the whole batch in the morning!
I just made these and oh my! I love scones so much and it is hard not just to eat up the whole batch by myself. The only substitution I made was whole milk for the cream only because it was what I had on hand (I forgot to get cream at the store). Even with this substitution they still taste heavenly. Also I was really surprised how quick and easy it was to make! It’ll be hard not to make these every week!
Just made these for a work meeting. They were so easy to make, I was able to do them in the morning while getting my 3-year old off to preschool, packing lunches for him and myself, and hauling my 38-week pregnant self to work by 8:30am. YES!
Oh, and they were delicious!
I’ve made these a couple times now and just love them! The best part is the lack of “tinny” baking powder taste that so many scone recipes seem to have. I thought I’d share my accidental variation. I was listening to podcasts while making them last week and forgot to add the cranberries I was planning on. I had the dough all mixed and cut into wedges so it was way too late. I just ended up mixing some sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg and brushing it on the top of all the wedges and baking them like that. They’re a little sweeter, and a little plainer than the cranberry or current scones, but I actually really liked them! I made them this way again tonight, and added a bit of vanilla extract to the heavy cream. YUM!!
Made these using candied orange peel and
dates. Wonderful. Used a 1/2 cup of
each finely chopped.
One question about salt. What type of
salt does SK use in baked goods?
Sherry — I use table salt unless otherwise noted. I’m trying to make a point (in newer recipes) to note that I’m talking about table salt. You can use any salt you wish but a coarser salt will need to be used in a larger amount for the equivalent saltiness of fine table salt.
A tip I just picked up for blending butter into the flour…instead of cutting the butter into cubes and mixing in with a pastry blender–grate the butter using your grater on the biggest holes. The butter gets more incorporated into the flour and yields even better scones if that is possible!
This was my first attempt at scones, and they turned out amazingly! I used dried cranberries and orange zest, and topped them with a quick vanilla drizzle. I made the dough by hand, and used the grated butter trick mentioned in the comment above. Another perfect recipe!
These are amazing. Probably the best, moistest (is that a word? It should be) scone I’ve ever had. Served it at brunch with lemon curd… Oh my. Thank you for this winner!
Awesome, once again! I should just stick to your recipes and forget the rest! I made these this morning, substituting mini chocolate chips for the currants and they were FANTASTIC. I also made another recipe for chocolate chip scones from another site, at the same time, because I needed more than 8, and was curious about the difference. Honestly, I thought the other would be better….2 sticks of butter and 2 cups of flour… NOT!!!! They look and taste like they were fried in butter..the spread way out, they seem more like pie crust. Meanwhile…yours came out lovely, thank goodness! Thank you!!!
I made these with lime zest and white chocolate. That combination is to die for! I loved the texture of the scones, so light.
these are heaven right out of the oven! terrific recipe.
I JUST made these…I used 1% milk in place of the cream, because I had none at home. I used dried cranberries and lemon zest and added choc chips to half of the dough. THEY ARE AMAZING.
I was away for the weekend in a very non-stocked kitchen and made these TWICE. Once just w/orange and lemon zest and another time with orange zest, pecans and chocolate (we went to the store for those) and they were AMAZING. You make em in 5 minutes and they are so delicious! I used the circle method – could not be easier.
these scones are fantastic! ps, the second time around I subbed vanilla sugar for regular sugar, added a tsp of vanilla and a tablespoon of vanilla ice cream and made vanilla bean scones. They had a delicate flavor and were really delicious. thank you!
I would really like to make scones with Buttermilk and abuelitas Mexican chocolate mix. How would I go about doing this?
I wish I’ve found your blog earlier! I consider myself a novice baker and all my experience with baking came out of a Betty Crocker box. But I tried making these scones and they turned out perfect! Exactly the way I like them.
Hi!
I was wondering if this will come out okay plain (i.e. sans currants or any other fruit)? Have you tried this?
Thanks!
Jyoti
They’d be just fine. Delicious, even!
Hi Deb, I just wanted to you know that I made these scones yesterday for my book club and they were a complete success!!! Thank you so much for this blog and this DELICIOUS recipe!!!
I have only been following/sifting through your blog for a week, but I have already made your pate brisee (twice) and this great scones recipe. The dough actually treated me well, and wasn’t sticky at all, and would have done well in a cake pan. I think the key might just be well-chilled ingredients. I just wanted to express my complete adoration for your site. Even though I’m amassing a list of great food blogs/recipes, the format, your monologues, pictures–the ambiance AND the recipes keep me coming back. Thanks for being here.
I forgot to mention this over the summer, but my son earned a purple ribbon (Grand Champion) at our county fair with this recipe! We are making it again to take for a hotel breakfast this weekend.
Deb, I don’t know if you still read all the old comments from your posts, but I had to tell you – I didn’t even think I LIKED scones, but since I had the ingredients, my new food processor, and was looking for something to bring to my grandparents for easter morning, I tried them – and these are amazing. I never new “crumbly” could be a GOOD adjective for a baked good.
So glad you are sharing your talents with the world – clearly a great cook, fantastic writer, photographer, and you share the best photos of your beautiful boy! Thank you!
Ah-mazing. I whipped these up this morning for my sweet friend Whitney’s wedding shower brunch. I added some orange zest and an orange vanilla glaze, and they were perfect (they would have been alone, but I like a sweet extra glaze on mine). They were light and airy, and I also used Almond milk instead of cream, and rather than butter I used Earth Balance because i like to bake vegan when possible. I will definitely use this recipe again! The dish was the only one that was finished at the shower. Success!
I’ve made these scones two out of the last three days, and now have a question. When I made them for the first time two days ago, I used white whole wheat flour, and used grated lemon zest and chopped candied ginger instead of currants. They were PERFECT and I am not a baker — I was so excited! So today my best friend mentioned that she is hosting her book club tomorrow night and wants to make “English” food in honor of the Royal Wedding, so I immediately volunteered to make my famous Lemon Ginger Dreamy Cream Scones. This time I used whole wheat pastry flour, which is what I really meant to use last time, and as I was measuring out the heavy cream I realized that I only had about half a cup so I filled up the cup with fat-free half and half. Otherwise did everything the same, but the dough was VERY wet, not at all floury like it was last time, and I had to add lots more flour to get it firm enough to pat out and cut. Anyone know if this difference might have been from the different flour or using part ff half and half (I knew those fat-free things were evil!)? I’d love to figure out where I went wrong but I guess I’ll just try it again with my first ingredients and see if I can re-perfect — and in the meantime hope the heart-shaped ones I cut out and froze tonight will work for Kelli’s book club!
It might have been the half-and-half. Heavy cream is pretty thick and thus drier.
I’m waking up early tomorrow morning for the royal wedding and thought scones would be apropos with my tea, so looked here for a recipe — and found one with raves! (of course!) Will mix them up tonight, pop them in the freezer, and bake tomorrow am. Planning on wombat47’s idea of apricot walnut. Mmmm, that sounds good.
Score! Had to bake off a couple tonight, of course, as testers. Apricot walnut. The convenience store only had light cream and they were still plenty light and dee-lish. Even my husband, who doesn’t like (1) cooked fruit, (2) nuts, and/or (3) scones, really liked them!
I have been a long time reader but this is my first time commenting. I made these scones for our Royal Wedding inspired English breakfast (which included Jamie Oliver’s Full English Breakfast) which we ate while watching the festivities. They were a wonderful treat! Thanks!
Hello Deb! I follow you from a long time but never left a comment… Thank You for all this wonderful work! :)
I have some fresh blueberries and I love scones… How much should I use with this recipe? and, heavy cream , is it the cream that you can use for savory dishes? Usually when a recipe calls for cream I use the cream for “wipping cream”, is it ok? here in Italy it’s kind of dense anyways…
Hope you understand me! Sorry for my rusty english! Love your blog and you are very welcome in Tuscany !! ;)
Ciao Deb! Made it,with the “whipp” kind… 3/4 cup fresh blueberries & orange zest.DELICIOUS !! Thank You :)
I just made these and they are DELICIOUS…I just wanted to share that I cut the dough in half… I thawed and drained some frozen blueberries and added them to half and chocolate chips to the other half. I was afraid of the blueberries because they made the dough really wet again but they are SO moist and delicious. While the chocolate chips ones are great, they could use a little cream or butter or dunking in tea/coffee but the blueberry ones are AWESOME! Thanks for this recipe…new family favorite!
Stop! This is it! You need no other scone recipe in your life because these are the absolute best.
I was happy how easy these were to make. I never thought I would be using my Vita-Mix for baking. The flash freezing works well. I have some lemon zest and blueberry beauties sitting in my freezer right now.
i love this recipe! so easy to make and great for throwing in whatever add-ins i have in the pantry. i’ve been flash freezing them after they’re baked and toast them in the morning for breakfast!
Hi Deb
I woke up at 5AM to make these scones today. I am an English teacher and whenever we finish a book, I always bake something related to it for my students. We finished Macbeth last week and since Macbeth travels to Scone to be crowned, I thought your Dreamy Cream Scones would be perfect. I made a practice batch for my family this weekend and there wasn’t a crumb left. They were SO good and so easy. It was a smitten weekend for me–I also made your ribboned asparagus salad and strawberry cake. I love your site and look forward to reading each new post. Thank you!
Love, Gia
These scones are THE best I’ve made!!! I’ve been trying to find a good recipe and had one that my son liked but they were very thick and not really moist on the inside. I followed the recipe exactly the same but with a few modifications. I didn’t have heavy cream so I used 3/4 cup milk with 1/3 cup melted (but cooled) butter. I added vanilla and made them plain (just to test them). However I made a single one for myself with dried cherries…..Delish!!!!
Thank you for the recipe, this is now one of my go to recipes ;0)
Hi Deb,
Thanks for this recipe! Have you ever tried this with fresh fruit, like blueberries?
Chris, I have tried this recipe numerous times with lemon zest and fresh blueberries. When baked, some of the blueberries ooze out creating a slightly rustic looking scone- but they are always polished off.
I made these scones last week for an English tea-themed book club, and oh my goodness were they good. I made the recipe exactly as written with the currants, and they turned out beautifully! I served them with Devon double cream and strawberry jam, which was an excellent (if decadent) combination. Can’t wait to try these again with some of the other suggested fruity variations.
This scone is the PERFECT dough recipe for any scone. I have swapped out the currants for cranberries, cherries, and raisins; any dried fruit really works. MOst recently I have added dried lavender (which I thought was some crazy speciality herb that only gourmet chefs can use but I found it in Fairway and am now obsessed), lemon zest, and vanilla. These scones are a god send (it may be the cup of heavy cream haha) So good though, thank you!
Just made these for the first time. SERIOUSLY!?!? They are incredible. Can’t. Get. Over. It.
I just made my 16th batch! Orange/cranberry, cherry/ white chocolate, cinnamon chip, toffee and chocolate chips….. Possibilities are endless, results always amazing. I always make the batter, cut and freeze. So impressive when I take them places early in the morning, warm and fragrant. Thank you!
