Photo by (c) kcline photography
This morning I woke up at 7am to make and bake cream scones for a brunch I didn’t even get to go to. I’ll save you the reason why I had to cancel going to brunch and instead give you the recipe to make these “melt in your mouth” light and fluffy cream scones. Perhaps the reason they are so good is because of the high fat content from the ample heavy cream in the recipe. I suppose when you bake anything made of butter and heavy cream it would be hard not to melt in your mouth. I guess I should mention I also made strawberry balsamic vinegar jam last night just for these scones. I’ll be posting I’ve posted a recipe for the jam soon here. Back to the scones though. This recipe is an adapted version from “The New Best Recipe: All-New Edition
Cream Scones Recipe
Servings: 16 small scones
*I made these using a mini-food processor and only processed the dry ingredients and butter half at a time. Otherwise you will have a mess.
Ingredients:
2 cups (9 ounces) All Purpose Flour *I HIGHLY encourage you to weigh the ingredients with a kitchen scale. It really does make a difference. *If you are looking to make these scones gluten-free, please see Jeanne’s Gluten-free version of this recipe.
1 Tbsp baking powder
4 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
4 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 egg slightly beaten
1 tsp. of vanilla
2 Tbl. of sugar for sprinkling on top
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and butter in a food processor. Pulsate everything in 3-second intervals until everything resembles course meal. If doing this by hand, use 2 knives, a pastry blender or your fingers until the mixture resembles course meal.
Transfer everything to a large bowl. Stir in heavy cream, egg, and vanilla mixing the dough by hand until it forms into a uniformed and slightly moistened dough. *You can also use your Kitchenaid with the dough hook on the slowest speed for a few minutes.
On a floured surface, grab enough dough to fit into your hand about the size of a baseball and gently roll it in a ball.
Flatten the ball and until your disk is approx. 3/4″ in height. Press down the outside of the dough circle so the center is slightly taller. Evenly sprinkle sugar on top of each circle.
Cut each circle in quarters. You should have enough dough to make 4 circles and 16 scones.
Bake on a ungreased cookie sheet, or line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Bake for 15 minutes until the bottoms are golden brown. Remove scones from baking sheet and cool on a wire rack. Serve with butter and jam. Enjoy!
*Use this recipe to make Strawberry Shortcakes!
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Wow, your scones look so delicious!! I must try your recipe!
any suggestions on how to make without a food processor? Would a blender work? I think they look lovely!!!
I found a really helpful and effective tip is to freeze the butter and simply great it over the flour mixture. Then, all you have to do is simply lightly toss and coat the flour and tiny butter flakes mixture. So easy and quick! And it ensures you won’t overwork the dough!
http://thekitchenkook.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-best-most-perfect-scone-recipe-ever.html
Nice!! These would go great for breakfast. Maybe lunch and dinner, too.
I love scones, these look divine and dangerous:)
OneShot: You could totally do this in a blender. Just do half the dry ingredients and butter at a time.
Your scones look so tasty! I wish I had some of them in my kitchen right now….yummy!!!
These look amazing! I like how you’ve served them, like little jam sandwiches. Mmm.
YUM! LOVE scones….I never thought of putting jam in the middle – it sounds delish that way!
Never made scone…now you inspired me to do so…great pictures! Look really yummie!
Wow! This look amazing! I just found your blog through tastespotting and I love it! I added it to my sidebar links on my blog, hope that’s alright. Wonderful recipes and photography!
Mmm, I love scones and I can easily picture these melting in my mouth… Especially with that strawberry jam. So when you post the jam recipe I’m off to baking scones! Beautiful pictures by the way
I love scones – and these look beautiful! The strawberry jam looks luscious and I SO appreciate the little sugar used in the recipe! My daughters & I enjoy having tea parties, and this is one recipe I could easily make and treat them with and not have to worry about sugar!!!
The scones look really pretty! And I am sure they are delicious too! Feel so warm and cozy already just by looking at the photos
These scones look delicious! I will definitely try making these… they look perfect for brunch.
I’ve stopped baking with all purpose flour; what’s a good gluten-free flour substitute for your scone recipe? They look delicious, btw!
Alice: Thanks for the gluten-free scone recipe you sent. I will definitely try it, and tell you how they turn out. This is great because I love scones!
Some of us are guilty of going to Starbucks too much (I know I am). And whenever I am going to have a latte, coffee, or what have you I always cave into buying one of those yummy scones. Well, I have now lost my appetite for those because they’re stale and can’t compare to this cream scone recipe! Starbucks scones are very hard, aren’t flaky enough and aren’t warm at all.
I like my scones straight out of the oven, with some room temp. butter and a great heaping tablespoon of Strawberry Balsamic Jam. Yumm!
I agree with Alice on definitely massing the ingredients because baking is all about accuracy. Also, a tip to anyone making this recipe. I made mine two different ways. One in a food processor and one with the two things attached to my arms- yes my hands.
For some reason, using my hands made for an airier and lighter scone versus making it in a food processor.
