These light, flaky and easy-to-make buttermilk scones are perfect with jam, lemon curd or just eaten plain with butter.
I’ve been on a Scone Mission since that one summer we spent at Gravenhurst where I had afternoon tea for the first time. But I’m getting ahead of my story.
Afternoon tea amateurs
There’s this dainty little tea shop by the docks. The outside was painted a pretty blue and it had a very nice view of the lake. We were hesitant to go in though because it was the middle of summer (who wants to drink tea when it’s 40C out?) and what do you wear to afternoon tea anyway?
We imagined the Queen having afternoon tea but what about us her lowly subjects? We were full on tourist mode too – shirt, shorts, Birkenstocks. We went in nonetheless (we were hungry, hunger makes you do things) with no expectations and hoping that they won’t be snooty to us afternoon tea amateurs.
The scone mission begins
We were instant fans the moment we stepped in (the A/C was full blast, to start). The staff was warm and friendly, the place bright and smelled of freshly baked bread, and the food delightful.
The scones I especially loved so the moment we got back home my mission started. I’ve tried many different recipes and while they were all okay, this one is the best.
Quick and easy buttermilk scones
First of all, they’re easy to make – no electric mixer required. Second, they’re quick to bake – 12 minutes in the oven and you’re done. Third – they’re a great way to use up that extra buttermilk sitting in the fridge (and there’s ALWAYS extra buttermilk sitting in the fridge).
Last but not least, these scones are light and flaky fresh from the oven. They are so good! We eat them plain with just butter or with our favourite jam or with my homemade lemon curd. And making this fills your kitchen with that lovely freshly baked bread smell that’s hard to beat.
Related: 22 Delicious Ways to Use Leftover Buttermilk
Freeze those extras scones
This batch makes 16 small scones (about the size of a standard dinner roll) so whatever we don’t finish, we freeze (just put in a Ziploc bag and straight into the freezer). No need to thaw when you want to have one either.
Just pop it in the microwave for about 30 seconds and it’s done. It’s going to be more cakey than flaky at this point but still good. From what I can tell, they stay fresh for at least two weeks frozen.
Get creative!
These buttermilk scones are also a great base for your other favourite ingredients.
So far I’ve added dried cranberries, dried blueberries and chocolate chips. Just make sure to adjust the sugar content – I usually put less sugar when I make these variations so they don’t end up being too sweet.
So go ahead. Make your own scones and have afternoon tea at home anytime. Doesn’t even have to be in the afternoon. Doesn’t even have to involve tea. Just eat the scones whenever and however way you like. No judgements.
Mother’s Day is slowly creeping up on us too and this is an awesome addition to your brunch (or, yes, afternoon tea) spread.
Related: Quick and Easy Lemon Buttermilk Scones
Classic Buttermilk Scones
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter cold and cubed
- 1 cup buttermilk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F. Lightly grease 2 baking pans (I use cookie sheets) and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine 3 cups flour, 1/3 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda.
- Add the 3/4 cup butter and cut with a pastry cutter or a fork until the mixture looks coarse (you should see pieces of butter/flour "balls" about the size of chickpeas).
- Make a well in the middle and add 1 cup buttermilk. Mix until just combined. Don't over mix. Now is the time to add chocolate chips or other goodies, if using.
- Transfer the dough to a floured surface and divide into 2 equal parts. Lightly knead each into 3/4 inch thick, 6-inch diameter rounds. Cut each round into 8 wedges and place on your prepared baking pans. Space them out evenly, about 2 inches apart.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Each oven is different and they brown pretty quickly so watch the oven (don't leave!).
- Take out of the oven and serve warm.
Happy baking!
Did you make these buttermilk scones? Tell me about it in the comments section below. I’d love to hear all about it.
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If I don’t have buttermilk what can I substitute. And will it still taste ok
Hi Christie. What I do is mix a cup of milk and a tablespoon of lemon juice. Stir then let sit in room temperature for 30 minutes. It’s homemade buttermilk! And if you ever need more buttermilk ideas, check this out: https://theunlikelybaker.com/ways-to-use-leftover-buttermilk/
My grandson and I made scones this morning, great recipe when baking with a toddler,(fun measuring mixing and eating) so delicious with my cup of coffee. Thanks this will now be a family recipe
That’s awesome Audrey! It’s really one of my favourite recipes. So glad you and your grandson had fun making (and eating!) them.
