Authentic Scottish Scones Recipe-Soft and Crumbly Tea Scones (2024)

Published: Mar 30, 2011 · Modified: Feb 29, 2024

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This authentic Scottish Scones recipe is super easy to make and so flaky. Soft and crumbly, these delicate scones go wonderfully with a hot cup of tea or strong caffe’ latte.

A lazy Saturday morning deserves a scone fresh out of the oven slathered with your favorite jam. Any morning deserves a scone fresh out of the oven!

Authentic Scottish Scones recipe

I usually make pancakes or waffles on the weekend. My family recently has been requesting scones. I have been making scones over the years for the kids with different kind of chips (butterscotch, chocolate, white chocolate) and with fruits. I never make them with just freshly grated lemon zest.

I mentioned recently I’ve been finally catching up on recipes I wanted to try from Molly Wizenberg’s A Homemade Life. This was one of the recipes in the book I marked to try and it is a definite keeper!

Authentic Scottish Scones Recipe-Soft and Crumbly Tea Scones (2)

What is a good scone?

My brother came over the other day and he was asking me what makes a really good, or rather, great scone? He asked how should the texture be? Hard? Soft? So I explained the texture should be crumbly and soft. Definitely it should not be tough and the less you work the dough, the more delicate your scone will be!

The tangy zest of the lemon mixed with the sweetness of the strawberry jam is exquisite. Delicate scones go wonderfully with a hot cup of tea or strong caffe’ latte (that’s the way I like them.

Scottish Scones
slightly adapted from Orangette

½ c milk (I used low-fat. You can use even heavy whipping cream if you like)
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
zest of one lemon
½ stick (2 ounces) unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
3 Tbs sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a small bowl, whisk together the milk and the egg and then set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt.

Authentic Scottish Scones Recipe-Soft and Crumbly Tea Scones (3)

Rub the butter into the flour mixture, working until you have no lumps bigger than a pea. Add the sugar and toss to mix. Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Bring dough together gently with a wooden spoon.

Authentic Scottish Scones Recipe-Soft and Crumbly Tea Scones (4)

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured counter and knead it no more than 12 times. [Apparently, twelve is the magic number here; surpass it at your own risk.] Pat dough into a round approximately 1-inch thick, and cut into 8 wedges. Place on an ungreased baking sheet or a Silpat.

Authentic Scottish Scones Recipe-Soft and Crumbly Tea Scones (5)

Using a pastry brush, brush milk onto the wedges.

Bake for approximately 20-25 minutes, or until golden. Cool on a rack and serve with your favorite jam.

If you want to see some pretty scones with a sweet glaze, check out my darling friend Lindsey's delicious scones! Here are links to my Sour Cherry Scones with White Chocolate Chips and my Butterscotch Chip Scones. The Butterscotch Drop Scones are dangerous. That’s all I have to say.

My in-laws have been enjoying this wonderful Florida weather. We have been too! The intense humidity and days of temperature over 100 degrees are around the corner for us. This gorgeous sailboat passed in front of our view on one of her recent visits to the beach. I see them so often that I forget their beauty.

I take for granted the splendid colors of our ocean. I neglect to cherish simple images such as this as I’m sure my in-laws do the same with the beauty that surrounds them in Italy. I guess your eyes are no longer intrigued with what is common.

I smile every time I hear them say, “Che bello!” How beautiful. Yes, it is beautiful. I’m looking at the places I see every day with new eyes thanks to my in-laws. I appreciate my life a little bit more each day.

My mother-in-law was fascinated with these trees at the park the other day. She kept filming them and photographing them. The same spot, over and over again.

Authentic Scottish Scones Recipe-Soft and Crumbly Tea Scones (7)

Can you think of somewhere in your city or town that you have taken for granted? Something simple and beautiful. Something that is unique and special? Take me to your city! Tell me all about it!

Thank you for stopping by and for your awesome comments!! I promise to post something I’ve recently made with Teresa (my mother-in-law). She moves so fast when she cooks it is difficult to photograph her!

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Authentic Scottish Scones

This authentic Scottish Scones recipe is so easy to make and so flaky. Soft and crumbly, these delicate scones go wonderfully with a hot cup of tea or strong caffe’ latte.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time25 minutes mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: English

Keyword: Scones, tea time

Servings: 8 scones

Calories: 149kcal

Author: Lora

Ingredients

½ cup milk you could use almond, oat or coconut milk
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
zest of one lemon
½ stick 2 ounces unsalted butter, cubed and chilled (use vegan butter sticks if you like)
3 Tbs sugar

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a small bowl, whisk together the milk and the egg and then set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt.
Rub the butter into the flour mixture, working until you have no lumps bigger than a pea. Add the sugar and toss to mix. Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Bring dough together gently with a wooden spoon.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured counter and knead it no more than 12 times. [Apparently, twelve is the magic number here; surpass it at your own risk.] Pat dough into a round approximately 1-inch thick, and cut into 8 wedges. Place on an ungreased baking sheet or a Silpat.
Using a pastry brush, brush milk onto the wedges.
Bake for approximately 20-25 minutes, or until golden. Cool on a rack and serve with your favorite jam.

