Easy Raspberry Scones with Lemon-Vanilla Icing
This is my favorite raspberry scones recipe with sweet raspberries, a hint of vanilla, and a drizzle of lemon icing. They’re flavorful, crisp on the outside yet still tender and moist in the center, made with simple ingredients, and perfect for breakfast or brunch!
For a long time I thought of “scones” as a dirty word. A kind of sad, runner up to more delectable breakfast treats, like fruit-laden muffins or gooey cinnamon rolls or buttery coffee cakes. My experience with scones was all too often hard and dry and bland …akin to what I imagine Hagrid’s rock cakes must be like.
However, after lots of recipe testing, they’ve become one of my favorite pastries to make from scratch, and are now in my vocabulary as something much different:
Think a tender, biscuit-like center that’s soft and flaky, and studded with juicy raspberries. A barely crisp crust topped with the sweet crunch of raw sugar. And a quick drizzle of lemon-kissed vanilla icing that adds a welcome tartness to these sweet, buttery, flavorful – and now definitively indulgent – breakfast treats.
These raspberry scones are:
- quick and simple
- sweet, but not too sweet
- packed with berry flavor
- made with simple ingredients (in just one bowl!)
- crisp and crumbly on the outside
- tender and flaky in the center
- just the right amount of buttery
- topped with lemon icing
- easily adaptable
- massive! (this recipe makes six generously large scones)
… and basically the perfect homemade summer breakfast!
My version of scones are a sweetened up version of traditional baking powder biscuits, in this case rippled with swirls of raspberry. They’re light and flaky, with lots of fruit throughout, tons of buttery flavor, and rustic, craggly tops that dimple under a sweet glaze.
One thing I love about this recipe is that it doesn’t require specialty ingredients. All of these things are in my fridge and pantry just about all the time. No special trip to the store required for a buttermilk carton that I’ll only need a third of.
The ingredients you’ll need to make basic scones:
- flour: Nothing fancy, just regular all-purpose flour. Be sure to spoon and level when you measure, or use a kitchen scale.
- sugar: my recipe calls for 1/3 cup of granulated sugar, so they aren’t overly sweet. The scones get much of their sweetness from peak-season fruit and the drizzle of icing on top. I also like to top each scone with a generous sprinkle of Turbinado or Demerara sugar right before baking for an extra sweet crunch and some sparkle.
- baking powder: one big tablespoon will give the scones lots of lift. Always check your expiration date (leavening should be used within about 6 months).
- salt: Don’t skip this step! I use Diamond Crystal kosher salt in most of my baking.
- butter: Start with cold butter, which will expand as it bakes, adding lift and flaky layers to the dough.
- whole milk: many scone recipes call for heavy cream or buttermilk – but I love the flavor and texture in these scones just as much (and appreciate not having to make an extra run to the grocery store). Be sure your milk is cold before mixing!
- vanilla: always use the real stuff, just a splash of pure vanilla extract will really boost the flavor.
Find all of the exact measurements and recipe instructions below.
At their core, scones are really easy to make. My recipe takes just one bowl and a whopping eight basic ingredients to make. But, there are some tricks and techniques that ensure you end up with scones that are light, tender, and delicious – no boring, hard-as-a-rock scones here!
Tips for making homemade scones:
- Start with really cold butter, and work quickly as you cut it into the dry ingredients. Pockets of cold butter will expand in the heat of the hot oven, producing super flaky and delicious scones.
- Leave some bigger pieces of butter scattered throughout the dough. Once the butter is worked in, your dough will be shaggy and sandy.
- Don’t overmix. Too much mixing will overdevelop the gluten in the flour, producing a harder, tougher scone. We want the opposite, so once I add the milk, I stir the dough with a spatula just enough to combine, and then switch to using my hands to quickly knead the ingredients together and gently shape the dough into a disk. It’s okay if it seems too crumbly at first; it will all come together.
- Before baking, brush the tops of the scones with milk, and sprinkle with coarse sugar for a crisp, sparkly crust.
- When using delicate fruit like raspberries, frozen works best. Even with a gentle hand, I find that fresh raspberries get too smashed and sticky when mixing into the dough. Using frozen berries solves this problem, helps keep the dough cold, and will taste just as great when they come out of the oven.
