Recipe from Joanne Chang
Adapted by Dorie Greenspan
- Total Time
- 1 hour, plus chilling and cooling
- Rating
- 4(2,690)
- Notes
- Read community notes
These scones, created by Joanne Chang for her Flour Bakery & Cafe in Boston, are studded with fresh blueberries, sweetened with maple syrup and made with a blend of whole-wheat and all-purpose flours — but don’t think of them as health food. They’ve also got crème fraîche and plenty of butter. They’re big. They’re glazed. And they’ve got a singular texture: tender, like a layer cake, but also flaky, like a traditional scone. It wasn’t until I made them myself that I realized that their texture is different because the technique is different: Most scone recipes call for the butter to be rubbed into the flour mixture until it’s coated with flour. In Ms. Chang’s recipe, half the butter gets this treatment, which makes the scones characteristically flaky. The other half of the butter is beaten into the dry ingredients so that it becomes the coating for the flour, making the scones tender. —Dorie Greenspan
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Ingredients
Yield:8 scones
- 1⅔cups/240 grams whole-wheat flour
- 1cup/130 grams all-purpose flour
- 1½teaspoons baking powder
- ½teaspoon baking soda
- ½teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾cup/170 grams unsalted butter (1½ sticks), cold, cut into ½-inch pieces
- ½cup/120 grams crème fraîche, Greek yogurt or sour cream, at room temperature
- ½cup/120 milliliters maple syrup
- ⅓cup/80 milliliters buttermilk, at room temperature
- 1large egg yolk, at room temperature
- 1cup/125 grams fresh blueberries
- ½cup/60 grams confectioners’ sugar
- 2 to 3tablespoons maple syrup
For the Scones
For the Glaze
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)
460 calories; 22 grams fat; 13 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 63 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 26 grams sugars; 7 grams protein; 292 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Step
1
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, briefly mix both flours, the baking powder, baking soda and salt on low speed. Add half the butter and paddle until fully mixed into the flour, 2 to 3 minutes. (This will coat the flour with butter so the scones are tender.)
Step
2
Add the remaining butter to the bowl of the stand mixer. Pulse the mixer three or four times to mix the pieces into the dough while keeping them whole. (This step will give you small pieces of butter in the dough, which will help the scones be a bit flaky.)
Step
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In a medium bowl, whisk together the crème fraîche, maple syrup, buttermilk and yolk until thoroughly mixed. Stir in the blueberries. With the mixer on low, pour the blueberry mixture into the flour mixture, and paddle on low for about 10 seconds to get some of the liquid mixed into the flour. Stop the mixer, and mix the rest of the loose flour into the dough by hand: Gather and lift the dough with your hands and turn it over in the bowl several times until all the loose flour is mixed in. Shape the dough into a ball, wrap it well and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or for up to 1 day. (This gives the flour time to fully absorb the liquid.)
Step
4
Heat the oven to 350 degrees, and position a rack in the center. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Step
5
Using a ½-cup measuring cup or ice cream scoop, scoop out 8 mounds of chilled dough, and place them on the baking sheet a few inches apart. Bake scones for 35 to 45 minutes, rotating the baking sheet midway through the baking time, until the scones are evenly golden brown and firm when you press them.
Step
6
While the scones are baking, make the glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together the sugar and enough maple syrup to make a thick, spreadable glaze. Use immediately, or store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. Rewhisk before using.
Step
7
As soon as you remove the scones from the oven, use a pastry brush to brush them with the glaze while they’re warm. Let cool on the baking sheet for 30 minutes, then serve.
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Cooking Notes
Mary
These look wonderful. Alas, I have no whole wheat flour. Can I use only all purpose flour, and if so how much?
Janna Marchione
Not everyone has a "stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment" - any other preparation suggestions? Thank you.
Joanne Chang
HI Janna! If you don't have a stand mixer I suggest you take half of the butter and work it into the dry mixture with your hands and then cube the other half (make sure it's cold!) and toss and mix into the mixture until the cubes are marble sized. Then add the wet and proceed as directed. I hope that helps!
Diana
To use all purpose flour instead of whole wheat:1) substitute an amount of AP equal to WEIGHT, not volume, called for in the recipe. Obviously easier w/ scale (highly recommended!) but can deduce via wt/vol info on bag of AP flour/For wt of WW https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/ingredient-weight-chart2) Water: 2 teasp less water needed for e/ cup of AP replacing WW. Maybe why it's wet.3) NYT should be the ones telling you this! Everyone is substituting ingredients w what's on hand.
Joanne Chang
Mary! We make these with apples and walnuts in the fall- it's an awesome combo! Happy baking!
Diane Joss
Oh my ~ so much talk about the hand mixer and paddle attachment. If you have cooked and baked enough, you take a look at any recipe, realize it's possible to do a great job with your own methods and innovations. Also, please stop trying to please 12 different people with their food preferences. If they're fussy, tell them you won't care a bit if they bring their own vegan, allergy-free, wheat-free dish minus nuts. I liked my Belgian grandmother's advice - "Eat what the pot cooks."
Mary
Made as directed using yogurt, but using 1/3 c portions for the dough, yielding 12 still large scones. Crisp edges with a light and tender inner. The whole wheat and maple is a great combination. The blueberries are nice, but I’ll be trying them next without. Wondering about apples come fall...
