Scones are my bakery treat of choice to have with coffee. Why? Because they’re not too sweet, they’re not too rich, and they’re not too heavy. Especially when they’re dotted with juicy blueberries and topped with a bright and zesty lemon glaze. Homemade scones are especially great because they’re incredibly easy, super inexpensive, and they freeze really well, so you can keep them in the freezer to reheat one at a time when that craving hits. And of alllll the flavors of scones, these Lemon Blueberry Scones are by far my favorite!
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What is a Scone, Anyway?
It’s important to note that the word “scone” can mean different things depending on where you are in the world. Classic British scones are simple, with not a lot of fat or sugar, they’re often round, and are served with clotted cream and jam. In the U.S., scones are decidedly more dessert-like with a crust of sugar on top or a drizzle of glaze, they’re served with coffee or breakfast and are often triangular in shape. But the bones are the same. It’s a deliciously tender and flakey baked good leavened with baking soda or baking powder, rather than yeast. They’re quite similar to what we call a biscuit in the U.S., although scones are usually a little more dense and less rich.
This Lemon Blueberry Scone Recipe is for a U.S.-style scone. It’s sweet, although not as sweet as a muffin or cupcake, triangular in shape, and deliciously crumbly. It’s the perfect side for a hot cup of coffee!
If you’d like to learn more about British-style scones, try this recipe for Authentic British Scones from Curious Cuisinière. She does a great job breaking down the difference between the two types of scones.
Fresh Lemon is a Must
While I use bottled lemon juice for a lot of recipes, this is one where you definitely want to use fresh lemon. The lemon zest is where most of the lemon flavor comes from in the scones, while the juice just provides tartness to the icing.
How to Freeze Lemon Blueberry Scones
As I mentioned in the intro, I love to keep a batch of these Lemon Blueberry Scones in the freezer. To freeze the scones, first make sure they are fully cooled to room temperature (which they should be before adding the glaze, anyway). You can either freeze them without the glaze, or glaze them and wait about 30 minutes for the glaze to dry slightly. Then just place them in a gallon-sized freezer bag and toss in the freezer. The glaze will absorb a little moisture while in the freezer, but they’re still quite tasty!
To thaw the frozen lemon blueberry scones, either let them sit out at room temperature for about 30 minutes, or microwave for about 30 seconds straight from the freezer.
Lemon Blueberry Scones
Servings 8Ingredients
- 1 lemon ($0.60)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour ($0.19)
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar ($0.02)
- 2 tsp baking powder ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 6 Tbsp cold butter* ($0.66)
- 1/2 cup blueberries, frozen or fresh ($0.89)
- ¼ cup milk ($0.10)
- 2 large eggs ($0.47)
- 1 cup powdered sugar ($0.07)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Zest and juice the lemon. You'll need about 1 tsp lemon zest for the dough and 2 Tbsp lemon juice for the glaze.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, and lemon zest in a large bowl. Stir until they are very well combined.
- Grate the butter into the flour mixture and stir until the butter is well incorporated and no large lumps remain.*
- Add the blueberries to the flour mixture and stir to combine (no need to thaw first, if frozen).
- Whisk together the milk and eggs, then pour it into the bowl with the flour and bluberries. Stir everything together until it forms a cohesive ball of dough, with no dry flour remaining on the bottom of the bowl. If the dough is too dry to come together into a single ball of dough, add a splash more milk (1 Tbsp or so) until it comes together.
- Press the dough out into a flat 8-inch diameter circle. Cut the circle into eight wedges. Place the cut scones on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Bake the scones in the preheated 425ºF oven for 15-17 minutes, or until they are golden brown. Transfer the baked scones to a wire rack to cool.
- Allow the scones to cool completely, then combine 1 cup powdered sugar with 2 Tbsp lemon juice until it forms a thick glaze. Drizzle the glaze over the cooled scones, then enjoy!
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Enamelware Sheet Pan
- Parchment Paper
- Measuring Cups Spoons
Notes
Nutrition
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Love lemon and blueberry together? Me too! Try these other great lemon blueberry desserts: Blueberry Lemon Curd Shortcakes, Lemon Blueberry Cornbread Skillet, or Lemon Blueberry Cream Cheese Galette.
How to Make Lemon Blueberry Scones From Scratch – Step By Step Photos
Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Zest and juice the lemon. You’ll need 1 tsp zest, and about 2 Tbsp juice. The zest will be used in the scone dough, the juice will be used later for the glaze. Combine 2 cups all-purpose flour, 2 Tbsp sugar, 2 tsp baking powder, ½ tsp salt, and 1 tsp lemon zest in a bowl. Stir until very well combined.
Grate 6 Tbsp cold butter into the bowl with the flour mixture. Stir everything together until the butter is very well mixed into the flour and no large clumps remain.
Stir ½ cup frozen blueberries into the flour mixture. Do not thaw the blueberries first.
Whisk together ¼ cup milk and 2 large eggs
Then pour the egg mixture into the bowl with the flour and blueberries.
Stir everything together until it forms a stiff dough. There should be no more dry flour left on the bottom of the bowl. If it’s too dry and won’t stick together in a cohesive ball or there is a lot of flour left on the bottom of the bowl, add a small amount of milk (maybe 1 Tbsp) to bring the dough together.
Press the blueberry scone dough out into an 8″ diameter circle, then cut it into eight wedges.
Place the cut scones on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake the scones in the fully preheated 425ºF oven for 15-17 minutes, or until they are golden brown. Transfer the scones to a wire cooling rack to cool.