I made these for the first time April 29, 2011 for my Royal Wedding tea party. I have since made them 2x a month ever since. These are THE GREATEST SCONES EVER!!!!!! I love them with white chocolate chips and dried cranberries. Devonshire cream and jam optional. Really a decadent treat!
Thanks for the recipe. I love a scone that isn’t so dry, and these were definitely of the moist variety: http://mywifeisperfect.blogspot.com/2011/08/dreamy-creamy.html
My wife continues to use your blog as her go-to destination for solid recipes.
Thank you, Deb! Been craving scones and wanting something homemade for breakfast to give to the large hungry beings in my house–my teenagers eat mass quantities of food! Didn’t have enough cream so I used 1/2 cup buttermilk and traded a 1/2 tsp. of baking soda for baking powder. Taking a tip from another Smitten recipe, I subbed 1/2 cup barley flour for 1/2 cup wheat, and instead of currents, I added chopped frozen peaches. I can’t wait to try these with other combinations of fruits/nuts/chips.
Thanks again for the wonderful recipe deb! I made mine with blueberries: http://petitedecadence.wordpress.com/2011/09/05/baking-frenzy-part-iii-blueberry-cream-scones/#more-297
Delicious. Made these in advance and froze them for a brunch. So good.
just made them…they are indeed nery nice, a light flavour,
VERY EASY TO MAKE(not more than 5 min to make and 15 to bake) which makes a big difference!!!who has time to waste???
However the best ones I have ever tasted were in a small cafe shop by the pier in Bangor, north wales UK…heaven in ur mouth…sorry I dont have the recipe though… :(((
P.S We love gordon in Greece, always to be trusted
thanx for the recipe xxx
i don’t understand how you can taste the baking powder in ina’s recipe but you can’t in the ATK recipe…the flour to baking powder ratio is the same.
Ah, but in this recipe, there’s heavy cream and the sweet fattiness of the cream blocks the unpleasant flavor. Buttermilk is thin and only has about 1.5 percent butterfat; it doesn’t hide much.
aaaah, love these!! =] they are PERFECT!
i just handmixed everything.. and also used dried cranberries.
i’m a beginner cook, and i can’t believe 3/3 recipes i’ve found here were a success! thank you so much, ms. deb! =]
I’ve made this recipe several times with blueberries, but how would I go about making them pumpkin flavored? I’m not sure how the addition of pumpkin puree would affect the amount of dry ingredients.
I used half heavy cream and half light cream in this and it was 100% delicious. I think it would be just as delicious with all light cream or even half light cream and half whole milk (you know, to make it a tiny bit less bad for you). All in all: yum!
I make these to take to work in the mornings and have a few varieties … cheese and chive (cutting back on the sugar to 2 tbsp), blueberry etc. .. I make them the night before, cut them, put them into the fridge and in the morning I pop them into the oven to bake, they turn out fantastic each time
Thank you so much for making holiday baking a breeze! I added a teaspoon of orange zest to these scones for Christmas day breakfast and your vanilla roasted pears for a light dessert. It all turned out amazing!
made these today -I substituted buttermilk for the cream. thought they were too moist for me cause I like a dry scone. will try the north fork ones next. always searching for the perfect scone. oh, and i put fresh blueberries in them too-no wonder they were so moist.
Chris — If you like a firmer scone, you might like these.
I made these tonight using tart dried cherries. Soooooo good. What a simple and wonderful recipe. I’ll be using this one for years to come! I was looking for a great scone recipe. Here it is. Thank you!
I have made these scones at least a dozen times now (best way I know to use up extra cream before it expires by using other stuff I already have in the cupboard), and they always turn out perfect.
My favorite variation is to use 3/4 cup peeled diced apple instead of currants. I also add in a couple pinches of nutmeg and a generous heaping teaspoon of cinnamon. When I’ve formed the individual scones out of the dough, I dip the top and sides in brown sugar (brushing off any excess) before baking. So yummy!
Sorry to comment on a post that is over five years old (!!!) but I have a question of dough wetness. Are the currants/cranberries dried or fresh? I have some dried black currants and was thinking of soaking them in some brandy to plump up before I make these. Would that make the dough too wet?
I don’t think it will make the dough too wet if you drain them after you plump them. I regularly make these scones with fresh berries and have no problems.
Just made these with nearly a cup of fresh blueberries and some crystallized ginger – wow! Thanks for a great recipe – one that’s likely delicious as written and a great base for heading off into uncharted territory. It took longer than usual to put my daughter to sleep tonight, and the scone that was waiting for me when she was finally asleep was a terrific reward.
Loved these! So wonderfully surprised that my first scone-baking adventure was a success. Will be making these with new variations for any brunch I ever host :)
Great recipe. We have made this several times using different fruit. All of the combinations were great (fresh blueberries, dried cranberries). I did add a little more sugar than the recipe called for. Really like using the food processor to blend.
I’m on a Smitten Kitchen kick and loving it – made these, cranberry walnut chicken salad, and the dough for the beef empanadas for tomorrow’s dinner this evening. Dreamy is exactly the adjective for these scones! I think they’re replacing my mother’s scone recipe as my go to – shhh don’t tell :)
One word: fabulous.
A few more: Buttery-tasting, flaky, soft, mildly sweet, just plain awesome.
I made these for a brunch I hosted for my family. I thought I didn’t like scones! I was totally wrong!! These are absolutely wonderful. I made them with raisins because I can’t find currants EVER. It’s not like there is a lack of grocery stores/ health food stores/ specialty food stores in my area but no currants! bah! But I love raisins, so oh well. ANYWAY – these are so. good. I wish I had more excuses to make them, but there are only 2 of us and I get stuck on the “best the day they are baked” thing.
Thanks for another winning recipe! Nowadays it seems everything I make starts with a post here!
Please help! I’ve made these twice now and I followed the recipe to a T but my scones don’t rise up in the oven, instead they spread out and end up looking like flat disks instead. This also happens when I made your chocolate chip cookies recipe. What am I doing wrong?
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe- I’ve tried a few other recipes that were very mediocre tasting and wasn’t a huge fan until I tried these. I too used dried cranberries and also added some orange zest- they were so delicious and I can’t wait to try your other scone recipes!
Just baked & loved them!
I had a pack of sour heavy cream which is just started to sour (tasted sour but not bitter yet) and wasn’t good anymore for coffee or whipping. I used it for the cream in the recipe, they came our gorgeous and very tasty. I added walnut halfs a well.
Thanks!
I just made these yesterday and I accidentally used a whole cup of currants….I just noticed that it says 1/2 a cup. Needless to say my coworkers and hubby loved them. They were perfect with my homemade lemon curd. 3 people told me they were the best scones they ever had. Thanks. ^_^
I added shredded coconut to the dough, then used some leftover coconut milk for a glaze and sprinkled more shredded coconut on top. The coconut on top browned a bit more than expected but it didn’t burn and overall they were pretty durn awesome. I actually liked the coconut version better than the strawberry version I made the first time around. Will try these with currants sometime when it is not summer…
I didn’t have heavy cream in hand so I used my chocolate chip ice cream.
I melted it and mixed in. It tastes wonderful!
Thanks for this wonderful recipe!
Made this today, following the mixing instructions to a T, and the texture/taste was perfect! I used finely-chopped dates instead of currants and added grated lemon peel. To approximate a lower-protein AP flour, I used 1.5 cups of King Arthur flour with 1/2 cup of cake flour (Softasilk). Thanks for this recipe!
omg!! u should read my blog post from march 10, 2012. It completely parallels this (your) post. In other words, i too almost gave up on making/eating scones after trying ina gardens scone recipe. and unfortunately for me, and just like you, it was my 1st scone baking experience and i just happened to pick a horrible recipe. not like I’m trying to bash ina and i know u weren’t either, but lets be real, clearly her scone recipe is a “scone” turn off. unless “dry-cardboardy-things” is your idea of a good scone. i think the biggest problem w her scone recipes is that they call for eggs. I’m starting to see that scones are better w/out eggs. looks like the cream, butter, no egg scones are the best
Would this work with fresh cranberries?
Zuri — I don’t see why not. You might want to increase the sugar. I have another scone recipe that uses fresh cranberries, if you’re interested.
Truly amazing! These were so delicious and easy to make! Thanks for sharing and building up my baking confidence!
These are the best scones I’ve ever eaten. Now, I did change the recipe up a bit to make it healthier: I replaced the 1 cup of cream with 3/4 c. greek yogurt and 1/4 c. skim milk. I also used fresh blackberries I’d picked instead of currants, which tasted like little pockets of jam within the scone. I swear, these were so moist and delicious, I’ve made them three times this summer so far. I’m totally obsessed. I plan on making them with cranberries for fall.
Oh my! I was looking for the perfect scone recipe to give me my scone fix rather than driving 30 minutes to my favorite bakery. This really hits the mark. I followed the recipe but.. added 1/3 cup sugar instead of the suggested amount, mopped the top with cream and a little more sugar. Won’t have to search any more, I am there!
These are amazing! I just made them for the second time and they are a favorite in my family! Thanks Deb for another great recipe! I made them with the dried cranberries both times.
Oh, the second time I also substituted in a cup of white whole wheat flour when I doubled the recipe. It turned out just fine that way. First time I used straight white flour.
Made these this morning with dried cranberries. It’s a keeper! Def going to freeze the dough next time and bake in the morning for a brunch, such a good idea!
Rye T- my guess as to why your baked goods are spreading is because your butter may not be cold enough. You want it RIGHT out of the fridge and chopped up into the scone dough and then right into the oven (or back in the fridge or freezer). Hope that helps!
I have been making ATK scones for a few years now. They are the best with fresh wild Maine blueberries! I mix the dough up by hand until it starts to come together and then gently mix them in, but before it fully comes together and pops the blueberries I dump the mix into a 8″ round pan. I have the pan lined with plastic wrap, pack the mixture down till it will stay together, then flip it over onto the baking sheet and cut up into 8 scone wedges. Also, a sprinkle of raw sugar on top gives them a nice crunch when cooked.
Beautiful photos and love the blog!
Cheers!
For the commenter who wanted to know about sourcing clotted cream – we can’t find (good) clotted cream here in Atlanta, either, but this fabulous lady offers suggestions for making your own, if you’re ever so inclined.
http://marriedanirishfarmer.com/2012/03/26/clotted-cream-dreams/
As for this recipe – I used cut up dried cherries, and they’re delicious!
Ok I tried these and alas was forced to substitute some ingredients because I didnt have time to go to the store (disastrous) However decided to give the benefit of the doubt so I decided to try again with all the required ingredients and I must say this recipe is by far the best
Made these last night for a teacher breakfast at my girls’ school this morning. They are divine!
Hi Deb, I’m sure you are terribly busy from book touring but any chance the scones can be frozen before baking?
