Gluten Free Scones
As a early 2000’s kid who was heavily exposed to Starbucks thanks to my parents caffiene consumption, my go to order was a hot chocolate and a chocolate chip scone. Cut to 2023 and both options are out the window…. or are they?
Well the chocolate is but the SCONES ARE IN! I had been thinking about the petite vanilla bean scones at Starbucks specifically as I crafted this recipe as I remembered they had their own very unique texture. How could I made something that could take me back? I had to settle on a flavor, Blueberry Lemon it is then, I thought. AMAZING CHOICE, but now to make it gluten free.
Turning to my trusty Cup to Cup gluten free flour and investigating what it should really look like, I began adapting my recipe. This one is an early morning, or a night before breakfast prep bake. Unfortunately, this bake really highlighted the wiggle room that traditional baking gives us with wheat flour. The hydration of your dough is pretty critical to get the right texture and structure of the scone. I will make specific notes to this in the recipe’s directions, however, this recipe will require a little bit of extra time and attention. (The two best ingredients!) Better yet? I’ve adapted this recipe to a stand mixer for confidence, but you can easily do this by hand!
One other condition to note is that ALL of the ingriedients, unless otherwise noted in the ingredients and recipe, are ROOM TEMPERATURE.
In the next ten steps, you’ll have perfect GLUTEN FREE scones!
Blueberry Lemon Scones
(Variations available below)
Scone Ingredients
2 cups Cup to Cup Gluten Free Flour (may use up to an additional 1 cup of flour for dusting/adjustments)
⅓ cup granulated sugar (white or golden)
½ tsp Salt
1 tbsp baking powder
½ cup (or 1 stick) Unsalted Butter (grated, frozen)
½ cup cream or whole milk (cold from the fridge)
1 large egg (cold from the fridge)
1 cup Fillings (1 cup frozen blueberries, 1tbsp lemon juice, 1tsp lemon zest)
Icing Ingredients
¼ cup Lemon Juice
2 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp lemon zest
Directions
In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the greater frozen butter to the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Turn the speed to 5 (increasing to six as it comes together), and mix until stiff frosting consistency (creamed). Every minute or so, scrape down the bowl and the paddle attachment. You should do this at least three or four times in this process.
Add egg and milk/cream. Mix on low speed (stir to 2), until combined into a tacky batter. Scrape down the paddle and the bowl and combine the mix into a ball-like mass at the bottom of the bowl. Dust the top of the dough lightly and then cover the bowl with plastic wrap.
Refrigerate for at least an hour; can go up to overnight, perfect for a night-before prep for a morning treat!
After resting the dough, add the fillings (lemon juice, lemon zest, frozen blueberries) , and mix gently. Add additional flour if needed to maintain consistency.
Transfer the dough to a parchment lined baking sheet. Dust the top of the dough lightly with flour. Place a second parchment paper on top top the dough and press down on the dough, then using a rolling pin, flatten into a 9 to 11 inch circle. The dough should be about 2 inches to 2.5 inches thick. Chill for 15 minutes with the parchment paper on, or until the oven is preheated.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
When the oven is preheated, remove the top parchment paper. Using a long sharp knife, make four long cuts on the dough, so that you have 8 scones; wiping the blade each time. Make sure to wiggle your knife side to side before you pull it out of the dough so there is a little bit of space between each of the scones. Ideally, each scone should be ¼ of an inch apart from its neighbors.
Spacing and dough structure prior to brushing with cream and baking. Shows lemon poppyseed recipe variation.
8. Brush the top of the scones with milk (for lightly tan scones) or cream (for slightly darker scones) and then sprinkle the tops with golden sugar (white is okay, golden adds more flavor).
9. Place the scones in the oven and bake for 22 minutes and 30 seconds, rotating the tray halfway through.
If your dough is on the stickier side it can take up to 25 minutes to bake.
If your dough is on the drier side (likely because you used non-wet fillings), these can bake a quickly as 20 minutes.
If your dough is browning too quickly for your liking, it is okay to cover with foil, you can even reduce the heat to 375 in this instance.
10. Remove from the oven, let cool for 10 minutes, drizzle with icing, and serve.
Blueberries not your jam? Totally understand, and that's why I have recipe variations! Scones are so versatile, and dare I say, easier than cupcakes? Use your imagination, and try to keep your filling ingredients to under a cup, for maximum success. Hmmm… rainbow unicorn scones anyone?
I even topped my Lemon Poppyseed Scones with Sparkling Sugar and made a lemon icing. Here they are out of the oven!
Baked Lemon Poppy Seed Recipe Variation
So, how were your scones? Drop a picture in the comments below, and any variations you have created!
