Homemade Buttermilk Scones

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Light and tender Homemade Buttermilk Scones made from scratch in just 20 minutes ! Afternoon tea wouldn’t be complete without a batch of warm scones fresh from the oven.

An easy, foolproof recipe for light and fluffy buttermilk scones with step by step instructions to make perfect scones every time.

Buttermilk Scones are quick and easy to make so they’re the perfect choice when time is short and you need almost instant results because you fancy a sweet treat but the cake cupboard is bare.

This easy recipe will cater for unexpected guests whilst filling your home with the impressive aroma of baking scones.

Make a batch of easy classic buttermilk scones and pop them in the oven – 12 minutes later you’ve got warm scones ready to eat. Simply split open and spread with butter. Delicious any time of day, we’ve even been known to have them for breakfast.

For an extra special treat, try them in a traditional cream tea with rich and decadent clotted cream .I’ll leave it up to you whether to go for a Cornish cream tea and serve with jam on first followed by cream. Or maybe you’d prefer your fluffy buttermilk scones with cream first for a Devon cream tea.

Although I’ve been making these scones for over 20 years, the recipe has been tweaked along the way. Always a popular bake, I try to guarantee the very best buttermilk scones every time. Sometimes I would be making several batches a day from the Kitchen Shed in France. Expats and French alike enjoyed them for a British classic afternoon tea.

Online, my easy buttermilk scones recipe is now one of my most popular with readers’ feedback including “the best scones I’ve ever tasted (made) in my life.” I hope you enjoy homemade buttermilk scones as much as we do.

What equipment do I need ?

• Mixing bowl – I use a large Pyrex bowl to give plenty of room for mixing.
• Optional – you can use a food processor (I love my Magimix) for a super quick mix.
• Pastry Cutter – or cookie cutter if you’re in the US. For large scones use a 70 mm (2 ¾ ins) cutter or 58 mm (2 ¼ ins) for smaller scones.
• Pastry brush – for egg washing the tops of the scones before baking.
• Baking sheet / tray – I used a Lakeland non stick baking sheet 39 cm x 34 cm. It’s nice and thick and gives good baking results every time. The non stick coating works every time too.

What ingredients do I need ?

• White flour – self raising flour gives excellent results. Or you can use plain flour or all purpose flour and add extra baking powder.
• Baking powder – gives the scones an extra lift without ruining the taste.
• Bicarbonate of soda – you only need a small amount for it to work its magic with the buttermilk.
• Salt – just a pinch to add flavour and balance the sweetness.
• Butter – diced and at room temperature. Although many recipes recommend fridge cold butter I find room temperature butter (not warm) to be better. It is much easier and quicker to mix into breadcrumbs, resulting in a light scone.
• Sugar – I use caster sugar as its smaller granules produce a more even and smooth texture in the scones.
• Buttermilk – the essential ingredient that makes these scones so light and fluffy. But be aware, buttermilk can vary in its consistency. The traditional buttermilk I use in this recipe is much thinner than cultured buttermilk, which tends to be thick and yogurt like. If you’re using cultured buttermilk to make these scones, you may need to add more to achieve the desired scone consistency.
• Dried fruit (optional) – you can add various fruits to this basic buttermilk scones recipe. We like sultanas but chopped apricots, dried blueberries or cranberries are equally delicious.

How to make Homemade Buttermilk Scones

Full detailed instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.

• Preheat your oven to 425°F / 220°C / 200°C Fan / Gas Mark 7

Scone dough by hand:

• Sift the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl.
• Using your fingertips, rub the fat into the flour until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
• Add sugar and sultanas if using and stir with a spatula.
• Form a well in the centre of the mix.
• In a small bowl beat the egg and buttermilk and pour into the centre of your scone mixture.
• Quickly pull the mix together. I tend to start mixing with the spatula and then go in with my hands to form the mixture into a ball.
• The scone dough should be slightly sticky and soft. Add a little extra buttermilk if you find the dough a little dry.

Food processor / Magimix Scone Dough:

• Place flour in food processor, then butter. Blitz on high for a short while until it resembles breadcrumbs.
• In a small bowl beat the egg and buttermilk and pour evenly over the breadcrumbed flour.
• Blitz for few seconds on high, add the sultanas and blitz for a couple seconds until the crumbs come together in a ball.
• Transfer dough onto work surface and bring it together into one smooth ball.