The first batch I made got gobbled up pretty quickly but I wanted some frozen and ready to go when I’m feeling lazy. I didn’t have heavy cream so I subbed with Chakoh Coconut milk. Also added 1/2 cup sugar and used 1 cup chopped fresh cranberries. They turned out divine.
Your book is gorgeous! I have been pouring through it daily for inspiration.
Sorry, one more question. I am planning on making these with raspberries next. Should I put them in frozen or thaw them first?
Thanks!
Hi Michelle — It might get a little messy to add them to this recipe but I have a ricotta scone recipe with fresh raspberries that adjusts for their extra moisture over here. Any scone or biscuit can be made, frozen on a tray overnight and baked directly from the freezer the next morning. If more than overnight, I’d transfer them to an airtight freezer bag until needed.
Yesterday I made the pear/chocolate scones which were yummy and well received BUT today I made these scones and they were PERFECTION !!! seriously this is a great authentic recipe. I made them with chopped raisins…
Hi Deb! Would it be possible to incorporate chopped apples and cinnamon into this recipe, or do you think the moisture ratio would be affected? Thanks always!
I just made these and they turned out perfect!!!! I added cinnamon and took out the currants because I didn’t have any, but they’re still divine. I’m so glad that I have a go-to scone recipe <3
First of all, my good friend Ben gave me your cookbook which he had personalized (I’m the Morgan who ignores her work to read the blog. which may or may not be true), and it’s wonderful! Thank you! I made these for breakfast this morning with dried cranberries and they are perfection!
Lovely for my first baking attempt of 2013 and it fit all of my requirements – fairly easy, with ingredients that I have on hand and delicious. Many thanks!
Thank you so so SO much for this recipe! I totally relate; after so many failed attempts at scones that all turned out to be dry, tough, overly-chewy rocks, I finally found a buttery, light, tender scone!! I rarely repeat recipes, and I already made this twice!!!
This is literally the most favorite thing that I’ve ever baked!
http://thekitchenkook.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-best-most-perfect-scone-recipe-ever.html
I made these for my mom for Christmas ( she is english) and she LOVED them….and so did I! Thanks for such a great recipe! :)
Hello! Thanks for this recipe. I have tried many scone recipes and mostly have experienced epic fail, which I doubt is the fault of the recipe. This one seems to be magically charmed, so thank you! (bow)
I am having one of those use-up-what’s-in-the-fridge days and had cream here, highly unusual. No fun currant/berry type things, so i tossed in the 3 squares of good chocolate I had here and some orange peel, and cut back a bit on the sugar. They are not too sweet with a nice bittersweet bite to them.
Probably silly question, but: I usually have buttermilk or half/half here…would that work as a replacement when I don’t have cream?
Thanks again, love the book and blog.
Best wishes on future successes!
:) Terri
Buttermilk will not always work for cream, in some cases it does, but it will not be as rich. Chemically, half-and-half is fine, but it also will not have the same rich crumb as is that hallmark of these scones when made with cream.
These ate fabulous!! My first attempt at scones and what at success. Can’t wait to bring them to the next brunch party.
Thanks! Well, then I’ll just start having cream at the house…what an excuse to make more scones!
And, just for the record: More amazing to me than your amazing recipes is that you have time to respond to blog comments. What else are you putting in those brownies? Egads. You go, girl!
Thanks again, best wishes on continued success with all your adventures!
T
I checked out your website for the first time today (Thank you Today Show)…As a Celt, I do love my scones! I’ve been a diehard King Arthur Flour fan for many years and wondered if your experience would recommend me to purchase something other than KAF, like the Gold Medal mentioned in your recipe?
Best Wishes,
Lisa
Lisa — I don’t have a single flour brand preference (I like to use whatever I can find around) but I do go back to King Arthur most often.
Deb, if I don’t have heavy cream (and I don’t want to use the milk/butter substitution – that I saw online – for the heavy cream), could I just use milk instead?
I just made these this evening, with cranberry and chopped dark chocolate per my husband’s suggestion (I’m half Welsh, so currants sounded awesome to me!). They turned out very well!
This recipe is amazing, and so versatile. I make super biscuits, but had struggled finding a scone recipe that had the perfect almost crunchy exterior and tender interior. This is it. I love it with cranberries and a little orange zest, I love it with slivered almonds and a DROP of almond extract and dash of cinnamon, I loved it with (per my sadly palatted husband’s request) NOTHING AT ALL but sconey goodness. I have even made it with whole milk (success, but not quite as rich – you may not notice if you have not made the cream version), half and half (almost identical to cream for me), and, in a pinch, skim milk with a little sour cream thrown in (they were OK, but not up to par with the other options out there). Excellent frozen and baked from the freezer, excellent the next day with hot cocoa for breakfast. They also toast the next day in the toast oven with super results. I gush – you will too.
I finally made these today and they were amazing! My almost 16 y/o stepson asked if they were homemade and how much he liked them. Everyone wanted more. I don’t have a processor or a pastry cutter. Just used my hands to blend it all well. Then i used chopped dried cranberries instead and added some finely chopped orange zest. I will definitely be keeping this recipe in my files! Thank you for sharing!
I tried my best to screw these up. I woke up at 6am to bake these for my husband’s coworkers (all you need to know is that I’m crazy) and I must have been so tired, I set the oven for 350*. Didn’t realize it till 14 minutes in, opened the oven and they were not golden brown and still a little mushy. But as soon as discovered this under heating error, I cranked it up, left the, in for another 7 minutes or so till they were golden brown, and omg, SO GOOD! I love a good recipe I can’t screw up.
Thanks Deb – I’ve been making the same scone recipe for years and came across this as I had extra whipping cream in the fridge.
These were so divine; I’ve never commented on a cooking blog before but felt compelled to do so after today. In fact, the hot scone is sitting here beside me, and it’s a gorgeous, gorgeous thing!! I added a bit of coconut flakes to the batter too.
I tried making these scones today and they turned out great. I used raisins and mixed heavy cream with milk (as I did not have enough cream). My fiancé loved them but said they were a little dry, which is actually my fault as I left them in the oven longer than they should have been. Next time, I am sure they will turn out great….:-)
I have never cared for scones until I tried this recipe. Most scones are dry and crumbly, so who would want to waste calories on them? These scones changed my opinion- Wow!! Wonderful!! They were very moist and soft. My family ate the whole batch within minutes. I added chopped dried cherries and vanilla. I liked the fact that they were not too sweet so you could taste the sweetness of the dried fruit. I’m planning on making them again for breakfast today, then lunch, then after school snack, then supper…..
Thank you! I made lemon curd for Mother’s Day and was looking for a tested-and-approved dream scone recipe to go with it. Yum!
I just made these for Mother’s Day and they were wonderful!!!!! Instead of currents I folded in fresh raspberries and they were seriously the best things ever. Thanks for sharing this!!
I’d never made scones before and decided to try this recipe for my sister and brother-in-law, I researched for a few days before committing to good ol’ SK. I’m ever so glad I did! They were amazing, light, crazy yummy and a brilliant texture.
I didn’t squish the dough into a pan but just shaped it as best I could and cut it into wedges- the idea of re-working dough to use a cutter scared me. The wedges look great, nice and rustic and very ‘homemade’.
Many thanks.
I’ve been making these scones for several years now, in England, Canada and now my home country Australia. Australians find these a little different to the Scones they are used to, though my American colleague here was super thrilled when I brought these into work one day – said she hasn’t found anything like it here in over 13 years!
I mix up the dried fruit and am recently mad for these made with dates, here’s my take on your cream scones with dates http://www.gobbledandgulped.com/recipes/delightful-date-scones/
I hadn’t come across a scone recipe that delivered until this one. So good! I used a cup of chopped fresh cherries, added a splash of almond extract, and substituted a half cup of plain yogurt/half cup of 2% milk for the cream. My dough ended up being really, really sticky, so there was some muttering and some malformed wedges, but these were spot on for flavor/texture.
Holy moly, these are delicious. I just made them exactly as per the recipe, and they are seriously better than those that you get with afternoon tea at The Ritz in London. Something that worked really well for me in terms of shaping the scones was using the ring from an 8 inch springform or sandwich cake pan without the base, and patting the dough into a circle inside that. That way you can just lift the ring off and cut the scones into wedges without having to get the sticky dough out of the base of the pan.
I just made these scones now… literally 15 minutes ago and I have never tasted such a delicious scone before! Thank you so much for sharing this easy and incredible recipe. For the longest time, I have always been afraid to make scones (who knows why) and I have to say that I will never be needing a different recipe after this. So creamy, sweet and a little salty and moist!
http://savorysweetlife.com/2011/05/blackberry-honey-wheat-cream-scones/
found these as i was looking for black raspberry recipe for our tons in the back yard. made half with the berries and half with chocolate chips…very yummy!
And Deb, I LOVE your book! and your blog!
This is the best scone recipe. Ever. (Thank you.) It is a great base recipe, and great when used just a written.
Recently, I’ve taken to adding 1/4 c brown sugar and 1 tsp of cinnamon, and they come out smelling exactly like brown sugar cinnamon Pop-Tarts, but are just barely sweet.
I made these for a pastry chef friend and she couldn’t get enough of them! Also, I added a little orange zest. Perfect!!
I love these! I subbed heavy cream with 1/2 cup yogurt and 1/2 cup milk, then swapped the flour for whole wheat. Your website is always the first one that I come to when I’m looking for something delicious to make. Thanks for always posting foolproof and amazing recipes!
This is the best recipe for scones – now I can’t stop making them.So easy to make – it took me 15 minutes this morning – I made them with a handful of old fashioned oatmeal and cranberries. My 2 year old loves them, and he is particular about food. The butter and cream recipe is a bit too rich for me, so I
tried some substitutions:
-evaporated skim milk substituted for cream – texture is good, but I did not like flavor of cooked milk that the evaporated milk brings. It wasn’t bad, but I prefer the pure taste of cream.
-fat free half and half instead of cream – perfect in terms of flavor, but the texture is more watery. I added more flour one time, and dropped the sticky dough on the baking pan the other time – both times the scones turned out perfect.
– “I can’t believe it’s not butter” instead of butter – did not like that at all. The scones were still tasty, but butter is better.
I love cinnamon chip scones so I added 2 teaspoons of cinnamon to flour mixture and at the very end before putting into scone form, mixed in cinnamon chips.
I made these for a brunch this morning and they were a hit! I used a shot glass to cut the rounds, so each one was a perfectly moist and delicious mouth-sized bite! Thanks, Deb!
Hi Deb,
I made this with freshly ground soft white wheat and maple sugar, a bit less than you called for as it is sweeter, and they were the lightest fluffiest things ever. For your crunchy fans no one would guess there was no white flour. Grinding it myself made the flour better, but whole wheat pastry flour would do in a pinch.
