These Lemon Raspberry Scones are flavored with sweet vanilla and lemon zest and are bursting with raspberries!. They’re topped with white chocolate and are the perfect fruity, easy scones recipe for spring and summer.
I’m so excited for you to make these Lemon Raspberry White Chocolate Scones! They’re fresh, rich and buttery and are such a delicious way to start your day. Bonus! As special as they are, they also happen to be super easy to make!
I was inspired to make these recipes during raspberry season. I love eating rasperries as is. There’s also nothing like biting into a soft, buttery scone and getting a taste of raspberry!
If you’re looking for more scones recipes, try my Strawberry Scones, Cranberry White Chocolate Scones, Lemon Lavender Scones.
WHY WE LOVE THIS RECIPE
- There is nothing like a homemade scone for breakfast. They’re just as good if not better than scones from your favorite coffee shop. They also make the best afternoon treat with tea or coffee.
- Theyse scones are tender, rich, and filled with raspberries!
- Made with a simple list of ingredients, I’m willing to bet you have most of these ingredients on hand!
- They’re surprisingly easy to make. You can make these even if you’ve never made scones before. They’re made with baking powder instead of yeast and don’t require a lot of kneading or any chill time.
- You can even prepare them the night before and bake them in the morning!
INGREDIENTS
- All Purpose flour: Measure flour accurately. Scooping flour in a measuring cup into your flour leads to using too much flour. Use a spoon to sprinkle flour into your measuring cup and swipe off excess flour with the back of a knife. Alternatively, you can weigh your flour. 1 cup of flour equals 125 grams.
- Baking Powder: This is what will make our scones rise.
- Unsalted Butter: It’s best to use frozen butter. I also like to grate it. You can chop the butter, but using grated butter makes it easier to incorporate it with the flour without having to mix it too much.
- Strawberries: I prefer making these strawberry scones with fresh strawberries. Wash the strawberries, pat them dry and chop them.
- Heavy Cream: Whole milk or buttermilk can also be used.
- 1 Egg Yolk: Use an egg yolk from a large egg for the dough.
- 1 Egg: For the egg wash.
- Brown Sugar: Use light or brown.
- Coarse sugar: I like to top the scones with turbinado sugar just before baking. This gives the scones a yummy crunchy topping.
SUBSTITUTIONS & VARIATIONS
- Whole milk or buttermilk can also be used in place of heavy cream.
- Instead of brushing the tops of the scones with the beaten egg, brush the scones with heavy cream or milk.
- Granulated sugar can be used in place of the turbinado sugar.
- Feel free to skip the white chocolate drizzle. These scones are delicious as is.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Scones can vary in taste and texture depending on the recipe and method used to make them. They are similar to biscuits, the main differences being that scones have sugar and eggs added. They are somewhere between a biscuit and a muffin.
Yes. You can use fresh or frozen raspberries to make these scones.
If you use frozen berries, there’s no need to thaw them first. Just add them frozen. There is a chance that frozen raspberries will bleed slightly as they’re mixed in. Mine did a little, but I actually liked the streaks of pink they added!
Yes. It’s important to use cold ingredients when making scones. Keeping dough cold helps prevent the scones from over spreading when they bake. After mixing the dough and cutting out the dough, it’s a good idea to chill the shaped scones for about 15 minutes in the fridge before baking them.
EXPERT BAKING TIPS
- Don’t Overwork the Dough: We want a light texture and overworking the dough will result in a dense, heavy texture.
- Cut the Butter into the Dough: Similar to pie dough, you want to work the butter into small, pea sized pieces of butter. A pastry cutter works best for this. If you don’t have one, you can use two forks or your fingertips.
- Keep Your Ingredients Cold: Cold ingredients help keep the butter from melting before it hits the oven. Cold butter will help make our scones nice and flaky. Unlike most recipes which call for room temperature ingredients, you’ll want to make sure to use cold eggs, cold cream, and definitely cold butter.
- Freeze and Grate Your Butter: I know it sounds/feels funny, but I definitely recommend freezing your butter. Just stick it in the freezer the night before or a few hours before making the scones. You can then chop the butter into cubes or grate it using the large holes of a box grater. Place the butter back into the freezer for at least 15 minutes after grating it.
- Chill the Scones Before Baking: Mixing, shaping the dough will cause it to warm up a bit. After shaping and cutting the scones, pop them on a baking sheet and chill for at least 15 minutes before baking.
Those were a lot of tips, but the bottom line is keep your ingredients cold and avoid overworking the dough! Food and Wine has a great article called 7 Tips for Making Better Scones if you are interested in more tips.
STORING AND FREEZING
Room Temperature: Store these scones in an airtight container. Store at room temperature for 1-2 days.
Refrigerator: Store leftover scones in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Freezer: Freeze baked and cooled scones in an airtight for up to 2 months. Defrost it in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
MORE RECIPES YOU WILL LOVE
Lemon Raspberry Scones
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour plus more for work surface
- 3 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter frozen
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons brown sugar light or brown, packed
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- zest of two organic lemons regular non-organic lemons can also be used
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup raspberries fresh or frozen
- 1 egg beaten (for egg wash)
- coarse sugar optional, for sprinkling
FOR THE WHITE CHOCOLATE TOPPING
- 2 1/2 ounces white chocolate chopped (about 1/2 cup)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Grate the frozen butter using a box grater. Return the grated butter to the freezer to stay cold as you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Whisk flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together in a large bowl. Add the grated butter to the flour mixture and combine with your fingertips, two forks, or a pastry cutter until the mixture you have pea sized crumbs.
- In a small bowl, combine the sugars and lemon zest. Use a fork or your fingertips to combine. To the lemon-sugar mixture, add the heavy cream, egg yolk, and vanilla and whisk to combine. Pour the wet ingredients over the flour mixture and stir until slightly til combined then stir the raspberries in until just combined. Do not overmix. Dough shouldn’t be too dry and should be somewhat sticky, but not too sticky. If dry there are some dry spots, add a bit more heavy cream and if it’s too sticky (sticking to your hands a lot), add a little more flour.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Lightly flour your hands. Shape the dough into a circle about 1-1 1/2 inches thick. Aim for a circle between 6 and 8 inches. For triangle shaped scones, use a sharp knife to slice the dough into 8 triangles. Brush tops with egg and sprinkle tops of with granulated or coarse sugar. Refrigerate scones 15 minutes.
- Bake scones for 17-22 minutes or until golden brown around the edges and lightly browned on top.
- Allow scones to cool. Drizzle with melted white chocolate, if desired.
FOR THE WHITE CHOCOLATE TOPPING
- Chop the white chocolate and place it in a bowl. Microwave it for 15 seconds. Give it a stir then microwave it for 15 more seconds. Stir again. If needed, microwave it for 15 more seconds. Drizzle or spread over the cooled scones. Allow the white chocolate to set a few minutes or enjoy right away!
Barbara Briggs Ward
Adore! Love those swirls of white chocolate!
Natalie
So happy to hear that! That white chocolate definitely adds the perfect, most delicious finishing touch 🙂