Baking Instructions

• Turn your dough onto a floured board.
• Pat out your dough gently, maintaining a thick dough.

• Cut out your scones using a circular pastry/cookie cutter. Push down your cutter quickly using the palm of your hand and don’t twist the cutter.
• Bring the trimmings back together and cut the rest of your scones. Don’t over work the dough.
• Place your scones onto a greased baking tray and brush with egg wash.

• Bake in the oven until golden brown.
• Leave to cool on a wire rack for at least 5 minutes before eating.

Baking tips for perfect light and fluffy scones

I’ve often been asked, What is the secret to making good scones ? So I’ve included a list of baking tips to avoid the disappointment of dense, flat or dry scones.

• A hot oven is essential so make sure the first thing you do is fully preheat your oven.
• BUTTERMILK and light handling are the key to success with scones. Buttermilk reacts with the bicarbonate of soda to create carbon dioxide that causes the mixture to rise. It also helps break down the gluten strands resulting in soft and tender scones.
• Use butter at ROOM TEMPERATURE. It’s much easier and quicker to rub room temperature butter into the flour. The quicker you blend the ingredients and the less your scone dough is handled, the better.
• SOFT AND STICKY is best when it comes to the consistency of your dough. A dry dough won’t be able to rise as well as a wet dough, resulting in those dense scones you want to avoid.

• DON’T twist the pastry cutter, you want your scones to stand nice and tall. Twisting the pastry cutter risks giving a lopsided scone which won’t rise so well.

• DON’T space your scones too far apart on the baking tray. Firstly, placing them side by side on the baking tray, about 2.5cm / 1 inch apart gives a higher rise and straighter sides. Secondly, placing like this helps prevent the scones from drying out as they retain moisture more readily.
• DON’T OVER BAKE. Scones are baked at quite a high temperature and don’t need long in a hot oven. Bake until a golden brown on top but still quite light in colour on the sides. You want moist scones and over baked dark scones are dry. If you not sure whether your scones are cooked, take one off the baking tray and break it open. The centre should feel moist but not ‘doughy’ or wet.

Can you use normal milk instead of buttermilk ?

Absolutely ! To substitute buttermilk, simply use the same quantity of regular milk with 1 teaspoon of lemon juice or white wine vinegar. This gives it an acidity similar to that of buttermilk which is essential for working with the bicarbonate of soda to give you light and fluffy scones.

Add the lemon juice or vinegar to your milk, give it a stir and then leave for five minutes. The milk will have become thicker and clumpy and is ready to use in your scone mixture.

Alternatively, you can use a 50 / 50 mixture of yoghurt and milk as a buttermilk substitute.

Can you freeze buttermilk ?

Yes, you can ! Buttermilk freezes really well for use in baking and will last in the freezer for up to three months. Although the recommendation on the container is not to freeze, it is safe to freeze. Like other dairy products it won’t maintain its qualities for drinking but it does retain its acid content which is what you need for scones.

My scone recipe calls for only a small amount of buttermilk so freezing the rest is the perfect option.

Make sure you freeze the buttermilk within the best before date. I freeze mine in an ice cube tray with a one tablespoonful (15 ml) portion to each cube. Once frozen, keep in a ziplock bag labelled with the date. It’s ready to be defrosted and used for the next time you bake.

How to serve Homemade Buttermilk Scones

Serve fresh from the oven. Split in them in half and simply spread with butter and homemade strawberry jam.

Enjoy as part of a cream tea or afternoon tea.

How long do they keep ?

Scones are best eaten as fresh as possible but you can keep them for a couple of days in an airtight container. Refresh for a few minutes in a hot oven before serving.

Can I freeze them ?

Yes, you can !

Pop your scones into a freezer bag and they will keep for up to three months in the freezer.

Refresh in a hot oven before serving.

If you like Homemade Buttermilk Scones ……you might also like:

• Buttery Shortbread Biscuits
• Pink Peppercorn Shortbread
• Homemade Belgian Buns
• Traditional fruit loaf

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