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This blueberry scones recipe is made with dried wild blueberries and candied pecans, giving them a slightly sweet and buttery taste that melts in your mouth.
Scones are biscuits, with a little bit of sugar and couldn't be easier to make. From bacon cheddar scones to chocolate chip scones to apple scones to blackberry scones to raspberry and white chocolate scones, there are plenty of ways to make them.
My wife and I recently have gotten on the Great British Baking Show bandwagon. I've heard about it for quite a while, but just never got around to watching it. But now that I have, I can't get enough.
As scones are just a British version of biscuits, they are made quite often on the show. And recently I shared the recipe with my mom and she wanted to take her own spin on it with this blueberry scones recipe.
The blueberries give you a pop of flavor in every bite and the candied pecans almost become caramelized when baked. And this blueberry scones recipe is super easy to whip up, making it a quick and easy option for breakfast.
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Recipe Ingredients
- All-purpose flour - can also use whole wheat flour.
- Raw cane sugar - can also use granulated sugar.
- Baking powder/soda - helps the dough rise.
- Salt - enhances the flavor.
- Unsalted butter - creates the flaky crust you expect.
- Dried blueberries - use dried blueberries if you can find them. I get them from Trader Joe's.
- Candied pecans - either buy at the grocery store or make your own candied pecans.
- Buttermilk - the acidity reacts with the leaveners, helping the dough rise.
- Vanilla extract - enhances the flavors of the blueberry scones.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients.
- Use a cheese grater to grate the cold butter. Blend the butter with the flour mixture using 2 knifes. It should look like course crumbs and be clumpy.
- Add the blueberries and pecans. In a measuring cup, whisk the buttermilk and vanilla extract together then add to the flour mixture and mix until JUST incorporated. DO NOT over mix.
- Knead the dough briefly on a floured surface and then shape into a circle that is about 1 ½ inches thick. Cut into 8-10 wedges, depending on how big you want your scones to be.
- Place the wedges on a parchment-lined baking sheet and brush with some buttermilk and sprinkle with sugar.
- Bake for 22-25 minutes at 400°F until tops of the blueberry scones are golden brown and toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.
Homemade Buttermilk
If you don't have buttermilk you can easily make it at home. Simply add 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to 1 cup of milk. Let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes and it’s ready.
The Key to Light and Flaky Scones
As with anything that you bake, you do not want to overwork the dough. Use a pastry cutter or knives to get the cold butter into small crumbs.
You then use your hands to shape and pat the dough into a disc. Yes your hands will get messy, but the end product is worth it.
Freezing Instructions
You can either freeze the blueberry scones before baking or after baking.
- Freeze Before Baking: Cut the scone dough into wedges than place on baking sheet and freeze for 1 hour. Once frozen, you can layer them into a bag or container. To bake from frozen, just add a few minutes to the bake time or thaw overnight and bake as directed.
- Freeze After Baking: Place the baked and cooled scones on a sheet and the freeze for at least 1 hour. You can then layer them into a bag or container. Thaw on the counter or overnight in the fridge. Warm in the microwave for 30 seconds or on a baking sheet at 300°F for 10 minutes.
FAQs
Yes and no. Scones are the British version and generally have eggs in them, where biscuits do not. However I've "Americanized" these homemade scones and taken the egg out which gives you a light, flaky texture.
As mentioned above, eggs are commonly in scones as it gives it a richer mouthfeel. However I like a flakier scone so I omit the egg.
Yes fresh or frozen blueberries work as well. I just liked using the dried blueberries in this recipe. Just use ¾ cup instead. If you use frozen, do not thaw them.
You can break one open to check for doneness. The interior shouldn't be doughy or wet, but slightly moist.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- You may not realize this but baking powder/baking soda actually expires pretty quickly. Use baking powder that is less than a year old since it has been opened. If you use older baking powder, it won’t be powerful enough to help leaven the scones. You can test it by stirring half a teaspoon of baking powder into a cup of hot water. It will immediately start to fizz and release carbon dioxide gas if it’s still fresh enough to use. Baking soda should be less than six months old and you can use the same test.
- Use cold or even frozen butter. The cold butter coats the flour which creates crumbs that melt and steam, thus creating that flakiness you expect in scones.
- Do not overwork the dough. Mix everything until just combined or you will have tough scones.
- Leftover blueberry scones will keep at room temperature for 2 days or in the fridge for 5 days.
Other Breakfast Recipes
- Homemade Bagels
- Hash Brown Egg Muffins
- Butternut Squash Bread
- Mini Ham and Cheese Quiche
- Savory Dutch Baby
If you’ve tried this blueberry scones recipe or any other recipe on Chisel & Fork, please let me know how it turned out in the comments below! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube to see more tasty meals and anything else I'm up to.
Blueberry Scones
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup raw cane sugar
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, cold
- ½ cup dried blueberries
- ½ cup candied pecans, roughly chopped
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
- Grate the cold butter using a cheese grater. This is an easy way to get it into small pieces to incorporate in the dry ingredients. If you do not have a cheese grater, you can just cut into small cubes. Blend the grated butter in with the flour mixture using a pastry cutter or 2 knives. The mixture should be clumpy and look like course crumbs. Mix in the blueberries and pecans.
- In a small measuring cup, mix together the buttermilk and vanilla. Mix into the flour mixture until JUST incorporated. DO NOT over mix, this will make the scones too dense.
- Put a small amount of flour onto a clean surface and knead the dough briefly. Shape the dough into a circle that is about 1 ½ inches thick. Cut the circle in half and then each half into 4-5 wedges (depending on how big you want your scones).
- Put the wedges on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Brush the tops with a little bit of milk and then lightly sprinkle with sugar.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes until tops are golden brown and toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.
Notes
- You may not realize this but baking powder/baking soda actually expires pretty quickly. Use baking powder that is less than a year old since it has been opened. If you use older baking powder, it won’t be powerful enough to help leaven the scones. You can test it by stirring half a teaspoon of baking powder into a cup of hot water. It will immediately start to fizz and release carbon dioxide gas if it’s still fresh enough to use. Baking soda should be less than six months old and you can use the same test.
- Use cold or even frozen butter. The cold butter coats the flour which creates crumbs that melt and steam, thus creating that flakiness you expect in scones.
- Do not overwork the dough. Mix everything until just combined or you will have tough scones.
- Leftover scones will keep at room temperature for 2 days or in the fridge for 5 days.
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