- If it’s an extra hot day, pop the scones in the fridge to chill for 10-15 minutes before baking. This will ensure they’ll hold their shape without spreading in the oven. But remember, even a wonky scone is delicious!
- Don’t be afraid to experiment with flavors or extra mix-ins! Try adding chocolate chips, a handful of nuts, or swapping in your favorite seasonal fruit.
And don’t forget to add a glaze! I like to do this while the scones are still warm so it sinks delectably into all the little craggy bits. Happy baking!!
PrintEasy Raspberry Scones
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 Large Scones 1x
- Category: baking, breakfast, dessert
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: american
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This is my favorite scone recipe with sweet raspberries, a hint of vanilla, and a drizzle of lemon icing. They’re flavorful, crisp on the outside yet still tender and moist in the center, made with simple ingredients in just one bowl, and perfect for breakfast or brunch!
Ingredients
Raspberry Scones:
- 3 cups (360g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1/3 cup (66g) granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
- 12 Tbsp (1–1/2 sticks or 170g) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 3/4 cup (180g) whole milk, plus more for baking
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (3oz) raspberries ¹
- optional: coarse sanding sugar (Demerara, Turbinado etc.), for topping
Lemon Vanilla Icing:
- 1 cup (120g) confectioners (powdered) sugar
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
Make the scones:
- Preheat the oven to 375℉. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until combined. Use a pastry blender to incorporate the butter into the dry ingredients, until a shaggy, sandy mixture forms, with butter pieces about the size of large peas.
- Drizzle the milk and vanilla over the crumbs, and stir with a spatula until mostly combined.
- When the crumbs are mostly moistened, switch to using your hands, and fold in the frozen berries. Work quickly, and knead, firmly but gently, until all of the flour is combined, and the dough holds together in a large mound.
- Transfer to a lightly-floured work surface, and shape the dough into a flat, round disk, about 1-1/2 inches thick. It does not have to be perfect! Use a bench scraper or sharp knife to cut the dough into 6 wedges.
- Transfer the scones to the prepared sheet pan, leaving space between them. Lightly brush the tops of the scones with milk, and sprinkle with sanding sugar.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes, until the scones are golden, gently puffed, and cooked through.
Make the icing:
- In a small bowl, stir together the powdered sugar and lemon juice until smooth.
- Stir in the vanilla. Add a splash or two of milk as needed.
- While the scones are still warm, drizzle each with the icing, then place on a baking rack to set. Enjoy!
Notes
¹ For delicate fruit like raspberries, frozen works best. They’ll hold their shape and keep the dough cold, which ensures tender, flaky scones. I like to break the frozen whole raspberries into a few pieces before measuring to get more raspberry flavor throughout the dough.
Keywords: easy raspberry scones, berry scone, lemon, egg free, dessert, baking, vanilla icing, berries, biscuit, breakfast, one bowl
These are tasty scones but unsure why mine stuck to the parchment paper. I followed the recipe exactly and used very cold butter. Is there a better option to the use of parchment paper?
★★★★
Hi, Laurie! That’s strange about the parchment paper, I’ve never had that issue (I typically use the unbleached parchment sheets from If You Care). Was it the dough that stuck or juice from the raspberries? You could try using a Silpat which is more slippery, and then just be sure that the scones are cold going into the oven (you can always pop them in the fridge for 10 mins before baking to be sure), and that your oven is truly running at the temp it should be. Hope that helps!!
These were delicious! Made without the icing. Will definitely make again .
★★★★
Thank you, Orla!
soooo freaking good my parents rly loved them im 13 and i made them so that proves anyone can i used 1% milk and it worked just fine i’ll definitely make these again❤️
Thanks so much, Alani! I’m so happy you all loved it 😊 Happy baking!!
They all say, “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover.” My mom and I had a good laugh once we got to the point of putting in the fruit. 😂For reference we added wild black raspberry. They made the color wild all right.😳 We followed the recipe exactly and we now decided they are our favorite scone recipe. I think we can both say that we thoroughly enjoyed this. We tried to put in a picture; this is one of those situations where a picture is worth more than a thousand words. That being said, these were dark reddish purple (almost like meat when they went in) and purple colored when they came out. The icing was all they needed. We will definitely be using this again. We call them Barnie Bites! And we love ❤️ them!