Best. Scones. Ever. With a little lemon curd or clotted cream, you will think you have died and gone to heaven. Made using the food processor method and it worked beautifully. Had them in the oven in under 15 minutes. I love America’s Test Kitchen recipes and this is another one to add to the make-it-often list. Thanks for sharing!!
These have been my go-to scone recipe ever since you posted them! I lived in the UK for years and ate many a wee scone, but these are hands down the best I’ve had. I now make a double batch every few months and flash-freeze them, then pop a few in the oven for company or a special weekend treat. I found that they bake up just fine from frozen at 425 for 15-20 minutes, but I do have to watch carefully to avoid burning on the bottoms from about the 17-minute mark.
Thank you so much for this recipe!! I just tried it and they turned out heavenly. I am wondering though about the timing. I preheated the oven and my pan( as saw from another recipe works best with scones) and I cooked them for the time alotted but still didnt get a golden brown. Is there something I can do differently? They still tasted marvelous and moist unlike another recipe I had tried and they were a bit dry. Any other suggestions?
Hi Rebecca — They don’t always brown well, and I think it has more to do with ovens (convections that circulate heat seem to brown things beautifully, not that I have one, boo) and less to do with the recipe.
Can you substitute half and half for heavy cream?
Yes, but the crumb won’t be as rich.
Just pulled these out of the oven, and I can attest they are indeed dreamy! Thanks for the tip about cutting them in wedges versus rolling/cutting. I added a handful of chocolate chips and hazelnuts. Wondering if I could sub eggnog for the heavy cream…would that be brilliant or just gross?
Thank you for these Deb. I make them almost every other day and adore them.
http://thecarboholic.com/2013/11/26/perfect-scones-every-time-and-a-scone-making-tutorial/
love, love them. thank you! and in only a week, scones have become a new family holiday tradition. check out the finished product at http://thingsikindoflove.com/blog/2013/12/7/knvbdh73b20ov52cfjjiyj0rgvzj22
These scones look fantastic! I noticed that you only used 5 tablespoons of butter for 2 cups of flour. Most scone recipes I’ve seen use about 10 tablespoons for 2 cups of flour. I was wondering how you decided on 5? Does it affect the texture/taste? I would love to only use half the amount of butter :-)
Karen — Strange, actually, is this is the proportion I see most often in scones and biscuits. Really! I’d love to see a recipe (if you can link to it) for a 10T/2c scone because I’m curious to try it. Was it a US recipe or a UK one? Nevertheless, up to a certain point, tablespoons of butter can often be swapped for tablespoons of cream. It’s not a hard-and-fast rule, but I do try this sometimes. More butter makes a more sturdy but also rich scone.
It’s snowing here with at least a foot total to come, and I had a lot of cream left from making hot fudge and butterscotch. These scones are criminally good, especially with a handful of Parmesan chucked in (and half the sugar, and lots of black pepper). Perfect with steak & eggs.
Best. Scones. Ever. thanks again Deb :)
Great Recipe , thanks ! I am planning to try this with dried blueberries tonight. I tried your jalapeno cheddar scones earlier and they were great .
However I have a question, I see many scones recipes that don’t use egg . I notice that you are using both egg and heavy cream for scones. Do they go together? What do they contribute to the scone?
Some scones do, some scones do not. These, my favorite, do not. Eggs add a bit more structure; scones without them are more crumbly.
Thanks ! Is it possible to make the scone less dry ? How do I do that? My husband loves the taste but feels they are very dry.
I do understand it might go against the whole concept of scones but we don’t want to have something really moist like cake either.
Kris — How are you filling your cups of flour? Are you using full-fat cream? Keep cups on the light side (fluff-and-spoon or spoon-and-sweep) will keep the baked goods from seeming tougher than they are intended to be.
i made these tonight with what i had on hand (needed immediate vessel for homemade lemon curd), which was white whole wheat flour, and a mix of raw whole milk and half and half. i added blueberries instead of currants, and did a light egg wash and sprinkle of turbinado sugar on the tops. they are delicious! can’t wait to try them with the white ap flour and heavy cream as well- they will be even better.
These are pure heaven but couldn’t help making a couple of changes on my second batch. I changed the 3 tablespoons of sugar to 5.25 tablespoons of powdered sugar and added 1 tablespoon of vanilla. Made them somewhat sweeter and lighter. For added fun I added white chocolate chips and chopped dried cranberries…YUM!!
Can also use a regular size ice cream scoop and press them down a bit…much easier and time saver.
Love this recipe! It’s so easy to make and all my guests are so impressed when I just whip these up for breakfast. I even made them using a heart cookie cutter which was adorable. Perfect for Valentine’s Day or any day!
I saw that someone asked if they could substitute half and half and you said it wouldn’t be as rich. I’m thinking substituting milk for cream would be even less rich? Maybe I shouldn’t mess with perfection. The calories are worth it.
yellowishcanary — I think that what gives these scones such an incredible moisture and crumb is the cream, so I personally wouldn’t use anything else. It might still be a good scone, but it won’t be the one I mooned over years ago (and still use the recipe of these days).
made these today (2/13/14) and used a heart shaped cookie cutter. made 6 large heart shaped scones and three irregular shaped ones out of the scraps. used orange zest, the juice of that orange, and craisins in the dough. i used an egg wash with a sprinkling of sugar on the tops. so easy, so fast, so good.
Making these for a “formal” high tea tomorrow–the course between savories and sweets. Planning on adding dried cherries. Serving with Devonshire cream. I’ve made scones before, but these look a little richer and softer. I’ll increase sugar to 5 or 6 TB.
Mmmm! I made these twice in the last week. First time, a recipe trial run in prep for some guests. And, maybe a trial run because I felt like it. I added Lemon Zest (1.5 – 2 tbsp) with the butter, used the food processor, and stirred in Blueberries (1 cup) right at the end. Because, you know, Lemon Blueberry Scones are delicious.
They came out great, and the lucky neighbors I gave them to came back wanting one more. The half batch made 4, and took no time at all. I’ll be making these instead of pancakes for breakfast sometime soon!
This was my first time making scones and they were the best that I ever had! Previously, our family’s favorite was from an old lady selling at the Elizabeth, IL farmers market. On vacation, we would always try to make it there in time from Chicago, before the market closed to get all of her delicious peach scones. My husband insisted that they had white chocolate in them but I thought it was cream cheese.
In any rate, we had white chocolate on hand and also had a tiny bit of turkish apricots and dried cranberries. I chopped the 3 finely about 1/3c of each. The other changes I made were substituting whole milk instead of cream, since it was all we had on hand. For good measure I added a big dollop of sour cream. I also used cane sugar that had hanging out with vanilla bean pods for some time. Yum!
Looking forward to trying other variations of this recipe, including infusing the milk with lemon balm come Spring.
Long time reader and first time commenter. I wanted to let you know I made these the other day and swapped whole wheat pastry flour for the white for a slightly healthier version. I just added a few more drops of cream to counteract the drier dough and the scones turned out perfectly. My version also used dried blueberries and meyer lemon zest. Yum!
Was browsing your site as I usually do for brunch ideas! I remembered making totally perfect cream scones way back when my Grammie was still kickin’ (she said they were THE BEST thing she’d ever eaten). I love ATK, but these scone ingredients and proportions are straight up jacked from a Southern Living holiday book, though I’m not sure which year. It doesn’t really matter, so not sure why I’m commenting. I guess maybe the recipe reminded me of my Grammie. She wasn’t a big eater, and I’m pretty sure she ate three :) Anyway, love your blog and recipes – always will!
OMG – these are fantastic. So light – we all loved them. I added the zest of an orange when I added the currants. I patted into a square on a silpat, sprinkled Sparkling white sugar on the top, cut into 8th’s, and baked. Couldn’t be easier.
PS – I freeze scones all the time. Take one out, wrap in a damp paper towel, and microwave for 30-45 seconds.
We’re throwing an Alice in Onederland party for our one year old and, of course, had to make scones for the tea party. I tried this one and they turned out beautifully even though I made some serious substitutions. Rather than using heavy cream, I used 3/4 cup buttermilk and 1/4 cup fat-free milk. The scones had a bit more tang due to the buttermilk so I ended up adding a tablespoon of sugar. They were perfect!
Good AM, Deb!
Making these today and wanted to know what the cooking time is for the scones I froze last night. I did bake the “left-over” dough of these yummy scones and they are divine! This will be served with the quiche I asked you about (and other things)… Thanks!
I just made these with a few variations: I did 16oz of AP Flour + 4oz cake flour and used dates instead of currants and they turned out fantastic! Next time I might try to incorporate molasses and perhaps a bit of all spice and black pepper, depending on how complex I want to make things. This is a wonderful base recipe though – the possibilities seem endless.
I made these a couple days ago with dried cranberries and orange zest. They were wonderful. My husband asked if I would please make another batch of these before I make more of the roasted pear and chocolate chunk scones, which I dearly love. One commenter wondered about getting scones to brown. I usually brush my scones with a little cream and sometimes do a sprinkle of turbinado sugar. I think the cream helps them to brown. Mine always come out lightly browned. I find it amazing that people are still commenting on a recipe first posted almost 8 years ago. Think you must be on to something!
I make these at least once a week and I am very popular on those days! I use a small cookies cutter and cut the time to 6 minutes. These yummy scones are perfect for bringing to a class or teacher appreciation breakfast, sporting events for the team -I even baked them for my walking group (for post walk tea). The best. I also sometimes leave out the fruit and sprinkle a little sugar on top. Thank you!
I have made these a few times since last week. I use freshly ground soft wheat (I have a grinder). The ones I froze before baking kept their shape better and were 100 times better, plus when I baked a whole batch fresh I ate nearly every one within an hour or two. A batch I just made, but have not yet baked, had chopped rhubarb from my garden tossed with some maple sugar and cinnamon before being mixed in. I use a tablespoon of maple sugar instead of the 3T in the recipe because I like things less sweet, plus I don’t eat cane sugar and it is fabulous this way. My freezer is now stocked with 3 batches. Also I don’t own a food processor and use a KTek blender which works great. My husband nearly swooned over these.
Hi Deb, do you think cake/pastry flour would also work instead of all purpose?
Thanks
Nicole — Yes, it would be fine here, but make sure it’s not the kind of cake flour that already comes with leavener in it.
Just made these with fresh currants from the farmers market and they are divine! Thank you!
I made two batches of these scones–one as written and one with the zest of one orange. Both are great, but I think I like the zesty one better. I freeze them and then take them out as needed. I especially love them for a light quick breakfast for overnight guests–easy for me and gets the out the door quickly ;-)
I’ve been using this recipe with variations for a couple years (mostly playing with dried ingredients like toffee bits/dried fruits or substituting flavored half and half for heavy cream in a bind) and this recipe has never disappointed! People always ask me how to make them and I always credit you and your site! Thanks a million!
My 5 year old son has been begging for scones. Just made these this morning with him and he won’t stop raving about how these are the best scones ever! I completely agree. Thank you for posting such awesome recipes! You make baking fun, because every recipe turns out amazing.
