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!
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.
Notes
Nutrition
Video
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!
Amazing and easy! I am gluten intolerant so I used a gf flour and these came out so good! I added a little extra flour because the batter looked wetter than hers in the picture.
Will make again. So, first time making scones. My flour didn’t completely incorporate, so added a bit of egg/ milk mixture (went back and read later to just add some more milk). I was afraid they were going to be like bricks, When we are then my friend said ,”Where did the scones come from?” was the best compliment of the day. I was proud to say, “I made them”.
*when we ate them. Whoops!
Hello looking forward to trying these. Just wondering if I can make the dough the day before baking? If so how long do you recommend at room temperature before baking? Thanks!
I haven’t tried making the dough the day before, but I’m going to guess that it’s probably best to make it the day of. One reason is that it contains baking powder, which still reacts at cold temperatures, just at a slower rate. So if it’s been activated by the moisture for a full day, that might affect the leavening. The moisture from the blueberries may also slowly seep into the dough throwing off the dry-liquid ratio.
I made these yesterday and put them in the freezer, glaze and all. 30 seconds in the microwave and what a delicious treat on a Sunday morning. I used 1 cup of blueberries. I had frozen them dusted with flour, and they did not break down at all; the scones did not turn purple. I also made two smaller rounds of dough; and cut the scones into 6 pieces per circle. So we ended up with 12 beautiful little scones.
Thanks to this recipe, I’ve made scones before but this one is so easy Especially the butter part of it. And they taste really good.
Just took mine out of the oven. I used frozen blueberries. Could not properly combine dough without blueberries breaking down a little, so scones came out looking a little purple-blue. Haven’t tasted yet but they do smell good. Waiting for them to cool so I can glaze them.
Another home run! Best scones I’ve ever had and my sister loved them, she doesn’t normally like scones. Easy and absolutely delicious!
Best recipe for Blueberry/Lemon scones! Simply delicious!! Thank you so much!
All I can say is wow! Today is my husband’s birthday and I surprised him by making these for breakfast. He loved them! I added some of the lemon zest to the icing. We love lemon! Thanks for yet another delicious and inexpensive recipe!
What kind of milk would you use? Is skim ok?
Since there’s not a lot of milk in this one you can probably get away with using skim, but whole milk will definitely be better. :)
Thanks for info about the milk.
I’m a huge scone fan myself and look forward to making these! Also I love your website, it’s my go to for great easy recipes. :)
Big scone fan here- I agree I don’t like an over the top pastry with my morning coffee either. I do have to say that my scone got a bit too dried out reheating in my microwave :( Going to leave 2 in the fridge the night before instead so they keep their texture :) Thanks!
I made a variation on these – used vanilla, orange oil and chocolate chips for the flavoring, and they came out so soft and light yet hearty! I think I prefer a cakier scone so the addition of eggs is to my liking.
Next time I think I’ll use my lime oil and some candied ginger….
Is it too much to ask for the metric measurements as well?
Yes, unfortunately, I’m a team of one at the moment and I can’t test each recipe with the metric measurements to make sure they’re correct. I’ve explored many different options for automatic conversions and they’re all really buggy so I don’t feel comfortable providing measurements that I can’t double-check.
I just made these and they are so good!
This scone recipe is absolutely delicious! BUT I would recommend using only frozen blueberries instead of fresh.
The first time I made it, I used fresh blueberries and the dough was a soggy mess, no matter how much flour I added to get it to harden. Having already pre-heated the oven, I decided to give it another go. I took extra care to follow the instructions to the T and use frozen blueberries instead (which I thankfully had in the freezer), and it came out perfect! Like something you get at a cafe or bakery. I will definitely be making again!