Ever wonder how coffee shops get those perfectly flakey and tender scones with that delicious caramelized sugar on top? Well, after hundreds of scones baked and taste-tested, we’ve got the secrets to the perfect scone. These blueberry orange scones are a perfect example of how to create an ideal scone with traditional flavors and that wonderful sugar topping that we all crave.
Scones are meant to have crisp, browned edges, with soft and flakey interiors. They should be a little cakey yet still crumbly. It’s a hard texture to perfect, but it’s what makes scones so unique when compared to other baked goods. It’s also part of what makes them so irresistible.
At Plum Deluxe we have been making scones for a good long while. Some of our favorites include these maple scones, savory cheese scones, and these amazing carrot cake scones. After hundreds of recipes we have a few tips that will help you achieve the perfect scone.
- Always use cold butter, and cut it in with a pastry cutter or by hand. This ensures that the butter crumbles and spreads throughout the flour mixture before the wet ingredients are added.
- Don’t overmix the dough. As soon as it begins to cling into a ball, begin to form it into its final product. Overworking the dough will cause it to come out dense.
- Be sure the oven is preheated completely before adding the scones. This will ensure the crisp outside.
- Always brush the tops with something: milk, buttermilk, cream, or egg wash. This helps to brown up the tops and create that hard crust.
- When in question, err on the side of less baked. An overbaked scone becomes very dry and crumbly.
The blueberry orange scones in this recipe use all of the tips listed above to create a perfect scone. Incorporating orange zest creates an underlying citrus flavor that is broken up with bursts of moisture that come from the blueberries. To finish them off we topped them with a cinnamon brown sugar mixture. The sugar mixture melts just slightly while baking, making a sweetened crispy-yet-crumbly crust on top. All together it makes for an amazingly addictive scone.
Pair your scones with our Brunch in Paris black tea for a dessert, or try with Easy to Be green tea for a relaxing afternoon snack.
Blueberry Orange Scones with Cinnamon and Sugar Topping
Ingredients:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 8 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
- Zest from 1 orange
- 3/4 cup buttermilk plus 1 tablespoon
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt, mixing well.
Add the cubed butter and use your hands or a pastry cutter to mix until crumbly. With a spoon, stir in the orange zest.
In a small bowl, beat together the buttermilk and egg until well combined. Gently stir this mixture into the flour mixture.
Fold in the blueberries.
Place dough onto a floured surface and with your hands shape into a 10-inch round circle. Cut the dough into 8 wedges and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl until well blended. Use the last tablespoon of buttermilk to brush the tops of the scones. Sprinkle the sugar mixture on top.
Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from heat and let cool slightly before serving.