Allow the scones to fully cool before making the glaze. Once ready, stir together 1 cup powdered sugar and 2 Tbsp lemon juice until it forms a thick glaze.
Drizzle the lemon glaze over the blueberry scones. If the scones are still hot or warm when you try to glaze them, the glaze will simply melt off, so make sure the scones are cool first!
Serve your delicious, homemade lemon blueberry scones with a hot cup of coffee and enjoy the day!
These were so good! I substituted Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten free flour, almond milk and Swerve sweetener. I had to add a few more tablespoons of almond milk, since gluten free flour tends to be dry. I also upped the blueberries to about 3/4 cup. They were so moist and flavorful. And oddly enough, they tasted even better after sitting in a Tupperware container for several hours. Best scones I’ve ever had or made.
The stickiness! The berries! Still in the oven but already know this recipe would be perfect to make with a child just learning. Can’t wait until mine is old enough to bake with me:)
Hi Beth,
I love your site! Thank you so much for all if your wonderful recipes. I really want to try these but I worry about not being able to eat them all before they start to get stale. Any recommendations on how well they freeze and how best to thaw them?
Thanks!!
Yes, baked goods freeze very well in fact! They thaw pretty quickly on the counter top because of the low moisture level, or they can be microwaved for 10-15 seconds. Just make sure to let them completely cool and wrap them well before freezing.
Fantastic! Thank you so much!
Baked these for breakfast tomorrow morning and they turned out great! I skipped the icing because I didn’t want them too sweet. My only other thing is I felt like a full cup of blueberries would be better instead of a half cup to make the blueberry-to-scone ratio higher… but I think that’s a matter of personal preference.
I made these with water instead of milk thanks to a midnight-cereal-snacker, but they turned out GREAT! I made them as part of a Christmas breakfast for a mom who could live on lemons and blueberries alone. Terrific!
Made these scones with fresh blueberries and they were awesome! Perfect for thanksgiving dessert! In case anyone is curious I used soymilk instead of milk and it still came out perfectly.
These look delicious. I’m gonna try this recipe with cranberries and orange as I don’t have blueberries on hand.
I did this and they turned out delicious!
I made these this morning with whole wheat bread flour. I remembered after I started I only had 1 egg and I was doubling it, I found a site that suggested flax seed mixed with water as an egg substitute (1 Tbsp flax in 3 Tbsp water) and I used that. I also used mixed frozen fruit, blueberries, cherries, blackberries and pomegranate. They turned out great, they look hearty but they still have that flaky buttery cakey texture. My 3 year old and 1 year old each ate 2 for breakfast, the rest came to work for sharing. I have made several of your recipes and love all of them. I have never made scones before. Thanks so much!
Hi Beth!
These turned out beautifully, even though I was a bit suss of the texture before they went into the oven- like Laura, I live in NZ and eggs arent usually included in scones! despite having a perfect texture they turned out incredibly bitter, and I just cant figure out why.. could it have been me grating the lemon rind too much? I was sure to use only the yellow and not grate the white inner layer, maybe a weird lemon? I also had raspberries with blueberries, i wonder if that could have been it? lol Im completely stumped!
Yes, it could have been both the lemon and the raspberries. Raspberries are definitely more sour than blueberries, so without more sugar, they may have amplified the bitterness of the lemon. Also, baking powder is quite bitter, so is it possible that the baking powder was measured incorrectly?
Thanks for your response! I think il give it another go this weekend sans raspberries and triple check my baking powder measurement! Im determined to get them right and do them justice haha
Our blueberries went moldy so I replaced the blueberries in the recipe for sliced strawberries… Delicious. Shared them with my sister and mother.
I actually found these through your chai scone post – I knew instantly that I needed to make them. I had to sub a few ingredients based on what I had on hand (honey instead of sugar, half raspberries/half blueberries, and vanilla instead of lemon zest – used bottled lemon juice for the glaze). Which I know makes them quite different from this recipe…this is really a nod to your base scone recipe. But Oh Golly, are these delicious. I can’t stop eating them! I also made them into mini scones like your chai recipe for easier snacking :D (even the man-friend who hates “stones” as he calls them, loves them!)
P.S. I LOVE your blog. I have been cooking your recipes for quite some time now and you’ve really got talent. Thank you!
This is a little late, considering how long I’ve been referencing this recipe, but thanks for sharing! Different ovens definitely need a little temperature tweaking, but I have yet to have a batch turn out ‘bad.’
Hi Beth! I really love your website-especially the baked oatmeal recipes, YUM! But I’m afraid I’m going to have to be snooty for a moment. Traditional scone recipes do not include eggs. This is coming from an Australian, and we love our scones! The eggs will give the scone a heavier, more cakey texture, whereas without gives a more flakey, sconey(?) texture. Not only that, it saves even more money! Give it a try & see what you think.
I do like your idea of cutting them into wedges, soo much easier than using a cutter, then gathering the scraps, rolling them out again, using the cutter, blah, blah blah.
Cheers!
PS Don’t mean to brag, but I have won awards for my scones at our local country fair, so I feel I can speak with some authority…LOL-it was a very small fair ;)
I always welcome commentary and opinions! :) I’ll have to try them out sans-eggs.
Hi Laura,
I have a small bakery at home, and I do not use any eggs in all my baking. I would really appreciate if you can share with me your eggless scone recipe.
Looking fwd to it.
Thank you so much
Kirti
I saw this recipe and I just happened to have everything on hand. Half an hour later I am enjoying wonderful scones! Thanks!
Just made these! They tasted great. So nice because I didn’t need cream or special ingredients.