Lovely scones! Followed the recipe and instructions however I did add 2tsps vanilla extract and a handful of raisins. I gently gathered the dough without warming it or overworking it! After I shaped and cut the wedges I put them in the freezer for 20 minutes to harden the bits of butter. This always produces very flaky scones! Great recipe! Thank you!
Hi Catherine! I’m so happy you liked them. Great tip about putting them in the freezer before baking. I will try that next time 🙂
I had a cup of buttermilk to use up so I tried these. They were excellent! I divided The dough and made half just plain butter milk and the other half I added white chocolate chips & cranberries that I boiled with sugar and reduced to a sticky jam. I hate when food goes bad so I was using up leftover ingredients from Christmas dinner. I did have to add a full cup of butter rather than 3/4 to get the dough crumbly enough. I will keep this recipe handy!
Hi Katie! That’s a clever (and delicious) way to use leftovers. Glad you liked the buttermilk scones. Have a wonderful 2018!
I’m not one to go back and comment on things but DANG these are delicious! Certainly a winner. I’m going to use them for strawberry shortcake tonight. I’ve declared this The Year of the Scone, and have made 1-2 batches of scones per month. These are certainly a favorite. My butter was a bit soft, and thus the batter was soft (and I had run out of flour….), so I wish I had stuck the batter in the fridge for an hour or so before cooking.
Hey Robin! So glad you like them! I’m liking this Year of The Scone 🙂 And yummmm that strawberry shortcake sounds amazing! Hope you’re having a lovely weekend!
Very delicious. just made these this morning! I added chocolate chips and it’s excellent! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Glad you liked it Rebecca! Chocolate chips are a favourite addition in our house too 🙂
Hi Jolina,
This IS the best scone recipe ever! More than 20 years ago I bought a little book with recipes for having a tea. It was called Buttermilk raisin scones. I This scone recipe is the one have always used. Although i use 3/4 tsp. salt instead of 1 tsp.
I have made blueberry, raspberry, cranberry walnut, chocolate chip, peach, current with orange zest, and many more. Everyone loves my scones. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Carol! It’s awesome isn’t it? So quick and easy but so good 🙂 I love all your variations, especially the peach! Will try that next.
well made these twice first time I had shredded sharp cheese and brushed them with garlic butter and parsley kinda like a Red Lobster scone!! they were good I just left them in for the 15 min. that was too long gotta a little well done. This time I had blueberrys and well they are a little purple looking maybe should use dry blueberrys so we will see what they taste like.
Hi Ida. These are great variations! (BTW if you love Red Lobster biscuits I have a recipe on the blog, just search for “Cheddar Biscuits” or look under the biscuits category 🙂 And yes, I usually use dried fruit for my scones so I can imagine that fresh blueberries would make them purple. Would love to hear how your dried blueberry variation turns out!
Hi Jolina, I just made these lovely scones. I did a few adjustments though. I felt that after 1 cup of buttermilk, the dough was still very floury so I added about 1/2 (or just under) extra buttermilk. I also didn’t have regular salt so I added pink Himalayan sea salt which really brought out the flavor. I also added some lemon zest as I had some on hand in the fridge. Wow! It turned out amazing @ the dough rose so beautifully! All in all it turned out great!
Happy to hear that Mary! Glad to hear you like it. I’ve always wondered about pink Himalayan salt, now I know where to try it on 🙂
I’ve made these twice this week to be a part of a Christmas gift with homemade strawberry fig preserves. Huge hit!
So happy to hear that Julene! Your homemade strawberry fig preserves sound amazing. Hope you’re enjoying the Christmas season!
Just made these and MY goodness they’re delicious. Flaky, not too sweet, perfect with any topping. (I just made strawberry sauce to eat with them) I’ve tried many a scone recipe. This one is delicious! If you’ve never tried to make scones this recipe is a great place to start!
So glad you enjoyed it Amanda 🙂 I usually take mine with butter and/or lemon curd. Strawberry sauce sounds lovely. Thanks for the kind words and happy holidays!
I made them three times already and I am addicted! I already bought buttermilk again but resisted for days to bake a new batch, because I eat too many of them in too little time!
I’m so happy you liked the recipe! They are little evil scones aren’t they haha. So easy to make and so delicious! You made my day Martina! Have a good one!
One of these days I will actually make scones! This recipe sounds absolutely delicious! Scones are one of my favorite breakfast foods!