When I used my hands, I actually chilled the butter for 5 minutes in the freezer along with the bowl that I was going to use to mix everything in. I made the butter cubes about the size of a pea and when I mixed everything in the chilled bowl, I put it back in the freezer for about a minute or two. (I know, this can be a dreadful process, but I am telling you, the colder the butter, the better the scone will come out), then working quickly I formed the shapes of the scones, placed them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment and chilled them in the freezer for 2 minutes, just so that they were cold. Then I popped everything in the oven, and I was rewarded with light and very tasty scones.
This morning, I also decided that I would add some strawberries to my scones and they turned out super yummy!
Alice, I have to say that you are the queen of the best cream scones hands on!
Great recipe- it is a must try. So, what are you all waiting for? Go try it!
Same here. You just have to be sure to work fast and not overwork the dough. If you’re unsure, just be safe and stop mixing. And out comes really light, fluffy scones!
http://thekitchenkook.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-best-most-perfect-scone-recipe-ever.html
Just ran across your blog for the first time last night and have been browsing ever since. Great site! I’ve been looking for a good scone recipe ever since I had a peach scone at a farmer’s market a couple of years ago. Typical scones are far too dense and bland for my tastes but this peach scone was light and sweet… just like this recipe seems to achieve. I’m excited to make them soon. One question, do you think that fruit chunks could be added to this or would you have to adjust the recipe a little? I’d love to recreate the scone that I had at that farmer’s market someday.
Hi Heather,
Yes you could definitely add fruit chunks in there. I’ve made this with dried cranberries and blueberries. Just gently fold them in there and you should be good to go!
Alice
Just a follow-up… I made these scones this morning and they are absolutely AMAZING! I didn’t add fruit this time but I plan to try that next time. I’m also thinking about using this dough as a cobbler dough and seeing how that works out. Thanks for your awesome blog and recipes!
Fabulous! Best scones I’ve ever made. Made them for the family for Valentines breakfast. did everything in the kitchenaid mixer. sprinkled them with red sugar and cut them out with a heart shaped cookie cutter. I also didn’t have any heavy cream on hand but used 1/2 and 1/2 instead . Still was divine! thanks for the recipe.
I made the cream scone recipe and they were good! I would like to add
a light glazing for the top of these. Any suggestions?
Hi Debbie,
A simple glaze would be powdered sugar mixed in with a little milk. You could brush it on each scone. For an added variation, you could flavor the glaze with lemon zest and juice, ginger, a pinch of cinnamon, or anything else you want. Hope this helps.
Alice
These just came out of the oven and I couldn’t resist trying one immediately…..wow, it was delicious! Though I’ve enjoyed many a scone, this is my first time making them and I foresee a future full of scones! Thank you for sharing this recipe, so happy I stumbled upon it
I made these last Sunday morning- minus the egg due to my 2 year old’s egg allergy (I substituted 1tsp baking powder, 1 Tbsp cream and 1 Tbsp vinegar) and they were so good! It’s a nice alternative since there are very few breakfast foods that don’t have eggs in them!
Also, Cooks Illustrated has an alternative version to this recipe without eggs – which is less cakey and more traditional. I prefer this version (and I think it’s even the original; this one is the adaptation) because it makes super flaky, tender, buttery scones!
http://thekitchenkook.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-best-most-perfect-scone-recipe-ever.html
So what’s the deal with unsalted butter??? Can you really taste the difference?
I tried this recipe this morning. And boy o boy….it’s really good. It really melts in your mouth. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
I have never made a scone I love … until now. Thanks so much for the recipe! It’s a great base for any flavor scone, and I am loving the batch I just snatched out of the oven
Just wanted to let you know I loved this post, made me think.
i made these scones for breakfast this morning, they were delicious! great way to start the day
Made these this morning and the family loved it. Served it with sweetened whipped cream and mascerated strawberries. Subsituted the one egg with ground flax/water because one of my kiddos is allergic, and it still turned out delicious! Sprinkled tops with turbinado sugar, so pretty! Had two leftover and my kiddo devoured it this evening and it was still moist! Awesome recipe, thank you!
hi! do you think i could substitize cake flour for all purpose?
cake is all i have on hand at the moment
your scones look delicious by the way
Hi Cecilia,
Yes.. cake flour works. You’ll probably end up with a very tender scone!
For those of us who live alone and probably shouldn’t really eat an entire batch of scones, do you have any idea how well the un-baked scones would freeze?
I’ve become full-on addicted to this scone recipe and have enjoyed making mass amounts with add-ins (jalapeno cheddar, chocolate chunk, berry jam, etc). They freeze REALLY well and makes it so I can just spend a day making lots and lots of scones to enjoy in the future.
First I flash freeze them for about 5-10 minutes and then put them in a Ziploc freezer bag. They keep indefinitely and I just add 5 extra minutes to the bake time. So much better that way… A freshly baked scone every time!
I finally made these the other day…..theyw ere everything I hoped they’d be & then some. So delicious!
