do your job
Recipe: blueberry scones
Right now, part of my work involves getting up early and hiking to alpine basins to assess the state of the wildflowers. You don’t always hit pay dirt, but I like that it gets me outside into the backcountry and that I’m not sitting on my bum all day. And in summer, you’re almost always guaranteed to be greeted by many familiar friends in the high country. I saw several favorites up high in marshy alpine meadows.
mountain bluebells
magenta paintbrush
I paid the price for those flowers too… in blood, so to speak. I wake up each morning with new mosquito bites despite my efforts to don pants and long-sleeves when I’m hiking and photographing. I have two requests for enterprising individuals: 1) please make a sunblock that I can take in pill form and 2) please make a mosquito repellant that I can take in pill form. I would pay good money for those things. And some mornings I want to see things a little faster than the pace of a hike, or even a trail run.
mountain biking makes it harder for the mosquitoes to get you
and then you ride to the local coffeehouse and wait in line with a random cute dog
Another part of my job is knowing when certain slopes or basins are reaching peak bloom and what time of day or which conditions are ideal for the images I want to capture. It starts to feel a little frenetic if you cover a wide area, especially if it takes half the day to reach some of these places. And by evening, when the mosquitoes are in their swarming frenzies, my mind often wanders to questions like, “Why haven’t more creatures evolved to hunt and eat mosquitoes?” Why, indeed.
tall larkspur
iphone behind the scenes (courtesy of jeremy)
Jobs have been on my mind lately because I recently sent a package of baked goods to my friend, Jamie, to thank her for the beautiful cutting boards she made. I sent it USPS priority and they said it was delivered two days later – except she never received it. She inquired after the package and with a little digging, I think the USPS realized that THEY SOMEHOW LIED ABOUT THE DELIVERY because they found the package and gave it to her 11 days after it was supposed to have been delivered. WTH?! More like USPOS. Of course, the baked goods were dead on arrival, because they were blueberry scones made with fresh organic blueberries. Smooth move, USPS. At least I had sense enough to send the second package via UPS (and those guys wear cute brown shorts). So let’s make some blueberry scones and have sense enough not to entrust them to the US Postal Service EVER AGAIN.
you’ll need: blueberries, flour, butter, lemon, eggs, sanding sugar, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, cream, and vanilla
whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together
cut the butter into the flour
grate lemon zest into the dry mixture
Apparently, these scones are supposed to be like the ones they sell at Starbucks. I don’t actually know what they sell at Starbucks because 1) I don’t drink coffee and 2) we have far too many awesome and independent coffee houses in Boulder. That said, I love to make scones because they are so quick to throw together! But I’ve never made them with fresh berries before.
whisk the cream into the egg and vanilla
combine the wet and dry ingredients
fold in the blueberries
The important thing is to avoid manhandling the dough and the berries. Work the dough too much and your scones will not achieve that nice tender crumb. Be gentle with the blueberries or else they will get squashed and turn parts of the scone dough soggy. Turn the dough out onto a lightly-floured work surface and make two flattened rounds. Cut each round into eighths or however you want the shape to be. I tend to prefer triangular scones, myself. Brush each scone with egg wash and sprinkle with the sanding sugar.
slice the dough rounds
eighths are nice little pie shapes
egg wash
Scones have a tendency to spread a little, so give them space on the baking sheet. I’d also recommend lining your baking sheet with parchment paper because blueberries ooze juice during the baking process and this gets burned onto the baking sheet. Check that the tops and bottoms are golden before taking the scones out of the oven. Let them cool on a cooling rack or else the residual heat from the baking sheet might burn the bottoms.
time for baking
golden and gorgeous
These scones make for a nice breakfast, snack, tea, or even dessert. And there is no better time to make them than when blueberries are in season and at their sweetest. Jeremy loved them and I had to instruct him not to sample too many as I intended them for Jamie. Such a shame the USPS had to botch the gift.
a nice little snackity snack
Blueberry Scones
[print recipe]
based on this recipe
2 cups all-purpose flour
6 tbsps sugar
2 tsps baking powder (1 tsp @8500 ft.)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 lemon, zest of
1 egg
1/2 cup heavy cream, chilled
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 pt. blueberries, fresh
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsps sanding sugar
Preheat oven to 375°F. Sift (I just whisked) the flour, 6 tablespoons of sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles a coarse meal. Mix in the lemon zest. Set aside. In a large bowl, whisk the egg, cream, and vanilla extract together until blended. Stir in the dry ingredients until just combined. Fold the blueberries into the dough. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and form two large rounds of dough about 7 inches in diameter each. Cut each disk of dough into eighths (pie slices). Place the scones on a parchment-lined baking sheet at least an inch apart. Brush the tops of the scones with the egg wash (the beaten egg) and then sprinkle sanding sugar on top. Bake for 17 minutes or until golden. Remove from oven and cool on a cooling rack. Makes 16.
more goodness from the use real butter archives
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cream scones |
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blueberry hand pies |
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blueberry (raspberry) streusel bars with lemon-cream filling |
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friands |
July 12th, 2013 at 5:22 am
These look like the perfect scone, and with all the blueberries we have this is great for the season! Lovely recipe!