This is an excellent recipe. I’ve made it several times, and the scones always turn out perfectly. I just made them again today and added some orange zest, orange extract, and a little extra sugar. I used to love the cranberry orange scones at Starbucks, but I prefer to make my own because then I know everything that’s going into them–no weird additives in homemade scones. The ones I made today turned out even better than the Starbucks version, I think. Thanks for a great blog; it inspires me to try new recipes and experiment.
Made these yesterday and used dried blueberries… they are amazing! I must admit I usually kind of hate scones because they always seem to be dry. However, these are incredibly moist, even the next day! I think they would be excellent with the recipe as written and with savory toppings… caramelized onions and gruyere, jalapeños and cheddar, any assortment of things! I’ll definitely be keeping this recipe around… thanks!
Made these and it is delicious!however, may i ask why doesn’t it rise to have a ‘slit’ in the middle like most scones have?
kay — I’m unfamiliar with scones with a slit in them. Now I want to investigate further. In London, at tea time… sigh.
This has become one of my go-to recipes, and my most-requested-by-friends-and-family. I must’ve given it out to a dozen people by now, and it’s become a habit to always have a bag of flash-frozen scone wedges in my freezer, ready for guests or an easy Sunday morning brunch. Which is great, because they really don’t stay fresh for more than a few hours.
After some playing around with various flours, I found that substituting half of the white flour for spelt flour results in a more crumbly, slightly nutty scone that goes very well with dried fruit (not so well with chocolate chips or just spices). for baking from frozen, 425 F and 16-17 minutes does the trick.
I have been on a no dairy/soy diet for 8 months due to a milk/soy protein sensitivity in our baby daughter and have been in serious scone withdrawal! This was one of my favorite recipes and so out of desperation I gave it a go and subbed in full fat coconut milk and Earth Balance butter sticks for the cream and butter. I am extremely happy to report that they are still delicious! Love your recipes and blog, Deb! Thank you!
I use this recipe all the time and it’s AMAZING! I substitute fresh blueberries or chocolate chips and they come out wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing it! :-)
This is such a lovely recipe. I made these last-minute for a brunch (my attempt at the meyer lemon cranberry scones was disastrous) I hosted yesterday and served them with lemon curd and raspberry jam. Everyone loved them! I used a 1.5′ cutter to keep them manageable and they turned out perfectly.
Just making them now with orange zest instead of currants. hoping to find a nice orange curd recipe to top them with!
I just made these and I think they are the perfect texture. I like sweet scones, so I added 1 extra tablespoon of sugar, and I used golden raisins. So easy, and so delicious. Thank you, Deb!
Hi Deb, I’ve been a longtime follower of your blog, and I finally made this recipe! I just wanted to add that these scones become vegan very easily. All you need to do is swap the butter for either Earth Balance or any neutral oil; and the heavy cream can be replaced with Coconut cream (in a can or Tetrapak box) for a really really REALLY good vegan scone. I also like adding lavender florets and candied ginger, but that’s just me.
Anyway, keep up the good work! Simple recipes are always the most delicious, and your recipes I find really easy to adapt for different groups’ needs. :)
Love this recipe. I have been making it at my house for sometime now, but have always used full fat yogurt instead of cream.
I often make them with chocolate chips for the boyfriend, dried apricot and pistachio for myself, or make them savory by omitting the salt and sugar, swapping bacon fat for butter, and adding herbs, parmesan cheese or bacon.
Thanks for posting. I will have to try them with cream. Also lavender, as the previous comment suggests.
Two words: Bread Pudding.
I’d chunk up those dry scones in a baking pan, make a nice boozy buttery custard sauced to pour over them, then top that with some wedges of fresh peach, a good sprinkle of brown sugar and a dash or two of cinnamon/nutmeg, bake, and you would be eating good.
Of course scones that are delicious on their own are good, too. ;)
I’ve been trying to achieve the perfect scone for years. I do not care for the overly sweet starbucks-type kind of scone, I like the real, kind of salty and sweet english scones. I made these yesterday with some friends and they were AMAZING. My mom can’t get enough (and I can’t either let’s be honest). I made a double batch and froze half of the dough to make more this weekend. I hope they taste as delicious! thanks for the recipe.
I’ve made this recipe twice now using cream left over from making clotted cream, and they’ve turned out quite nicely both times. My only problem is that I tend to be heavy handed when mixing things, And in so worried that they will end up being hockey pucks that I’m too light handed when patting this together…They still taste good, but so tend to crumble apart. But that’s just me.
I made this with chopped apricots the first time and chopped sour cherries and cocoa nibs the second time… Yummy! Thank you for sharing :)
Dear Smitten Kitchen,
I would love to make these scones, the sooner the better after reading the comments:) I read all 315 comments to make sure the question wasn’t asked already. But is it possible to give the weights instead of cups? In Belgium we don’t use this sytem. Thank you in advance!
Lin — Weights now added! Enjoy.
Wow, thank you very much!!!!
I made these this week and they were awesome. I have been frequenting a bakery that is very far from my home just to pick up their delicious apricot/cranberry scones, so I decided to try and make them myself. The only difference is the bakery’s scones have a crunchy outside and soft inside, which I like. Does anyone have a suggestion for getting the outside crispy? I am not a cook or a chef, so no clue. Other than that these were extremely tasty. I added more dried fruit then the recipe called for and they tasted great. Thanks!
Christine, just brush the tops of the scones with some cream before you put it in the oven and the tops will be crispy!
I love this recipe so so so much. Made it at least 3 times in the last months and I’m going to try to adapt it to make mini savoury herb scones for christmas with smoked salmon and crème fraiche! I’m thinking once you have the base you can run wild with this recipe right? fingers crossed it works! Thanks again!
Years ago I went Internet surfing for a scone recipe with real cream. I have had scones that are good and those that are great. My taste buds told me that cream was the factor. I found your recipe and used it to make cinnamon chip scones. They are a favorite with our friends and family. Made them for a brunch with dried cranberries and orange zest. They were good but the cinnamon chip ones are really our favorite. We buy the Hershey’s cinnamon chips. We had to order them online because our local store stopped stocking them.
Thank you for the great recipe.
Hi Deb, I tried these yesterday and they were fabulous! I didn’t have cream at home so substituted it with yoghurt and they still tasted good. Finished so fast that I’m now making a new batch today with your original recipe I.e with cream
I’ve made the chicken broth with the wings and that was wonderful. I was amazed at how little fat was there after cooling it! I’ll be trying the cream scones next. My comment is really about this: it is most helpful to list comments with the most recent first, as they are most relevant. One can go back as far as preferred. Thanks!
OMG!!!!! did I die and go to HEAVEN..I have made so many scones….Never happy with any recipe.THESE ARE AMAZING!!! Thank you.
I woke up this morning to these amazing scones, still warm from the oven (courtesy of my husband). I guess he was inspired by the clotted cream I made yesterday :) They were a perfect match.
I made these for Easter yesterday in my first attempt at scone-making, and they came out beautifully. I’m going to make them again for my mom’s birthday.
I didn’t exactly follow the recommendation to push the dough in an eight-inch cake pan; I just free-formed a circle and cut it into wedges, and they emerged looking good.
As another wonderful thing, this recipe didn’t create many dishes: just a spatula, bowl, pastry cutter, and a light wash of the baking sheet. And that’s always lovely. Plus, I had a delightful help from Husband, who cleaned off the flour mess I made on the counter. :-)
Now I can replicate my days of cream tea while living in England as soon as I can find non-ultra-pasteurized cream to make clotted cream!
Oh my god ! dreamy cream scones, I really love it. I made this last month for my family. All my mother, father, brother and sister liked these creamy scones. They are saying me again and again to make it once. I am planning to make this weekend.
I am finding some more tips about this recipe and found your post. So I can’t stop myself to comment on it. This time I will use your recipe which is similar to mine, just minor changes. Thanks for sharing !!
Keep up the good work !!
Fiona Kay
Made this the other day but didn’t want to use dried fruit so I added some cinnamon to the dry ingredients and then brushed tops with egg wash and sprinkled a little bit of cinnamon & sugar on the tops just before baking. The texture was perfect and everyone loved them. Thanks for posting this recipe.
If you put all the dry ingredients in the food processor and then drop in FROZEN butter pieces and pulse the machine until the butter pieces are the size of cracked corn it is much faster and the butter distributes for a flaky tender end product. Why is it so hard to find dry currants!!!
I made these this morning and thought they were great. I’d probably classify it as a biscuit but I’d probably classify everything I love as a biscuit so take it or leave it.
I did notice (after baking and with some awkward pressing of the nose against the computer screen) that your picture looks to have some sugar pressed into the tops of these. Do you rec putting some large sugar flakes onto the top before baking or after they come out and cool?
I believe I sprinkled some clear sanding sugar on top the time before baking the time I photographed these. Turbinado would work to. I find it makes things crunchier, especially applied heavier than would seem necessary. But it’s not essential. It won’t stick if applied after you bake them.
Made these in my kitchen in Japan – wasn’t totally sure they would turn out, and baked them in my toaster oven. WOW! Probably the best scone I have ever had. I have more in the freezer for down the line, but I am already wishing I doubled the recipe!
My family loves these dreamy scones. Three mornings in a row and I’ve made a fresh batch for the kiddo who loves biscuits but adores these scones more. Lucky for me it takes just minutes to prepare. This round of baking, I mis-read the recipe and added a full 1/2 cup of butter. I think it makes them even better and have justified that with eight scones, it’s just a tablespoon per serving.
I just made these. They were so easy and were really good. I substituted mini chocolate chips for the currants because everything is improved by the addition of chocolate.
I just want to let you know that this has been my go to scone recipe for 3 years. I can make it savory or sweet. I love it.
Do you adjust sugar when doing a savory batch?
I adjust sugar down to 1T when doing savory
Hi Deb– I made these scones a couple of years ago and they were the best EVER! I foolishly forgot to save the recipe and have been pulling my hair out for the last hour trying to figure out which they were only to be reminded when I saw the food processor. THANK YOU THANK YOU! You made even a poor baker like me capable of creating a delicious scone worthy of Christmas morning. So excited to make them again and this time they are saved!! Have a happy holiday!
Can these be made ahead of time and frozen? Any thoughts are appreciated.
I usually freeze them unbaked, leave them out for 15 minutes at room temperature and then bake them still mostly frozen. Works out great.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I love these divided comments sections!! So efficient. I was 90% sure these would freeze well pre-baking but wanted to confirm and this time I didn’t have to ctrl+f the whole comment section to look for someone who’d already asked my question!
The mother load of scone recipes. You never disappoint!
I have been following your blog for years, and I absolutely adore your ongoing love affair with baked goods. It seems like every recipe I find online these days is trying to avoid something: sugar, fat, gluten, dairy, eggs, soy, flavor, fun. Yours do not, and I have made many of them with great success. (Your “Blueberry Boy Bait” cake was a particular star one summer camping trip!)