Thank you! And I love that you linked to an adapted GF version too. The baked scones freeze beautifully. I put a couple in sandwich baggies and then put them into a gallon sized freezer bag. So all you have to do is grab a bag and leave for work. Should be defrosted by the time you get to work. The balsamic jam is lovely too! I’m going to attempt to add strawberries and white chocolate chips in my next batch.
Great recipe! Worked the first time I tried, despite my being a bit hopeless at baking, were lovely with coffee.
I just said this in a comment I left in response to someone’s question above, but I had to come here and say it again: I am addicted to this recipe. It makes such a wonderful base for experiments. My husband is now in love with jalapeno cheddar scones, and it gives me yet another reason to buy all the fresh fruit at Farmer’s Market I want.
Thank you!
So glad you like it Kim. This scone recipe makes an incredible base, doesn’t it?
Treasure of a recipe. The best scone I’ve ever made & think I’ve ever tasted. Thank you for sharing this jewel with all of us. Mine turned out so light and flakey, like no other I’ve ever had. I did the mini food processor method and afterwards, I put the blended flour/butter mixture back in the freezer for about 7-10 mins before adding the wet ingredients. One of my tricks I use when I make pie crusts for that extra flakiness. The only deviation was that I; a) added a teaspoon of grated lemon rind. b) added a little extra vanilla & c) dusted the tops with extra fine granulated sugar before baking. I made a variation of your yummy balsamic sauce/jam with strawberriees, blueberries and a peach (next time I’ll put the blueberrries in the scone & not in the sauce), but it still turned out.
The possibilities are endless with this exquisite recipe. This one rocked my world which says a lot since I’m a picky baker with a picky pallet. They even taste as good the next day!!!
So true. These are definitely the BEST, most tender, and melt-in-your-mouth scones ever!
http://thekitchenkook.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-best-most-perfect-scone-recipe-ever.html
Hi,
I really want to try your recipe. Sounds very delicious.
I live in Scandinavia and all the cups and spoons in your recipe are a bit confusing. A metric conversion (grams) would help me out a lot.
Thanks
Anders
Just made these tonight. They’re so delicious! Best scones I’ve ever had. I love how they’re flaky and chewy and crispy and buttery and sweet all at once. Thanks for sharing!
I’ve been making these regularly since discovering the recipe two months ago. They are amazing and indeed the Best! I’ve tried them with various substitutions and they are definitely best using full heavy cream and real unsalted butter. I keep all freeze-able ingredients in the freezer (including the butter, pre-cut into 1 Tablespoon pats) and just throw together half a recipe in my junior sized food processor in less than 10 minutes. My son will devour them in moments. They are now a prized item in my repertoire. Thank you so very very much!
I made these for breakfast this morning. They were fantastic! They were very crumbly, though. Any idea what I might have done wrong?
I prefer to omit the step of flouring and rolling.. I just drop small amounts of dough onto baking sheet. Just run a knife through them to split when your ready to top them with Devon cream and lemon curd
Can I do the entire batch in my full-size food processor?
Well, what can I say.. I was looking for a recipe with a difference, just started cooking again…. So, about to give them a bash, if they turnout half as good as the photos I’ll be your biggest fan….. Must admit, my favourite sweet, jam, strawberry and cream scones… What could be better?
Chris
I’ve been using this recipe for over a year and it’s been wonderful.
I’ve been trying to years to replicate the scones I had in small cafe in Syndey, Australia. These are the exact recipe!
Also the recipe is very forgiving.
I’ve had to use bread flour instead of all purpose and it worked okay. They were crustier than normal and I wouldn’t do it all the time, but in a pinch it was okay.
I’ve used whole milk and doubled the butter to compensate and they’ve turned out as great as normal.
I’ve accidentally doubled the butter (but not doubled anything else) and they were very tender and super luscious and wonderful.
This is a fantastic recipe.
I love this recipe! It’s my favorite!! I’m so used to rock-hard chewy, tough, dry, BLAND scones, but finally, these changed my life!! Finally, a scone that’s buttery, tender, soft, and delicate. Mmm. Literally the best thing that I’ve made.
I added some cinnamon chips and cinnamon sugar in mine!
http://thekitchenkook.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-best-most-perfect-scone-recipe-ever.html
Your scones look amazing and I’m so excited to try this recipe! I’ve looked at the original ATK recipe and noticed that this recipe is the cakey variation which you’ve modified a bit more. I was wondering why this version makes it better. In particular, why did you choose to add the extra 1 Tbsp of sugar and lower the temperature from 425 to 400 degrees? Also, why did you alter the method of using a food processor and change it from pulsing the dry ingredients separately first and then pulsing it with the butter to the one in your directions? Thanks.
I see you didn’t get a reply from the cook, so here’s my opinion for what it’s worth: I don’t see any way to improve on the Cooks Illustrated Best Recipe cookbook for real English cream scones. Adding an egg makes it more “cakey,” and it loses the English scone texture.
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