Blueberry scones with lemon icing or blueberry scones filled with blueberry jam? Don’t worry, you don’t need to choose! We have you covered with both recipes. These scones are exactly what you will be craving this summer. They highlight the amazing flavor of summer blueberries and are so refreshing. To make the jam-filled scones, you can use homemade or store bought blueberry jam. Making your own jam is always a fun project and tastes amazing. To make your own jam, follow this super simple jam making guide! Make sure to cook the jam until it is thick, let it cool completely, chill in the fridge, and use cornstarch. However, store bought will work well in this recipe. If you’re not feeling the jam, that’s alright, and you can stick to classic blueberry scones with lemon zest and cinnamon. Either way, you’re going to end up with something completely delicious.
TIPS FOR MAKING THE BEST SCONES
Measuring flour - the key to any fluffy and tender baked good is accurately measuring your flour. Typically when you just scoop out the flour straight from the container, you end up measuring way too much flour. This is because when you scoop the flour straight from the container, you are packing it down too much, meaning that your measuring cup is filled with dense flour. Measuring too much flour can ruin almost any baked good, so I recommend using a kitchen food scale when possible since this will provide the most accurate results. However, if you do not have a food scale the most accurate way you can measure your flour is by spooning the flour into your measuring cup until it is full. Then with the flat side of a butter knife, swipe the excess overflowing flour off. This method is called spooning and leveling your flour.
Cold butter - to ensure your scones are the tallest and fluffiest they can possibly be, you need to use cold butter. This step is definitely not optional. Butter typically has about a 15% to 20% water content while the rest is fat. As the fat melts in the oven, the water in butter turns into steam causing the scones to rise high and become super fluffy. Using warm or room temperature butter can and most likely will result in flat scones with not much lift. By using cold butter, you ensure that your scones will not immediately melt when put in the oven and flatten. To ensure my butter is extra cold, I like to cut it into 1-2 cm cubes, and then stick them in the freezer while I prepare the rest of my ingredients.
Cold ingredients, cold everything - along with using cold butter, you want to use cold milk, yogurt, cream, and jam for the same reasons. We want to make sure the scones cannot, and won’t melt and flatten out when they reach the oven.
Jam - homemade or store bought both work well! To make homemade jam, check out this guide to homemade jam making. Just make sure to really cook down your fruit, and add a tablespoon or two of cornstarch to thicken the jam. Lastly, make sure your jam is cold before using it!
TOTAL TIME: 1 hour SERVINGS: 8 INGREDIENTS:
2 cups (240 grams) all purpose flour or a 50/50 whole wheat blend (+ 1/4 cup or 30 grams if too wet)
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (cut into half inch cubes)
½ cup whole milk or heavy cream
¼ cup whole milk yogurt
1 tablespoon baking powder
4 tablespoons granulated sugar or 50/50 brown and granulated blend
¼ cup blueberry jam (optional)
½ cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¾ teaspoon ground ginger
Zest of 1 large lemon
Pinch of salt
Raw sugar (optional for sprinkling on top)
Butter or milk/cream for brushing on top
METHOD:
Start by cubing your butter and placing it in the freezer while you prepare the rest of your ingredients. Then, preheat your oven to 425° F and line your baking sheets with parchments or silicone mats.
Add your lemon zest and sugar to a bowl. Using your fingertips, rub the zest and sugar together. This will release the essential oils in the citrus zest and intensify the lemon flavor. Rub the sugar and zest together until the sugar resembles wet sand.
Then, add in your flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and ground ginger. Mix until completely combined.
In a measuring cup, add your milk/cream and yogurt. Then mix the wet ingredients together.
Then, add the cold butter cubes to your dry ingredient mixture. Use your fingertips to press down and to break the butter down until chickpea-sized clumps start to form. Some chunks will be bigger than others, and that is alright. It will add flakiness to the scone. You want to work quickly to make sure the butter does not melt too much.
Slowly add in the wet ingredient mixture and mix with your hands until a sticky, scraggly dough starts to form. Mix until the flour has absorbed all the liquid. You do not need to mix more beyond this.
If the dough seems extra sticky and wet, chill it in the fridge for 15 minutes, and if it is still super wet, then add up to a ¼ cup flour.
Flour your work surface and transfer the dough to your surface. Using your hands, pat the dough into a 3/4 inch thick square. Place the blueberries onto the square and gently press the berries into the dough. Fold one half of the dough over the other and pat it back into a square. Repeat until all the blueberries are evenly dispersed throughout the dough. On your last fold, pat the dough back down, but this time, in a circle with a diameter of about 8-9 inches.
Using a knife or bench scraper, cut out 8 triangular slices, the same way one would cut a pizza. Place the slices onto a parchment lined baking sheet.
If you do not want to fill the scones with jam, skip to Step 11. To fill the scones, using your fingers, pull out a quarter sized piece of dough from the middle of each scone. Then, using your finger or the back of a spoon, press down to create a little dimple in the scone to fill your jam. Add about a teaspoon and a half of jam to each scone.
Brush with melted butter or cream, sprinkle with raw sugar (to add a crunch) and put them in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until fluffy and golden brown.
While the scones bake, make the lemon glaze by combining 1 tablespoon lemon juice with ½ cup powdered sugar. Mix until completely smooth. If it is too runny, add more powdered sugar, and if it is too thick, add a couple more drops of lemon juice.
Once the scones are done baking, let them cool for 15 minutes before drizzling them with the icing and serving.
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