What has not been successful is my attempt to recreate a savory scone I fell in love with at a small Seattle coffee shop chain, my local branch of which has now closed. I have tried modifying both sweet and savory scone recipes to recapture the essence of this sugarless breakfast treat, with very mixed results. But I have yet to find a combination that preserves the flaky texture and tender crumb of a good scone without being overwhelmed by the savory add-ins. You see, these particular scones rely on a heavenly combination of green onion, tomato, parmesan cheese, basil, and a not insignificant amount of black pepper for their flavor. The result is not quite “pizza” tasting, but more complex than the time honored “cheese-and-onion” pairing.
I wonder if you might take a stab at this for the sake of savory scone-lovers everywhere? Your Scone-Fu is strong, and you might have a better idea than I of how to wrap these tasty add-ins in the perfect unsweetened dough for a light-yet-substantial sugar-free pastry that holds together in all it’s peppery complexity.
The original scone was sold by Uptown Espresso in Seattle’s Wallingford neighborhood.
I made these twice this week, once with currants and once with cranberries. Both times I’ve needed to add an extra splash of cream to get everything to stick. I’ve made many scone recipes and this one is quite good. Next time I might use fibely chopped dried apricots, or make them plain for strawberry shortcake (as that is the reason I have a litre of heavy cream that I’m trying to use up now.)
LOVED these. Used a dried berry mix from TJ’s, and patted the dough into an 8″ circle and cute 8 wedges.
made these for the royal wedding! Used dried blueberries from TJs and baked for 12 min.
Amending baking time: 13-14 was perfect. I used an egg wash (1 egg with 2 T water) and sprinkled with sugar.
Amending baking time: 13-14 was perfect. I used an egg wash (1 egg with 2 T water) and sprinkled with sugar.
Have you tried substituting buttermilk for the heavy cream? I have some leftover buttermilk I’d like to use up but don’t want to waste if it will ruin this recipe!
I just made this recipe and they are so good I almost cried. Mine came out with a bit of a shortbread bite to them–less cakey than your pictures. I love them all the same. Rich, buttery, and light as clouds. I am bringing them to an office tea tomorrow morning and unfortunately I don’t have time to bake them from frozen as you suggested. I hope they will taste OK in 24 hours from now!
I dont suppose anyone has tried this recipe with a gluten free flour blend, and had any success?
I found one person for you!
Made these last weekend and they were fantastic. I left out the currants, brushed the top with some heavy cream, and sprinkled with turbinado sugar. Served with butter and preserves. I’ll definitely make these again!
I made these this morning, my first scones! Thanks for the delicious and versatile recipe! I made half of these with added cinnamon sugar throughout and on top. I also folded in some golden raisins! I kept the others plain in order to try out some new jams and preserves. I’m definitely making these again!
I just baked these scones; they are wonderful! Will use this recipe from now on. Thanks for sharing.
This is my go-to scone recipe, I loved them from the first try. Sometimes for a lighter, less dense scone I use 10% instead of heavy cream. I also sprinkle the tops with sugar before baking…. yum!
Can I use blueberries in this.
I am completely obsessed with these! Have you tried adding fresh fruit? I’ve got blueberries that are calling to be added to this!
Did you figure out if this works? I have the same question.
You can add a little, for sure. And I have a blueberry scone recipe here too.
I wanted to use this recipe (to use up some cream), and added 1/2 c frozen blueberries (since that was the only thing we had), and they came out ridiculously tasty!
I realize this is a very old post, but I suspect it’s a recipe many people come back to, so here’s my experience. I’ve made these many times with fresh fruit, first with fresh cranberries, and more recently with red grapes. I increase the sugar a bit, especially for the cranberries. They are wonderful. I’ve been hesitant to try softer fruits like strawberries, but I notice Deb has a recipe for strawberries and cream biscuits which is very similar. So maybe I’ll try that when strawberry season comes around.
I make these with strawberries all the time for strawberry shortcake. When using frozen fruit, I toss them in before putting the cream in so that they get covered with flour first, which seems to help them not smush when mixing in. I do it with fresh fruit too but frozen keeps its shape a bit better when baking. You’ll also bake a bit longer due to the moisture content.
I’ve been using Alton Brown’s scone recipe for years, but I will give this one a try and see how they come out. Can’t wait to try this!
Thank you for this post! I love you, Smitten Kitchen, and I love America’s Test Kitchen. These are at the top of my to-bake list!!
Have made cream scones for years using basically the same recipe. I sometimes eliminate the currants and use chopped walnuts and lemon zest in their stead.
These are wonderful! I make them for 100 people at a Victorian tea dance nearly every month. The committee wanted smaller ones so I bought a 7″ square pan and am able to get 16 even triangles in a small size. I had to special order it – the 8″ square pan was too big so I did some math to figure out the volume for the height, and the 7″ works just like the 8″ round pan. I cut them in four squares and then cut the squares corner to corner. They are also fantastic with orange zest and dried cranberries instead of currants. I have also made them with a teaspoon of almond extract and dried cherries.
I made these adding some lemon zest and substituting crystallized ginger chips and a lemon juice/confectioner’s sugar glaze. They were *very* popular.
They turned out exactly as you described, so light with a delicately crisp exterior. I halved the recipe and it couldn’t have turned out more lovely (4 perfect sized scones). I didn’t have currents on hand, so I used 1 Tbls lemon zest and a generous 1/2 Tbls chopped rosemary. I even made a small amount of lemon zest sugar to sprinkle on the top before baking. I agree with you on the sweetness. Even with my sugar topping, the scones only had a light kiss of sweetness. I actually prefer them this way! So if I want a drizzle of honey, jam, pat of butter or glaze, I can control the sweetness. It wouldn’t take much to make them a bit sweeter, perhaps an extra tablespoon or two of sugar. I also wanted to mention after I kneaded the mixture (per your instructions) 5-10 seconds…it looked drier/shaggy/crumblier than I thought it should. But I didn’t want to overwork it and risk them becoming dense. I’m actually amazed at how wonderful they are!!! I can’t wait to make another batch🌸
This means YOU, personally, really should weight your words SERIOUSLY k g l, and I strongly advice you to delete this written defamation x p s j of both characters and a huge group of people who do not take slander and character assassination like this easily r p b a p. I do not know which organization you have got to back you up, but if you do not care about lawsuits in the multi-million dollar range, fine, just keep on what you are doing g t e z o. If you DO care about spending x-amounts of money to try and defend this CLEARLY written libel, then take my DELETE-advice. Your “Post” is now officially taken both copies and screen-shots of and digitally stored for later use and evidence. This is just a warning. We are antifa, we do not forget. tomas.eien@gmail.com
I totally forgot the pressing the dough into a cake pan trick! Thank you…I also like to grate my cold butter dipping it into the flour as I grate. Scones are perfect for making, cutting the freezing, bake from frozen a little bit longer. They also benefit from chilling.
I have made a similar scone from Annies Eats blog. When my kids were smaller my son (in middle school) had a friend who figured out I tried to bake something special every Wednesday (my day off) for them when they got home from school. So Chase would conveniently walk home with my son every Wednesday. One time they busted through the door and asked what I make today. I replied chocolate chip scones. Kyle asked Chase if he wanted a scone. Chases reply? Yeah! … Whats a scone?
I can’t wait to try these
I had a scone bake-off yesterday, pitting your recipe against the New YorkTimes recipe. Yours won hands down. My NYT scone didn’t rise at all. But, the NYT recipe called for cake flour for a lighter scone. I’m wondering if I subbed cake flour in your recipe what the results would be?
I’ve done these with cake flour and it works great. My favorite mix is 50/50 cake flower and AP
*flour, oops!
I just made them with 50/50 all-purpose/cake flour too! I was concerned my King Arthur all-purpose would be too muscular – and – I have way more cake flour than I need. They came out very light and and rich at the same time.
Long-time lurker, first-time commenter – breaking my streak now partly because I made the 44 cloves of garlic soup last night and still can’t stop thinking about it. I’m wondering if these scones could be made with a moist fruit and still bake? Say, a mango? It seems crazy, but I thought I’d ask before I probably go ahead and try it anyway because I am stubborn, and somehow have a mango that is fairly ripe though still a bit too firm to eat on its own.
So I made these and they were delicious! But I am curious if it did something wrong cause the texture and taste was exactly like biscuit! I just always thought scones were less fluffy. Would love your feedback- I’m about to try again!
I think scones are pretty similar to biscuits… Perhaps an expert will chime in… I wondered the same thing (these were the first scones I had ever had) and I searched a little online but at the end of the day I dont care what these are technically cause we love them! hah
We use the terms almost interchangeably in the U.S. Often, biscuits are savory and scones are sweet, but quirky coffee shops (and food writers, guilty as charged) will make savory scones and sweet biscuits.
Just want to share that we LOVED this recipe. I am not exaggerating by saying I have probably made it 20 times or more in the last couple months lol! It has become a staple in our house. I love how easy it is.. I can whip it up super quick! Everyone that has tried it has loved it! Thanks!
I’ve been using your cream scone recipe for years now and have loved every variation (apricot, chocolate chip, cranberry). I’ve just made the best version yet…Rhubarb scones with sweet whipped butter! Absolutely delicious!
I let the rhubarb chunks sit in a bit of sugar overnight, used a little pinch of sugar on the top of each scone and dipped my biscuit cutter in sugar between each cut and… voila! Very superb.
Deb, I’ve been making these scones for years and they are truly fantastic! Lately I’ve been using fresh blueberries instead of currants (I think inspired by your perfect blueberry muffin recipe, which is also divine) and just barely pressing the dough into palm-sized mounds with my hands instead of taking the time to put the dough in a pan and cut them. They turn out craggy and delicious and everyone eating them swoons!
Everyone thinks I’m this cooking and baking guru, but really it’s Smitten Kitchen every time! Thanks for making me look good!
I’ve made a number of different scone recipes, and these are divine! Once I made them they became my go-to recipe :)
These are my favorite! Every time I bake them (which is often, but not often enough), my husband tells me I should open a bakery and my toddler gobbles them up in seconds. I used to chop up the currants before adding them to the flour/butter mix, but realized if I threw everything minus the cream into my ninja blender it would do the chopping for me (and makes the scones a tad sweeter because the currants are small and distributed throughout). I tried subbing in half and half for the cream (I had accidentally let the cream expire), and while it worked ookkkayyy the dough was a lot stickier and the scones were soft. Ok in a “my cream expired” emergency, but I’d recommend following Deb’s recipe instead! With only 4 minutes of prep, and just 10 minutes of baking, these should be on any busy person’s go-to recipe list.
these are SO good. Easy enough for me too.
These were incredible! I actually mixed the apple and cheddar scone recipe with this one…and miraculously it worked out beautifully! I followed this recipe exactly but instead of currants, I added the baked apple chunks and shredded cheddar. I wanted to use this recipe because of an egg allergy, and am so glad it worked out! Best of both worlds. Thank you!