They’re my favourite too. These are perfect for Saturday mornings! 🙂 Hope you can do them soon. Thanks Carrie!
Never made a scone before. I think I’m ready to try this recipe.
You’ll do great! This scone recipe is my favourite – quick easy and delicious 🙂 Hope you like it!
They were a hit at home!
So happy to hear that! 🙂 Happy Saturday!
This recipe looks so simple and so delicious! I love scones with tea, so I’m definitely going to bookmark this and save it for later!
Thanks Lauren! These are lovely fresh from the oven 🙂 Let me know how it goes!
OMG! Thank you is all I can say. Delisious and easy!
Hi Leslie! You’re very welcome! So glad you enjoyed them 🙂
These look great and sound pretty easy to make. I’ve never made scones before and they’re definitely on my to-do list.
Hi Isabel! I will go so far as to say this is a no-fail recipe! If I can do it, anybody can 🙂 Hope you try it and enjoy it as much as I do!
I love scones! This looks really easy to make too. Definitely will try it out!
Hope you enjoy them Vicky! Thanks for stopping by
Loving scones and yes, am always trying to find ways to use the extra buttermilk!
LOL! I knew I can’t be the only one with this problem 🙂
I am a scone enthusiast! I have been searching for the perfect recipe for years and finally settled on Molly Wizenberg’s one. But I am always up to try new scone recipes. Yours sound very good, I’ll give it a try for sure. They look beautiful, flaky and not too sweet, just the way I like them!
I will have to try Molly Wizenberg’s scone recipe. I bet that’s amazing. These scones are not sweet at all, just a hint. Hope you like them Nicoletta!
I cannot believe I’ve never made scones before! It looks so easy and delicious, plus I love that you can make them ahead of time.
It’s crazy that you mentioned Mother’s Day because last year I invited my mother over for afternoon tea and I made little sandwiches and pastry…all very British and yet NO SCONES! These beautiful scones will be a great addition this year 🙂
P.S. You have such a great way of telling stories, I felt like I was with you at the tea shop. 🙂
Haha did she look for them? Well this year you can make scones these are very easy to make 🙂 And thanks for your kind comments, I really appreciate them!
Looks easy to make…I’ll bake a batch tomorrow 🙂
It really is! Happy scone day (yes I made that up lol)
These look totally delicious!!! I love scones but usually just buy the packaged mixes. I didnt realize how easy they were to make! I am definitely going to try this.
Some box mixes are ok but try homemade once and you’ll see they’re so much better! And not even all that harder to make 🙂 Let me know how it goes!
Wow this looks delicious! It would have been perfect for breakfast today
Ahaha yes 🙂 There’s still tomorrow! Or the weekend 🙂
I love a good flaky scone not very sweet ones. This is perfect with buttermilk in it.
Oh you will love this one. It’s not sweet at all. It’s perfect with jam and/or butter 🙂
I literally took my laptop into the kitchen and checked my pantry to make sure that I have all the ingredients for this…. This is soooooooooooo happening TODAY. Yum!
You just made me laugh out loud! Ahhhh. Hope you like it as much as I do 🙂
These scones look amazing! I can almost taste them through the screen! Wish I could…LOL! 😉 Great recipe!
Someday, someone will invent that lol! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Oh they look lush! Absolutely perfect scones, although I’ll take mine plain with just a little salted butter please 🙂
I agree plain butter is best. I’d wanted to make my own clotted cream too but that would be for another time 🙂
Recently found a really delightful tasting buttermilk at the store and I stocked up on a few cartons to keep for baking. Can’t wait to try this recipe, we love scones!
It’s one of life’s little pleasures isn’t it? When you sit back, have tea and eat scones 🙂 Thanks for stopping by! We’re big fans of your blog 🙂
my best food memories are related to an english tea room in rome: scones and hot chocolate. And I’ve been looking for a good scones recipe forever… found!
That sounds wonderful 🙂 I’m a huge high tea fan now. Thanks for stopping by! Hope you enjoy these scones as much as I do.
I LOVE tea! There’s something just so charming about it. For one very special occasion, we went to tea at the Plaza Hotel in NYC, and I felt like a queen. Now I think I should start incorporating tea – and these scones! – into every day life.
Oh that sounds precious! There’s this place in Toronto that – I heard – does awesome high tea but they’re always booked. Planning for my birthday 🙂 Have a good day!