★★★★★
Ha! Love it. Thanks, Liz!! So happy you loved them, wild color and all 🙂
Hi Laura! Could I divide the 6 large scones into 12 smaller ones? Thanks!
Hi Sofia! Sure 🙂 They’ll just bake faster so maybe start checking around the 15 min mark?
I froze the raspberries and followed the recepie, they came out so delicious. Amazing.
Thanks so much, Regina!!
Can these scones be made ahead and frozen before baking? If so, what are the instructions?
Hi Joy! I’ve never tried freezing them before baking so I’m not sure. They don’t take too long to make, so I tend to just make them fresh 🙂 They can be frozen after baking (be sure to wrap tightly!). This post might help if you want to try!
I freeze scones all the time before baking, they just take a few extra minutes in the oven!
Thanks, Jess! 😊
There is no egg in this scone?
Nope, these are egg free 🙂
Love this recipe! They came out light and moist! Can’t wait to try with other add ins! I freeze my butter and then grate it. It makes it so easy to incorporate into the flour mixture.
★★★★★
Thank you so much, Janet!!
When I made them, a pool of melted butter emerged under each scone while baking. Any ideas as to why?
Hi Caroline! I’m guessing the butter warmed up before they went in the oven. It’s crucial that you start with really cold butter and that it stays cold through mixing the dough (it then expands in the hot oven creating super flaky scones). If it warms up too soon, it will start melting before the scones fully bake. So making sure the butter and other ingredients are cold, double checking your oven is actually the temp it says it is (I use an oven thermometer for this), and even chilling the scones for 10-15 mins in the fridge before baking if the butter/dough seems too soft can all help. Hope round two goes better!! 🙂
If I switch out the milk with heavy cream do you think I would have to adjust the amount added in?
★★★★★
Hi, Holland! I would try the same amount. Enjoy!
Fantastic. My first time making scones and came out perfect with this recipe. I used coconut milk as that is what I had and used blueberries as well as raspberries in mix. So deliscious, did not need topping for this first attempt.
★★★★★
Oh, yay! Thanks so much, Tracy!!
Absolutely love these scones! I added lemon juice into the batter (eliminated same amount of milk out of it) since i like a little more lemon..fabulous!
★★★★★
Yum 🙂 Thank you so much, Laura!!
My favorite scone recipe ever!
I have made them with frozen raspberry, strawberry, peach all amazing! I’m making a strawberry white chocolate chip with dark chocolate drizzle right now!!!
★★★★★
Thank you so much, Sharon!! And that strawberry white chocolate combo sounds amazing 🙂
Raspberry scones were such a hit on Sunday morning that I’ve been asked to make some mid-week for my spouse’s coworkers. I made 4 large on one pan and then made 6 smaller “mini-scones.” Next batch will be all “minis”. They are amazing!
So happy to hear that!! Thank you, JH!
Whoa, these scones are SO GOOD! Since finding this recipe I’ve already made them half a dozen times 😀 They are definitely a regular in my baking rotation from now on. Thanks for sharing this recipe, I highly recommend!
★★★★★
Thanks so much, Laura! So happy to hear they’ve become favorites! 🙂
Fab! I used buttermilk and lots of frozen berries… it took a bit longer to bake, but great… I also always put a bit of butter in my icing… I track… I’d love the calories, but I can do that manually. Thank you!
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Yay! Thanks so much, Lara!!
Love this recipe, only thing I did different was added white chocolate chips with the raspberries and didn’t bother with the icing they are delicious without it.
★★★★★
Thanks so much, Darla!! That raspberry-white chocolate combo sounds delish 🙂
My family loves these! We have tired them so many different ways with all kinds of berries and even with out the icing they are AMAZING! A great snack for the little ones.
★★★★★
Thank you, Gena!! These are one of our toddler’s favorites too 🙂
Should probably mention that the berries are to be frozen in the ingredient section. W
Hi, Ana! You can use fresh or frozen raspberries. But, as I note in the post and recipe notes, frozen raspberries are easier to work with. Enjoy!
Delicious! I added chocolate chips and broke up the raspberries like you suggested. They came out great. Next time I think I’ll add more raspberries to up the berry flavor.
★★★★★
Yay! Thanks so much, Lexi! Love the added chocolate chips, too 🙌🏻