Blueberry Lemon Scones are like sunshine on a plate. Bursting with juicy blueberries, bright lemon zest, they are finished with a sweet lemony glaze.
Why You'll Love This Blueberry Lemon Scones Recipe
They're surprisingly easy to make, requiring just a handful of ingredients and minimal prep work. They're perfect for a weekend brunch, a delightful afternoon tea treat, or anytime you crave a warm, comforting pastry.
- Easy to Make: This recipe comes together quickly with minimal fuss, making it perfect for beginner bakers or busy mornings.
- Bursting with Flavor: The combination of fresh blueberries and lemon zest creates a delightful balance of sweet, tart, and citrusy flavors.
- Tender and Flaky: The scone dough is light and airy, with a beautiful crumb that melts in your mouth.
Ingredients Overview
This Blueberry Lemon Scones recipe relies on a simple selection of high-quality ingredients that come together to create a bakery-worthy treat:
- All-Purpose Flour: The base of the scone dough, providing structure and a tender crumb.
- Cold Butter: Cold butter creates pockets of air in the dough, leading to those beautiful flaky layers.
- Sugar: Adds a touch of sweetness to balance the tartness of the lemon and blueberries.
- Lemon Zest: The star of the show! Fresh lemon zest infuses the scones with a bright, citrusy flavor.
- Eggs: Binds the dough ingredients together and adds richness.
- Heavy Cream: Adds moisture and richness to the dough, resulting in a tender and flaky texture.
- Blueberries: Fresh blueberries burst with sweet-tart flavor in every bite.
- Optional Lemon Glaze: A simple glaze made with powdered sugar and lemon juice adds a touch of sweetness and a beautiful sheen to the scones.
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How To Make Fresh Blueberry Scones
Making these Blueberry Lemon Scones is a breeze. We'll start by creating whisking the dry ingredients with the lemon zest. Then we'll incorporate cold butter using a pastry cutter or your fingertips to create those delightful flaky layers.
Next, we'll add the wet ingredients and fresh blueberries, before gently shaping the dough and baking the scones to golden perfection.
An optional lemon glaze adds the finishing touch of bright citrusy flavor, but these scones are delectable on their own too!
Cut The Butter Into The Flour
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a rimmed baking sheet with non stick spray, or use a round piece of parchment paper.
- Whisk the dry ingredients and lemon zest all together in a large mixing bowl.
- Cut the butter into the flour, or grate frozen butter and toss to coat.
PRO TIP: Freeze or chill the stick of butter, then grate it the flour mixture. Cold butter is key to these scones staying moist and having a light textured crumb.
Add The Cream
- Continue breaking the grated butter into the flour until it's loose and crumbly. Don't over mix. Make a well in the center.
- Whisk the cream, egg, and vanilla in a small bowl and pour into the center of the flour mixture. Use a spatula to fold together until lightly mixed.
Fold In Blueberries
- Add the blueberries and fold into the dough gently. Tip the dough out onto a floured work surface.
Cut Into Wedges
- Using your hands, gather the dough into a round disc, gently flattening into an 8" wide disk and cut into 6 - 8 wedges.
- Place the blueberry scone wedges on a parchment covered baking sheet and brush the tops with a little cream. You can sprinkle with coarse sugar also if you don't plan to drizzle with icing.
Bake and Then Glaze
- Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 28 minutes or until golden brown.
- When you remove the blueberry scones from the oven, let them cool down before icing with the lemon glaze and transferring to a plate.
Serving Suggestions
This recipe is perfect for a weekend brunch, a light afternoon snack, or even a delightful dessert. So preheat your oven, grab your favorite teacup or coffee cup, and get ready to bake up a batch of these heavenly Blueberry Lemon Scones!
Substitutions and Variations
Here are some substitutions or variations you can make when baking these blueberry lemon scones:
- Frozen Blueberries: Frozen blueberries can be used in place of fresh blueberries. There's no need to thaw them beforehand, but they may release a little more moisture into the dough.
- Lemon Juice: If you don't have fresh lemons, you can substitute 1 teaspoon of lemon juice for the lemon zest.
Tips for Success
- Use cold butter for the flakiest scones.