Colleen Izzi
I freeze the butter and then toss the frozen stick of butter in the measured-out flour to coat and then I grate the butter (grater with large holes) directly into the bowl of measured flour. This incorporates the butter and flour efficiently.I don't have a stand mixer and learned this technique from a buttermilk biscuit recipe.
MD
Delicious. Easy. A real winner. The only change I made to the recipe was in terms of method. I didn't use the stand mixer. Instead, I grated frozen butter straight into the dry ingredients, worked it in with a pastry cutter (in the manner of biscuit dough) and then added the wet ingredients and blueberries. I was so anxious to eat them that I put them straight in the oven without noticing we were supposed to chill the dough! But no problem as the final results were great. Thanks for this recipe.
Mari
No need to use an electric mixer for this - use your dominant hand to do the mixing - it will get gloriously sticky and covered in the mixture, but will also be much better than an electric paddle at telling you when the mixture is wet enough. For hand-mixing, change the order of adding slightly - add the blueberries to the dry mix, then add the wet mixture - not all at once, but about 2/3s first, then add the rest in dollops until you have a floppy, but not wet mixture.
Matthew
I know- I rolled my eyes at that too. Everything here can do done by hand, or with the added help of an electric mixer.
Vicky
The thing about scones is that they are easy peasy and highly adaptable. If you don't have whole wheat, just use plain. If you don't have a mixer, rub the butter and dry ingredients between your fingers. To me, using a mixer over-complicates a simple recipe. But, whatever you do, the result will be delicious. That's the beauty of scones.
Mark
Joanne Chang - I just made these and they are truly wonderful. I am sorry you have to endure people feel the need to be snarky and do nothing but complain when someone kind shares such a great recipe. Thank you for this recipe - I'll be making these for special occasions and friends parties in the future. And to everyone complaining about a stand mixer with the paddle attachment - they are not THAT expensive.
Steve
These scones are seriously good. Flour is my favorite bakery in Boston. Their lemon-ginger scones are even better, and they make the best breakfast sandwich I have ever eaten. I look forward to the day I can visit Boston again and have breakfast at their location on Farnsworth Street.
Candide
Can these scones be made using gluten-free flour?
philly girl
These are wonderful, but needed more baking time — I should have added 5 minutes although the tester came out clean, they were a bit gooey. Frosting hardened and had to add more maple syrup before glazing the scones.
Cali
Loved this recipe! I didn't have whole wheat flour, so just subbed in all-purpose flour at a 1:1 ratio, and was very pleased with the results. Given that I don't have a stand mixer, I followed Joanne's suggestion in the comments to work the first half of the butter into the dough by hand, and then stir in the remaining half of the cubed butter until just combined. The scones were delicious!!
louise
So I cut my butter in 1/2 inch pieces, and there's no way these get even roughly mixed in in 3-4 pulses. I am working the big pieces in with my fingers, making sure to stop while they are still a bit chunky. Has anyone else wondered about this?
Kate
This recipe is a great base to work off of. I love the more cake like texture the method creates. The only issue I have is that I feel like the recipe needs sugar and a bit more seasoning. Yes, I know… controversial. I added 1/2 cup sugar, 1 tbsp cinnamon, 1 tbsp vanilla. They came out insanely good!
Vickie
One of the best things I've ever made.
Jill Stevens
I have been making these for 3 years now. I make ten scones from the recipe and mix the butter into two sizes. I don't find that my mixer breaks up the butter in the second round. The one amazing discovery I have made is that they freeze beautifully. Just make the dough and portion into ten scoops and freeze them in a ziploc bag. Then bake them at 350 for 30 minutes -- you may need a few more minutes than that -- or start them in a cold oven and start the timer when the oven come to temp.
My new favorite!
Scones with fresh berries are my go-to summertime treat. This recipe produced scones which have become my absolute new favorite. I followed recipe as written and had great results. Baked for ~40 minutes.
Erin
Easily made gluten free subbing 1 C almond flour, 1.66 C King Arthur gluten free 1:1 flour!
Jacquelyn
I loved that a mostly whole wheat scone could be moist and tender. But the blueberries seemed lost. I will try the suggestion of apple and walnut!
gab
I ground up 1 tsp of lavender and added to the scones, which added a nice floral undertone and accentuated the flavor of the blueberries (although next time I would do 2-3 tsp lavender). However, I think the scones were pretty lackluster as a whole. The texture was nice and tender, although I overmixed so I didn’t really get any flakiness. I just think they would benefit from something extra - vanilla, cardamom, lemon zest. And more salt in the dough!
JB
Substituted apples and pecans for blueberries. Replaced half the maple syrup with brown sugar. I was liberal with my salt measurement for a salty sweet taste. Next time I will add maple extract to frosting.
Brooke
I used only white bread flour, frozen blueberries (thawed), a hand mixer bare hands to mix dough, and didn’t chill the dough before baking.The scones still turned out moist and delicious. Maybe they are next-level when following the recipe to a T but you can also use what you have on hand and they’ll still be great.
TL
Delicious, with a tender crumb. I added 1 tsp cinnamon to the dry ingredients and 1 tsp vanilla to the wet because why not? I mixed in the butter with a pastry blender and used a hand mixer just to bring the dough together. Still had streaks of butter going into the fridge to chill. My family gobbled these up and requested more.
kdh
These are absolutely delicious. I followed the recipe.
lucy
Second time making these. They are delicious!! I did use my food processor to mix butter into the flour, did the rest by hand. Love these!
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