Scones are a tradition in our family and we have perfected them over the years! This bright version is full of lemon flavor and white chocolate chips. The result is a tender, flakey scone that’s not too sweet and baked to buttery perfection.
The Secret to Perfect Scones is Cold Butter!
Similar to a biscuit, using cold butter is a must when you make scones. Before you get started with this recipe, make sure your butter is cold, not room temperature.
To start, in a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder & salt & whisk well. Using clean hands, work the cold cubed butter into the flour until it is close to a rough sand like texture (a few lumps are okay!). Next, whisk in lemon zest and white chocolate chips to the mixture.
Once the lemon zest and chocolate chips have been whisked in to the flour mixture, mix together the wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Then using a spatula, fold the wet and dry ingredients together in the large bowl. The result should be a ball of dough once fully mixed.
Set the dough aside and line a 13×18 sheet pan with parchment paper (no need to spray with nonstick as the butter in the scones will help them to not stick!). Divide the 2 in half, and form into 2 large rounds, about 3/4 of an inch in height.
Cut the rounds using a sharp knife into 6 pie like pieces, and separate on the baking sheet. Here is where some choices come into play!
- Option 1: For the highest rise of scones, place the sheet pan of raw scones in the freezer uncovered for about 30 minutes. Placing the scones in the freezer before baking does 2 things: 1) it makes the gluten relax a bit resulting in a higher rise, and 2) it freezes the butter so as it bakes, it keeps the scone tender and flakey. When ready to bake, place the sheet pan in a 400 degree oven and bake for 15-20 minutes,
- Option 2: You CAN skip the freezer and go straight to the oven if you are low on time. Flavor wise, you won’t miss out. Texture wise- they’ll still be fine, but maybe not as fluffy as they could be! If skipping the freezer, bake the scones at 375 for 15 minutes, or until lightly browned on the bottom and cooked throughout.
While the scones are baking, I like to use that time to make the glaze. Note that the scones need to be almost fully cooled before adding the glaze, otherwise it will pool off!
Lemon Scone Glaze Ingredients
- Powdered Sugar
- Lemon Zest
- Lemon Juice
- Milk
I wanted a little bit of extra garnish on my scones- so I made some lemon sugar to top. All it is is 2 parts lemon zest, 1 part sugar, and a few drops of lemon juice mixed in to form a lemony, sand like sprinkle texture.
If you love scones, we have a few similar recipes we think you will love:
- Lemon Blueberry Scones
- Lemon Cream Cheese Cake
- English Muffin Bread
- Lemon Zucchini Bread
- Cheddar Chive Savory Scones
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Perfect Lemon Scones
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 8 tbsp cold unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp lemon zest
- 3/4 cup white chocolate chips
Wet Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 1/2 cup milk
Lemon Glaze Ingredients
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp milk
Instructions
- Line a 8x13 baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Whisk well. Add cold cubed butter, and using a fork or clean hands, combine butter into flour mixture until it is a sandy texture (some large lumps are okay). Whisk in lemon zest and white chocolate chips.
- In a separate bowl, mix together wet ingredients.
- Add wet ingredients to flour/butter mixture in large bowl and stir until combined and a dough like texture.
- Separate dough into 2 balls and flatten into rounds roughly 3/4 inch in height. Cut each round into 6 pie like pieces & separate on baking sheet about 1/2 inch apart. Place baking sheet with scones in freezer for 30 minutes prior to baking.
- Bake scones straight from freezer for 15-20 minutes, or until bottoms of scones are lightly brown and cooked throughout.
- While scones are baking, mix glaze in a small bowl. Glaze scones once they have cooled. Serve & enjoy!
Notes
- Option 1: For the highest rise of scones, place the sheet pan of raw scones in the freezer uncovered for about 30 minutes. Placing the scones in the freezer before baking does 2 things: 1) it makes the gluten relax a bit resulting in a higher rise, and 2) it freezes the butter so as it bakes, it keeps the scone tender and flakey. When ready to bake, place the sheet pan in a 400 degree oven and bake for 15-20 minutes,
- Option 2: You CAN skip the freezer and go straight to the oven if you are low on time. Flavor wise, you won't miss out. Texture wise- they'll still be fine, but maybe not as fluffy as they could be! If skipping the freezer, bake the scones at 375 for 15 minutes, or until lightly browned on the bottom and cooked throughout.
Stephanie Iten says
Absolutely delicious!
Thank you for sharing the recipe. My whole family couldn’t get enough.