Nutrition Disclaimer

Please keep in mind that the nutritional information presented below is an approximation and may vary depending on the exact ingredients used.

Nutrition

Tried this recipe?Mention @savoringitaly or tag #savoringitaly!

Authentic Scottish Scones Recipe-Soft and Crumbly Tea Scones (2024)

FAQs

What makes scones crumbly? ›

The less you knead the mix, the less the gluten will tighten up – which means your scones will stay loose and crumbly, rather than tight and springy. Make sure you sieve the flour and baking powder into your bowl. This means that the two will be well mixed together, which gives you a better chance of an even rise.

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What is the difference between Scottish and English scones? ›

British scones are usually lightly sweetned and contain fruit like currants or berries. Scottish scones are often closer to a biscuit and are made with buttermilk, though some Scottish grandmothers will swear you should only use sour milk.

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Why are my scones not flaky? ›

Handle scone dough gently: “Overmixing leads to too much gluten development, which leads to tough, dense scones, instead of flaky, moist ones,” says Bethany. Once you've added the liquid in your recipe, mix the dough gently until just combined — and no more.

Do they have scones in Scotland? ›

Although the English eat scones mainly at teatime, the Scots eat them at almost any time: with midmorning coffee, with soup and salad at lunch, at afternoon tea or high tea, and even with a glass of wine at the co*cktail hour.

Learn More Now ›

What to avoid when making scones? ›

5 Mistakes to Avoid When Baking Scones

Using anything but cold ingredients. The secret to the flakiest scones is to start with cold ingredients — cold butter, cold eggs, and cold cream. ...
Only using all-purpose flour. ...
Overmixing the dough. ...
Not chilling the dough before baking. ...
Baking them ahead of time.

May 1, 2019

Keep Reading ›

What do Scots call scones? ›

In Scotland and Ulster, savoury varieties of scone include soda scones, also known as soda farls, sour dough scones known as soor dook scones made with sour milk, and potato scones, normally known as tattie scones, which resemble small, thin savoury pancakes made with potato flour.

Read On ›

What is a scone in Scotland? ›

1. A large round cake of wheat or barley flour baked on an iron plate or Girdle and gen. cut across into three-cornered pieces also called scones (Sc. 1710 T. Ruddiman Gl.

Discover More Details ›

Are scones supposed to be crumbly? ›

Tender, yes, but sturdy enough to support or be dragged through gravy, a runny egg yolk, or a generous serving of maple syrup. A scone should not flake like a biscuit. It can have layers of course, but they should err on the side of crumbly.

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Are scones supposed to be dry and crumbly? ›

Scones are typically moist but crumbly, sort of like corn bread or Mexican wedding cookies. In my opinion, a scone should be light and flaky, not moist, but not dry either. The best result comes from using cold butter and cooling your dough in the fridge until just before sliding into a preheated oven.

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What is the best flour for scones? ›

The secret is using cake flour instead of all-purpose flour. It's lower in protein and makes for ultra-tender scones. If you don't have any on hand, you can easily make your own using all-purpose flour and cornstarch (see the FAQs below). For a kid-friendly twist, don't miss my chocolate chip scones.

What do you eat with Scottish scones? ›

As well as being a peerless accompaniment to a fry-up, they are delicious hot with melted butter, or cold and blini-style with smoked fish and cream cheese. Proper Scots even like them scone-style with jam and a cup of strong tea.

Get More Info Here ›

What happened at scone in Scotland? ›

At Scone in 1249, the seven year-old Alexander III became the first Scottish king to be crowned, rather than merely enthroned. And in 1329, a Papal Bull granted Robert the Bruce's son, David II, the right to be anointed with sacred oil as part of the crowning ceremony.

Are scones Irish or Scottish? ›

Scones are traditionally Irish, Scottish, and English foods. However, nobody knows which of these countries invented the baked food. As far as history can trace back, Scones probably originate from Scotland. Yes, the first print reference dates back to 1513 and is from a Scottish poet.

What to do if scones are too crumbly? ›

If you're using frozen fruit, don't thaw it out before you add it into your mixture, but do of course break apart the frozen chunks of fruit into smaller pieces. Add more buttermilk if the dough is too crumbly: If the dough is so dry that some of the flour won't stick, add a bit more buttermilk or water.

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How crumbly should scone dough be? ›

Work the butter into the flour gently but thoroughly with your hands or a pastry blender. For flakier scones, flatten the chunks with your fingers as you go. The finished mixture should be unevenly crumbly, with some of the butter remaining in larger flattened piece.

Get More Info ›