- Don't overmix the dough. A few lumps are perfectly fine!
- Freshly grated lemon zest is key for the best flavor.
- Don't overcrowd the baking sheet
Equipment
Equipment can have a big impact on how a recipe turns out. Below are some of my favorite pieces of equipment that I use when making this Blueberry Scone recipe.
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- Rimmed Baking Sheet & Cooling Rack
- Parchment Paper Sheets
Storage Options
These Blueberry Lemon Scones are best enjoyed fresh from the oven, but they can be stored for later enjoyment with a few simple tips:
- Store leftover scones in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. The scones will soften slightly over time, but they will still be delicious.
- Scones can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Allow the scones to cool completely, then wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and place them in a freezer-safe bag.
- Thaw frozen scones overnight in the refrigerator before reheating or serving at room temperature.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Not necessarily! While a pastry cutter helps create even-sized butter pieces for optimal flakiness, you can achieve similar results using your fingertips. You can also grate frozen butter into the dry ingredients and toss to coat with flour for an even easier method.
Absolutely! Frozen blueberries work well in this recipe. You don't need to thaw them first, but they may release a little more moisture during baking. You might need to add an extra minute or two to the baking time to compensate.
The scones are done when they are golden brown on the outside and cooked through in the center. You can insert a toothpick into the center of a scone. If it comes out clean, the scones are done.
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Get the Recipe!
Blueberry Lemon Scones
Ingredients
- 2 cup Flour all purpose
- ⅓ cup Granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon Baking powder
- ¾ tsp Salt
- 1 tablespoon Lemon zest
- ½ cup Butter frozen or chilled, and grated
- 1 large Egg
- ⅔ cup Heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1½ cup Blueberries fresh
Lemon Icing (Optional)
- 1 cup Powdered sugar
- 4 tablespoon Lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a rimmed baking sheet with non stick spray, or use a round piece of parchment paper.
- Whisk the dry ingredients and lemon zest all together in a large mixing bowl.2 cup Flour, ⅓ cup Granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon Baking powder, ¾ teaspoon Salt, 1 tablespoon Lemon zest
- Using a box grater, grate the stick of cold or frozen butter into the bowl of mixed dry ingredients. Toss the grated butter and flour together to lightly coat the grated butter with flour.PRO TIP: Freeze or chill the stick of butter, then grate it the flour mixture. Cold butter is key to these scones staying moist and having a light textured crumb.½ cup Butter
- Continue breaking the grated butter into the flour until it's loose and crumbly, for just 1 minute. You will have a coarse mixture of loose flour and flour coated butter bits in the bowl. Don't over mix. Make a well in the center.
- Whisk the cream, egg, and vanilla in a small bowl and pour into the center of the flour mixture. Use a spatula to fold together until lightly mixed.1 large Egg, ⅔ cup Heavy cream, 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- Add the blueberries and fold into the dough gently. Tip the dough out onto a floured work surface.1½ cup Blueberries
- Using your hands, gather the dough into a round disc, gently flattening into an 8" wide disk and cut into 6 - 8 wedges.
- Place the blueberry scone wedges on a parchment covered baking sheet and brush the tops with a little cream. You can sprinkle with coarse sugar also if you don't plan to drizzle with icing.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 28 minutes, or until golden brown.
- When you remove the blueberry scones from the oven, let them cool down before transferring to a plate or drizzling with icing.
Simple Icing
- Mix the powdered sugar and milk together in a small bowl, drizzle on the scones when they have cooled.1 cup Powdered sugar, 4 tablespoon Lemon juice
Notes
- Don't press the dough disc wider than 8" or it will be flatter scones and affect the baking time.
- Be sure to keep the wedges at least 1" apart on the baking sheet so there is room to spread.
- The grated butter does not have to completely mixed with all of the flour. The grating makes the pieces small enough that the heat during baking finishes the blending.
- The trick to having scones with a light crumb and moist center is to handle the dough as little as possible. So each step of the mixing of the flour or wet dough will seem like it is not quite complete. This is actually what you want.
- If using frozen blueberries, do not let them defrost before adding to the scone dough!