July 12th, 2013 at 5:36 am
Mmmm…sitting here eating my blueberries with my Greek yogurt & kind of wishing I had scones instead! I have been asking for sunscreen in a pill form for YEARS. Imagine how much money that company would make. And I never even thought of a mosquito repellant in pill form. Genius!
July 12th, 2013 at 7:27 am
I always love reading your posts, Jen. These look wonderful and I always enjoy your photographs.
July 12th, 2013 at 9:34 am
These look perfect for a lazy Sunday morning…
I never trust the USPO anymore, ever…
July 12th, 2013 at 1:19 pm
Mini scones always taste better to me than large scones. Maybe because they’re such a cute, tiny treat?
My local post office has been marking packages as delivered when they’re at the sort center instead of letting the mail carriers scan them as delivered when they’re actually delivered. My postman says the packages are marked prematurely as delivered so that the postal service’s transit times look better (to whom???), but this practice annoys him because it’s cheating and makes his job more difficult. He’s asked me to complain to higher-ups, whether locally or at the federal level, but I haven’t figured out yet how to do so.
Sunscreen pills exist. They can’t replace topical sunscreen application, but they can help boost your skin’s natural protection by a little bit.
July 12th, 2013 at 4:53 pm
Jen,
I love your blog with great recipes and the fact that you also use high altitude measurements. Your photos make me homesick for CO where I had the great privilege of living for 32yrs. Thankfully my daughter lives in Boulder and works for one of those great coffee houses you mention. So I have a connection to get my Rocky Mtn. Fix! Keep up the good work!
Paula
July 12th, 2013 at 11:06 pm
My job is to ride my bike and eat blueberry scones.
July 13th, 2013 at 8:58 am
I’d like to eat one in the meadow where those flowers are! And just how are the Colorado wild flowers doing? Don’t envy the mosquito part but what a great thing to have to do! I think….
July 13th, 2013 at 9:10 am
Try ‘Skin So Soft’ by Avon for an excellent insect repellant.
July 13th, 2013 at 10:20 am
Victoria…I have always heard that about Avon, Skin SO Soft! I just saw it for sale locally, and may try that myself. Jen, let me know if you want a bottle. It’s impossible to find an AVON lady!
I love love love your wildflower photos! I do not know what to say about the USPS lying.
July 13th, 2013 at 10:49 am
YUM!! And the wildflower shots? Stunning
July 13th, 2013 at 1:34 pm
Hello,
I have tried the recipe, but the dough was not like in the pictures… Very floppy… I could not enen shape it the way you did…
July 13th, 2013 at 7:39 pm
Regarding a mosquito repellent in pill form – ever tried vitamin B1? It works for me. Extremely well (have to take it, daily, for a week or so before it works, but then, the buggies bite everybody ELSE).
July 14th, 2013 at 7:55 pm
Such beautiful photographs… staring at the beautiful blooms, the sunny butter peeking through the flour, the sun-drenched blueberries… I just feel so at peace with the world :) Sorry to hear that your friend’s scones got held up in the post office. What a waste of glorious baking! I’ve never attempted to send any foodstuffs via Australia Post. Quarantine from state to state means that most things get thrown out anyway! Thanks for sharing this gorgeous post with us. I am so excited to try your scone recipe, they look glorious xx
July 16th, 2013 at 9:09 pm
Oh my god I want to design an entire room around that larkspur shot. Gorgeoussssss. Triple back that up on your hard drive because I’ll need to buy it for my new house!
July 21st, 2013 at 4:58 pm
Found your blog looking for blueberry scone recipes. Taking Vitamin A when you want to guard your skin from burning is very useful. It used to be in a product called Silvasun sold in the UK. Not sure of the amount now, but I had asked a pharmacist to suggest an amount and took it for a week before going to Greece, and during the time when I was there. I did use some low factor sun protection as well, but I didn’t burn at all.
July 23rd, 2013 at 6:08 pm
Katrina – ahhh, so jealous of all your blueberries!!
Kristin – I know! I’m WILLING TO PAY for good sunblock/bug repellant in pill form (bonus if they are in one pill!)
Flavia – you are so sweet, my dear. I love you!
Rocky Mountain Woman – I don’t even know what lazy Sunday mornings are anymore. Also – yes, USPS SUCKS.
Justine – ;) I agree. Little foods are so much more fun. What a totally stupid way of dealing with delivery! There is a reason the USPS is bleeding money… because they’re run by a bunch of monkeys. As for sunscreen pills – I need something that blocks the sun, not just helps boost my natural protection ;)
Paula – thanks!
Pey-Lih – okay!
Abbe – the wildflowers were (and still are) spectacular in Colorado this year!