I made this scones for a dinner party! They went over very well with my guests …but I found once they came out of the oven, they stuck to my tray while cooking and I had to scrape them off using a spatula! Next time, I will grease the tray first
Try lining pan with parchment paper or silpat
Seconded!
I’ve made these many times and they always taste amazing! That said, I want to point out how forgiving the recipe is. Two or three times, I made 1/2 a recipe and they still turned out beautifully. Also, once I added the correct amount of cream (1 c) and the dough seemed WAY too dry, so I drizzled in a few extra tablespoons of cream. It still seemed far too dry to come together, so I added a few more tablespoons of cream. I thought the scones would surely be dense and ‘overworked’ at this point. But they were light as air and tasted perfect. They also reheat wonderfully (in a low oven). I highly recommend this recipe!
These tasted yummy, but I felt the texture was more like a premise pilbury roll than a butter flaky scone. I’m a bit disappointed.
I just made the cranberry version, using a round biscuit/scone cutter. I noticed while making them that this recipe uses much less sugar than most. My cranberries are not very sweet.
If I wanted to glaze them, what would be a good glaze to try? Thanks.
I have a hankering for my very favorite scones (lemon creme from Lazy Jane’s in Madison, WI) and I’ve never made a scone before.
Because your recipes never let me down, I have every faith I can pull it off, but in order to make it what I want, I’m wondering about adding lemon zest or curd to the recipe, taking out the currants, and mixing it in with the cream.
What do you think? Will it work?
Hi Sara —
I’ve made this recipe countles times, and just wanted to say that lemon zest would work great. I wouldn’t do curd, though — it would change the moisture level too much, I think. I’ve done so many variations on this recipe in terms of additions — I’ve actually never made it with currants! My current favorite is dried blueberries, lemon zest, and just a bit of white chocolate chips. Yum!
Lemon zest can be added with the sugar. Curd might change the consistence of the scone, and also its nuance will probably get lost. I think it’s best to save curd for finished scones.
This recipe calls for a lower protein flour. I practically always bake with King Arthur which is, I think, higher in protein. Would these not do well with that brand?
Jane, I made them tonight with King Arthur all purpose flour, and I thought they turned out great. I’m not sure how they might have been better with a low-protein flour, but I wouldn’t let the lack stop you from making these gems!
YUM. I just made this and divided the batter into thirds – 1 third I cooked as directed, 1/3 I added orange juice and fresh cranberries, and 1/3 I added chocolate chunks and cranberries. Absolutely delicious. All needed a little bit more cream to come together and baked in about 15 minutes at 425.
So wonderful. Thanks Deb!
Made these with some dried blueberries that I had in the cupboard and of course they did not disappoint. Love how flexible this recipe is. Before baking, I brushed some half and half and sprinkled the tops with some turbinado sugar for an extra crunch. Super yum! I’m a scone lover but my husband is not, but the aroma of the baking scones lured him into the kitchen to “investigate” what I was up to. He decided to try one fresh from the oven and immediately said “Oooooooh! Scones are really tasty! I think I’ve been eating the wrong ones all this time!” Needless to say, Deb you have turned him into a scone lover! Thank you for another great recipe. Xx
I don’t understand that this scone does not have any egg. Was this intentional? ATK scone does have eggs.
This is my go-to scone recipe. Never fails and so easy. You can make mini scones by using a creme brûlée dish as a mold. I always use the mold and cut method. No tough scones! Instead of flouring the mold, I use an oil spray before patting in the scones.
?֥????ɥ??ԩ`iphone???`?????֥????ɥ??`???????μ????Ј?ֱ?ӵ? 2019????Ʒ?֥????ɸ?Ʒ?|?Хå???ؔ????iphone8???`???δ?????ͨ?ФǤ?-?֥?????iphone???`?????ԩ`?????ͥ륳?ԩ`iphone???`???????å????ԩ`iphone???`???? iphone???`???֥????ɥ??ԩ`????ֱ?ӵ?,?֥?????|???å?iPhoneXR/MAX?֥?????|iPhoneXS/MAX???`???֥?????ȫ????Ʒ?|?ǥ????ͥ?iphone XS???`???֥?????| … MAX ???Щ`???ԩ` ͨ_?????ȥ?iPhoneXS MAX.
?륤?????ȥ?iphone???`?????ԩ` http://www.ccwproducts.com/
I make these all the time, either baking right away or shaping then freezing unbaked (freeze uncovered on wax papered baking sheet or cutting board for 20 minutes, then transfer to ziploc bag or freezer safe container). For fresh fruit, I make as-is if the fruit isn’t too juicy (e.g. small firm blueberries). If it’s something really squishy like raspberries, I split the dough in half, flatten each half, spread the fruit across one half, cover with the rest of the dough. That way each bite is full of fruit but you don’t burn the fruit juice on the bottom or get too much moisture seeping into the dough.
Made these with kefir instead of cream (not to pretend to sound healthy but that’s what I had on hand). They turned out to be amazing!! So so good that I won’t be trying any other scone recipe for a while to come. Thanks Deb!
Used this as a base for heavy improv, first one turned out awesome, second even more adventurous one will be cooked tomorrow
This is an amazing recipe. So, so good. I added chopped dried cherries and some almond extract.
I’m late to the party, but I made these for the first time today. I didn’t have currants, so I left them plain. They are great! My husband and I are trying to keep ourselves from eating all 8 in one sitting.
I have made these dreamy cream scones, your apple cheddar scones, and the cranberry Meyer lemon scones—al with amazing and consistent results. Can I just say thank you for that first?
I am catering a ladies tea for 120 guests and would like to serve mini scones of all three. Do you have a thought for streamlining production times that many? The Apple one especially goes off the scone path compared to the other two. Yet I hate to deviate from the recipe. I had planned to make them up and freeze raw for baking the morning of the event.
I’m just a home cook. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
I’m not positive about the apple one but I think if you begin with this as a base, you can make cranberry-meyer lemon and grapefruit-poppy and whatever else you crave. Perhaps consider patting the entire dough into a 1-inch slab and cutting it into sharp 2-inch squares for baking?
I have made these several times over the past month (using Costco dried Moreno cherries), with turbinado sprinkled thickly on top – fantastic!
Up till now I have patted them out on an unfloured silpat and cut them with an unfloured round cutter, and everything has been perfect, with no sticking. But I am intrigued at the idea of squares, which of course would speed things up because there are no scraps to re-form. Not that it takes much time but …
Thank you so much for the gift of this recipe!
I rolled the dough into a square and then cut it into 9 squares and cut the 9 squares into triangles. No waste, no reforming and they were perfect.
I made the scones and they are delicious, but the dough was very crumbly and didn’t come together well. What can I do to get it to come together?
If the final texture was correct, the dough was too!
How many scones does this yield?
I just made these and they are delicious! I used dried currants and sprinkled a little cardamom, cinnamon, and turbinado sugar on top right before popping them in the oven.
Would fresh cranberries worket if chopped very small?
I have made those scones from America’s test kitchen and they were spot on!!! I can’t wait to try these!!
I want to make these for a work meeting Tuesday, and I have some candied citrus peels that I need to use or lose. Would the addition of chopped candied citrus peels work in this recipe? Has anyone tried this? Thanks for any input!
Hi JP,
I just made these on Saturday with candied orange peel. I added the zest of one orange to the dough and sprinkled them with sanding sugar. They had a great texture, but were more biscuity than orangey. I might add 1/4 tsp of orange extract to the dough next time.
Just made these with dried cherries. They are fabulous and super easy. I did top with a little sparkling sugar. Yum!
A hybrid method for forming these, if you want small round scones but don’t want to roll/cut: I floured a muffin tin and divided the dough into 10 of the wells, then patted the dough down in the same way ATK suggests you do in the larger cake pan and turned the smaller rounds out onto a baking sheet. Worked perfectly! 10 smaller round scones, no cutting required :)
I made a half-recipe this morning, because I live alone and because I was hoping these would be like the scones I had in Ireland. They are very similar and I was so pleased.The scones available in most American coffee shops and bakeries are much too hearty, not to mention huge. These are more delicate, like a proper scone, which does indeed come closer to an American biscuit in texture. Now I’m planning to make the full recipe and freeze them un-baked so I can give some to my sister who lives up north in Wisconsin
This has become my go-to scone recipe. They are so delicate! My hubs goes nuts when I even mention the idea of making them.
A friend of mine made these scones and they were amazing. I can’t wait to try them. Did I understand one of the comments that you can make these and freeze the scones and then bake them off 1 or 2 at a time? What are the baking directions for using frozen scones?
I have made these about half a dozen times so far with different ingredient substitutions. The most successful was substituting the currants for the same weight of chopped crystallized ginger and adding the zest of one lemon. Right before baking, I brush the top with an egg wash and sprinkle turbinado sugar. They are excellent. I also tried this with chopped pistachios and lemon zest, but found that they were a little too dry and would have benefited from a lemon glaze.
This recipe is so wonderful that you can make it with an elementary school class full of children who are eager to mix things to death and it will still turn out delicious! We of course left out the currants because that might be a fruit or vegetable and then smothered them with whip cream that left the students with giant biceps and strawberry compote (or very fancy sounding warm jam). Thanks for another great recipe that made my class very happy!
How did you chop the cranberries? I always struggle trying to chop dried fruit for any recipe!
I run mine through a mini food processor for a bit.
Ah I love this recipe. It really debunks American rock scone perceptions. I love peoples’ reactions who have one of these and go, “WAIT this isn’t a real scone!”. Yes it is, my friend! I have made this recipe with fresh cranberries: amazing. And dried: amazing. I just made a third batch with dried and added a teaspoon of orange zest. They’re cooling as we speak – can’t vouch if the orange zest comes through or not.
I only have half & half. Would the cream amount be the same?
Thanks. I appreciate your website.
Debra
Yes
Nothing to top it with before popping them in the oven?
Can you use this recipe with fresh fruit like blueberries instead of dried fruit? Or do you have to change cooking times etc?
You might end up with a little too much moisture, depending on how much you use. Check the whole wheat raspberry ricotta scones and very blueberry scones in the archives for fresh fruit scones.
This is the perfect scone recipe, made as written. And, I also find it works well if you feel like improvising with dried blueberries and lemon zest, cranberries and orange zest, and today’s experiment will be dried cherries with orange. The scone’s flavor is fantastic and the crumb is delicate; you can see the layers develop as they bake. I did need to cook them a bit longer for some reason, but I am at altitude, and that often makes things wonky. Thanks for the great recipe.
Did these for mother’s day and they were a hit! Basically fool proof recipe, and so quick too. thank you!
although they were very big, i wonder if they would work smaller too? would i have to adjust cooking temperature?
