These lemon poppy seed scones drizzled with light lemon glaze are refreshing yet so satisfying in citrus season.
It is a lemon season. Let’s make the best out of it and make these deliciously soft, flaky, buttery lemon poppy seed scones. Drizzled with light lemon glaze on top of the scone. Perfect for breakfast or afternoon coffee time snack.
Where do scones come from
Scones are traditionally connected to England, Scotland and Ireland. But when we speak about scones in Northern America, it’s completely something else. American scones are very different from British scones. The main difference is the amount or ration of fat; in American scones we use more fat, then flour. And we use lots of butter, almost three times more then British.
And why? It’s all about adds’on; in England, Scotland or Ireland, they add the butter on the biscuit (scone) when they eat it. Same with sugar, their recipe doesn’t call for much of a sugar and guess why? Because they will top it with jam.
How do we make scones in North America?
And what about adds-in ? Here in North America, we add in anything from dry fruit, fresh fruit to chocolate chips or nuts. British scones would very rarely have any of these add-ins; in the exception to raisins or currants. But most of the time, they are just simply plain.
What flavours can we add to scones
These are the most favourite flavours of scones in North America.
- Lemon scones
- Orange scones
- Blueberry scones
- Chocolate Chip scones
- Strawberry scones
- Cream scones
- Maple scones
- Chocolate scones
- Apple scones
How to make lemon poppy seed scones
I have tasted for the first time scones on on of the Christmas potluck party during the time, I was taking French courses. And this lady from the other class (I can’t remember her name) has made orange scones and these were taken out of the oven right before the party, so the smell and the texture was incredible. Plus the glaze made out of fresh zest and orange juice were unbeatable.
I will never forget, how amazing these scones were. Unfortunately, she never came back to the course after Christmas, so I never had a chance to ask her for the recipe. But for many years, I have been trying several recipes and adjusted few things (added more and more butter) and finally one day I nailed it.
Scones dough is very similar to a cookies dough, there is no additional time for raising, you make the dough and you bake it. This is why it’s fairly quickly made. So if you are thinking of scones for brunch, you have plenty of time to prepare it in the morning.
First we have to mix together dry ingredients, flour, sugar, poppy seeds, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Add cold grated butter (*check for tips below) in the bowl and combine it with flour mixture, you can use pastry blender or use simply your hands, mix until it’s crumbly. Add lemon zest and lemon juice.
In a small bowl, whisk the cream, egg, and vanilla together. Add it over the flour mixture and then toss the mixture together with a rubber spatula until everything is moistened. I use always my hands to combine the mixture, I find that it’s working best for me. Turn your dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Use more flour, if dough is too wet. Roll the the dough into a square and then cut out, with cookie cutter, equal sized circles and place onto the prepared baking sheet.
Bake the Lemon Scones in preheated oven, until they have turned lightly brown, about 20 – 25 minutes.
Lemon glaze for scones
Meanwhile, you can prepare the glaze. To make the glaze, simply whisk the confectioners’ sugar and 2 Tablespoons lemon juice together until smooth. Add another tablespoon of lemon juice to thin out, if necessary. If you want creamy texture of your glaze, whisk in 1 – 2 tbsp of heavy cream. Drizzle glaze over scones right before serving.
Tips and Tricks for Best scones
- Cold butter – it is a must! Cold butter from the refrigerator, because we want the butter to melt right at the baking process, this will make your scones so flaky.
- Heavy cream – for the lemon glaze! You will really appreciate the luscious and velvety glaze over these lemon poppy seed scones.
- Lemon juice – keep it real and use real from real round yellow lemon. Real lemon will give the right tangy refreshing flavour.
More citrus recipes
- LEMON BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
- THE BEST LEMON POUND CAKE
- FRENCH STYLE LEMON TART
- THE BEST LEMON CHEESECAKE
- GINGER LEMONADE VIDEO RECIPE
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LEMON POPPY SEED SCONES
Ingredients
Lemon scones
- 4 cups flour
- 1 cup sugar
- 5 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- zest of 2 large lemons
- 1 cup cold butter
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 medium eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp poppy seeds
Lemon glaze
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 2-3 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1-2 tsp heavy cream optional
Instructions
Lemon scones
- Preheat oven to 204 C/ 400 F rack in middle-low position. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, sift flour, add sugar, baking powder, salt, poppy seeds and lemon zest. Grate the cold butter and toss it in the flour mixture. Use your hands or pastry blender to mix the mixture until crumbly.
- In another small bowl, whisk the cream with eggs and vanilla. Drizzle the wet mixture over the flour and toss the mixture with a rubber spatula or with your hands until everything comes together. If it seems too wet, add little bit more flour.
- Turn your dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Use more flour, if dough is too wet. Roll the the dough into a square and then cut out, with cookie cutter, equal sized circles and place onto the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake the Lemon Scones in preheated oven, until they have turned lightly brown, about 20 – 25 minutes.
Lemon glaze
- Meanwhile, you can prepare the glaze. To make the glaze, simply whisk the confectioners’ sugar and 2 Tablespoons lemon juice together until smooth. Add another tablespoon of lemon juice to thin out, if necessary. If you want creamy texture of your glaze, whisk in 1 – 2 tbsp of heavy cream. Drizzle glaze over scones right before serving.
Notes
Disclosure: Bear in mind that some of the links in this post are affiliate links and if you go through them to make a purchase I will earn a commission. Keep in mind that I link these companies and their products because of their quality and not because of the commission I receive from your purchases. The decision is yours, and whether or not you decide to buy something is completely up to you.”
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