Elizabeth Martelluzzi, smaller works just fine. Cook at the same temp, just check them on the early side of the baking time. Works nicely to pat the dough into a square and use a bench scraper or chef’s knife to cut into squares. Nice clean edges and no dough scraps leftover.
Had a random hankering for scones but can’t buy any with most bakeries closed as we shelter in place. Thank you so much for the recipe. I used White Lily Flour and Greek yogurt since I didn’t have cream. I also sprinkled some turbinado sugar on top for a fun crunch! The scones were delicious! Super moist and light!
My one & only scone recipe, now & forevermore, with the following notes:
– Weigh the flour rather than measuring it in a cup.
– Use frozen butter (I prefer salted) and grate it into the dry ingredients; then there’s hardly any need to work it in, just toss with a fork and/or mash a few times with a pastry blender.
– Add 1/2 tsp vanilla and 1/4 tsp almond extracts to the cream (1/4 tsp orange blossom water if you have it)
– Grate in some orange zest instead of currants
– When kneading, fold the dough in half repeatedly to create more layers.
– Just before baking: brush the top of each scone with a little more cream (with a dash of vanilla & almond) and sprinkle with a little sugar mixed with orange zest.
– They hardly need it, but if you have time, make your own clotted cream: pour 1-2 pts heavy cream into a small shallow casserole (1/2-1″ deep); let sit in 175 deg. oven for 12 hours; cool to room temp; refrigerate overnight; drain off any liquid for use in cooking (next batch of scones!); stir the remaining solids together & voila. Heaven.
– To speed things up in the morning, mix the butter into the dry ingredients the night before; refrigerate overnight (with the clotted cream!)
Any advice on how to use this scone recipe as a base but make them chai vanilla flavored scones?
Scrumptious crunchy, and creamy. I added chopped dried cherries and about 1/4 – 1/3 cup of slivered almonds. They were soooooo good warm from the oven. I’ve made many, many scones and none were as good as this.
I’ve made these a few times this summer – make the dough, shape and cut, then flash freeze. Once they’re solid I can shove them all in a bag and have scones on call for fancy breakfasts, or give a covid-safe treat to friends & neighbors. (It’s going into their oven for 15-18 min, so anything bad will for sure be dead. Or, just wait to eat/gift until 2 wks after you shaped them)
I’ve used currants and craisens and actually much preferred the craisens. The currants that ended up exposed to the oven dried out too much and got crunchy.
Oh- and I also tried a batch with coconut cream instead, and they were equally delicious. Didn’t really taste any difference unless you ate a dairy cream scone in parallel. (Then the dairy was better, but only barely)
Best scones I have ever had, and I have eaten them in every tea room imaginable in the south, and 5 or 6 in the UK. Easy Easy to make. Making them in a few minutes by special request of my mom and husband! I make with cranberries, sometime orange zest, but ALWAYS serve lemon curd (and clotted cream) when I can get it. Tender, yummy….
Question- Could you use half-and-half instead of heavy cream? And if so would you up the butter?
You can; I’d leave the butter the same. It’s just going to be less of a creamy scone.
What can I substitute for the heavy cream .
Clc32n@aol.com
Sour cream might work, but I haven’t tested it.
I have an allergy to wheat and am wondering if I can substitute a gluten free flour? The recipe sounds wonderful and am anxious to try it. Thanks
The lightest, delectably moist scones that I ever baked were made with sour cream (or was it Greek yogurt), which even lifted the 100% wholemeal flour that I always use. Try those variations and see if yours fluff up still more.
Vorrei sapere se i libri sono scritti in italiano o no, perché nella traduzione, si pasticcia con le dosi e le indicazioni. Grazie – Stella
These were delicious and so easy! Made them exactly as the recipe called. I would sure love it if there was a print recipe button though!
I find these very wet to work with. Great recipe from ATK though. Last time I stirred in a cup of sharp cheddar and a diced jalapeño. Divine!
I had a dream. That I will one day make these perfect, creamy, crummy little scones that I once tasted in some fancy dreamy English Cafe. After many failed attempts at trying different recipes, I gave up.
One fateful day, when my old dream called on me, I went to ask Google to give me the best scones recipe in the world. Google didn’t give me one, it gave me many, in fact too many recipes to choose from.
By the grace of God, I chose Dreamy Cream Scones.
The End.
Thank you for making my dream come true! My search is over! Love your simple to follow recipe and your sense of humor! You not only make me happy. You made my family and friends very very happy! Everyone loves the dreamy cream scones! I made 3 rounds in one week already! :)))
~Jennifer
I had to leave a comment as I revisit this page. I have made these every Christmas for the last 10 years at least! I just made 9 batches for neighbors and friends, because after gifting them once, everyone wants them again and again!
I always chop up dried cranberries for them (little Christmas jewels!) and press the dough into a free form circle and cut it into 8 wedges. And I always sprinkle the tops with sugar. Then into the freezer they go and they are gifted frozen with a jar of TJ’s lemon curd and a recommendation to also serve with whipped cream…that way everyone can bake them fresh and enjoy them right away. You can’t beat them warm from the oven smothered in lemon curd, topped with cream. My 9 year old daughter learned to make them with me this year, thanks for our dreamy Christmas morning tradition!
I was the standby scone maker this year when others had to wrap etc. So of course I turned to SK and made these exactly as described but added a scant 1/2 cup of fresh blueberries to a 1/4 cup dried cranberries. They’ll fall apart if you don’t manage this ratio well.
Also had to add a bit of milk to get the dough to consolidate. We’ve made scones for years on XMAS morning but everyone said “best ever.” Key is to dice the butter in fast on a cold surface.
I had no cranberries, but added orange zest and dates instead, and used cake flour and dark brown sugar because that’s what I had on hand. Lovely for a New Year’s morning!
This makes the best scone I have ever tried (and I try lots). I have a sweet tooth and typically add 5/6 tbsp of sugar to this recipe to make it a sweeter scone. =) It’s a wonderful recipe. I always get just the right texture using the cold butter and heavy whipping cream recommended.
I keep coming back to these scones! They are fantastic. The hardest part is remembering to buy heavy cream!
Can you substitute raisins for currants?
Yes
Hello! Not sure what I did wrong, I followed this recipe to a T, and they were flat-ish and soggy in the middle. I make your blueberry scones all the time and they are perfection. The difference I see between them, this one omits the egg, way more cream (235ml) and the baking temp is higher. I stuck them back in for an extra 5 but no difference. I did the 8 triangles again, but I did measure the circle, so they didn’t start out super flat. Puzzled!
Someone help me troubleshoot please! My scones have under-baked layers in the middle. It was very hard to bring the dough together – just kept falling & crumbling apart, with a lot of dry flour. I added a splash of cream and then tried to bring it together. Couldn’t really knead it – kind of patted it together in the cake pan. How crumbly are we talking the dough to be? Crumbs falling from it? I wish there was a picture of the done dough. Thanks!
Just made these, cut into 8 wedges. I was worried they might get dense as I kneaded the dough to bring it together, but they puffed up beautifully and remained fluffy! I used the food processor method and these were a breeze to make. Perfect amount of sweetness. Will definitely make again.
Hallelujah! Easiest scones I’ve ever made, and Arbiter of All Baked Goods (husband), said, “Yeah, they ARE dreamy”. I did cranberries and walnuts. Thank you!
These are my go-to scones – always tender and delicious, and quick! I pat mine out in an approximation of a cake pan (roughly 8” circle) and cut into pie shapes with a bench scraper; leaving the pieces almost touching helps them rise higher.
It’s Saturday morning, I’m still in my jammies, sipping coffee, scrolling social media, and watching the first snowfall. I have to run errands, and I’m trying to calculate how far out of my way I will have to go if I want to pick up some scones. Then, like a sign from the heavens, this recipe comes up in my newsfeed. Scones are in the oven (with Montmorency dried cherries), and the errands can wait.
I too don’t like dry scones. I found d a recipe that called for sour cream & no milk. Scones were moist for 6 days. I reheated wrapped on foil for 10 min. Tasted like it just came out of the oven. But I will try this recipe tomorrow
After you mold dough into round pan, put in freezer for 20 minutes and then cut. Then either spread pieces out on sheet pan or refreeze until use.
Oh My! these are sooooo good. For years I have been dreaming of some currant scones that I had in Ireland. Nothing here in the US could even compete. This recipe brought me right back to the little tea shop in Dublin. Thank you!!!
Scones are stale after only a few hours. You really need to eat them as soon as they are cold. When I make scones for lunch I make sure to start the baking so that they have time to go cold right on lunchtime. The uneaten ones I freeze and when I want them I dunk them under the tap and reheat them, making sure to do this so they have just gone cold when we want to eat them.
Is there an error in the recipe regarding the amount of cream? 1 cup of cream for 2 cups of flour resulted in a batter, not dough.
No, but you might double-check your measuring devices and cream thickness.
Deb, I found, happily, that this recipe enables a full substitution of white whole wheat flour. Additionally, being short on cream, I made up the balance with pistachio “milk” (which needed to be used up anyhow). I also used just one tablespoon of sugar and some black pepper for a savory-leaning scone The result was a tender, delectable part of a big weekend breakfast. Thank you!
I made these and they are perfect! Light, not dry, just the right amount of sweetness. And super easy. I’m no baker and I could do it. By hand even since the cuisinart lid is broken. They were perfect to serve with homemade clotted cream and strawberry jam. My oven is old so I used parchment paper, turned it down 25 degrees and let them bake a little longer.
Is this calling for fresh currants or dried?
Dried, although I bet it would be delicious with fresh ones right now too.
There have been comments left since 2006! Comment section is almost novel length and I might just sit down tonight and read through everyone…just for the fun of it…
I have to say, once again I learn to just stick with Smitten Kitchen for online recipes (and my one cookbook). I had a pint of heavy cream I needed to use–found a random recipe for pound cake and this one for scones. The pound cake probably has to go in the bin, as it is really bad, greasy, spongy..ugh. … And then these scones…. Ohmygosh, divine! Best scone I’ve ever made or eaten for that matter.
Thank you! I know this may sound silly, but these scones have made a real difference in our lives. My elderly mother is mostly homebound, has a poor appetite and has lost a lot of weight. I bring her a batch of these scones every week when I see her. I mix in something different each time and she eats them with gusto! Thanks for sharing this fast and easy recipe. I say a little prayer of thanks to you every time I bake them.
I just made these this morning. Absolutely delicious, so tender, delicate, and not too sweet. Wish I could post a picture. They are so easy to put together, too. Thanks for yet another terrific, foolproof recipe, Deb. You are my go-to gal!
They were very tasty but a bit dry. I think 250 grams would be a better amount for the flour.
With today’s snowstorm, I made this recipe as Walnut Scones for the first time. I pressed the dough into a spring form pan; once I removed the ring, I could cut these into triangles (and a few odd shapes) and bake without the need for any flouring at all. Delicious! 😊
Just in case anyone wonders….I made these and froze for over 4 months before baking. Perfect results!