Victoria – yeah, that doesn’t really work so well when the mosquitoes are thick. 100% DEET is more effective.
jill – I’ve tried it years ago and found it was marginally useful for me.
Cindi – :)
Juliana – well, I can only surmise that your measurements may be off. My dough was barely wet enough to smoosh together. Or you could try adding more flour.
Ouida – I’ve never tried it, but that might be worth a shot next year.
laurasmess – such a shame! I’ll have to remember that if I ever ship things around in Australia!
Stephen Andrew – :)
Rachel – interesting! Thanks!
August 9th, 2013 at 1:46 pm
Lovely pictures & the scones looks delicious!
How will they hold up if I were to make them a day ahead? Would I need to reheat? Please advise~!
August 12th, 2013 at 12:57 pm
Thank you for sharing this recipe! These scones were sublime and WAY better than anything I’ve ever had at Starbucks :) I did have to make one minor change; I didn’t have any raw sugar for the tops, so I made a quick lemon glaze and dipped the scones into that…yummy! Thanks again!
August 12th, 2013 at 9:38 pm
May – They should be fine up to a couple of days. Only reheat if you like them warm, otherwise serve at room temperature.
September 8th, 2013 at 10:14 pm
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September 29th, 2013 at 10:19 pm
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March 20th, 2014 at 10:41 am
I have made these scones several times in the past couple months for brunch and as fillers for goody baskets and people love them!! I tweeked it and add more blueberries than it calls for or i have made them with different berries. I know quite the rebel I am. Just wanted to say I love this recipe because its so easy to follow and the scones are truly delicious – so thanks!!
March 21st, 2014 at 1:30 pm
These are the best blueberry scones I have ever made!!!!! I absolutely love your website and recipes – thank you SOOO much for inspiring me!
October 16th, 2014 at 8:27 pm
Hello,
I have a question about your scone recipes. Is there a major difference in taste between this recipe and the cream scone one? Which recipe works best if I add pumpkin puree?
October 18th, 2014 at 10:12 am
Jenn – well, slight difference in texture. The berries make this recipe more “moist”. I like the flavor and texture of both. I am not sure how well they will work if you add pumpkin purée, because that adds a lot more moisture to the batter. You may want to adjust the dry ingredients or perhaps use a recipe that has already been tested for pumpkin scones. Plus, if you add pumpkin you may want to change the sugar to brown sugar and add other spices as well. I see Joy the Baker has used buttermilk instead of cream.
October 19th, 2014 at 11:17 pm
Thank you so much!
August 24th, 2015 at 9:07 pm
You’re killing me…………..I love your blog!!!!! I bake professionally, ski, dabble in photography, forage for morels, swear like a truck driver, blog (well, just starting) and I’ve unhappily donated blood to most of the mosquitos population in the mid-west (I’d buy those magic pills too!).
Is your local coffee shop the one in Lyons? Are you one of those crazy strong bikers that ride up and down route 36?
Anyway, I can’t wait to try out some of your Asian recipes. Thanks for sharing them!
September 10th, 2015 at 7:50 pm
Wendy – the local coffee shop is the local shop in crested butte. It’s Camp 4 Coffee (excellent). I don’t ride on roads, only trails. I just don’t trust cars and trucks…
May 25th, 2017 at 8:09 pm
dear jenyu,
i made your blueberry scone recipe. it was very hard to fold in the blueberries without smashing them. could i slightly freeze them then add them in to prevent them from crushing. i am from louisiana and i love scones.
a friend in baking
May 26th, 2017 at 7:18 am
Becky – Yes, I think you could freeze them, but perhaps you could also pull the dough into quarters, flatten the dough a little, then sprinkle some blueberries on top of one piece, place another piece on top and so on. Then gently press it all together, fold it once or twice? Some will inevitably get smashed, especially if the blueberries are very ripe. Hope that helps!
September 6th, 2017 at 11:18 am
I’ve made this recipe a few times now and I just wanted to say thanks for such an easy and great recipe! They take no time to toss together and come out so yummy and flakey! This is my go to recipe when I’m in the mood for scones. Sometimes I’ll play around with it – like adding some orange zest or almond extract and sprinkle almonds with the sugar on top. Any way I make it they don’t last long lol
December 12th, 2020 at 1:06 pm
Julianne i have the same experience ! Well mine did not turn out at all. I am a well seasoned baker, i prefer my scones to have a bit of cream brushed over them instead of an egg wash. I now have a baking pan of scone-bars! I carefully measure everything as I bake. PO
December 15th, 2020 at 12:21 pm
Shirlee – Based on your (and Julianne’s) descriptions, I think there is a discrepancy in the amount of flour being used – especially if the dough cannot hold its shape to be cut. That’s one of the reasons I include step-by-step photos, so one can compare their progress against my photos. My guess is that you may be weighing or sifting your flour whereas I am doing the scoop and level method in this recipe. If no weights are given, I typically scoop, then shake the flour out (to make it less densely packed) and then scoop again before leveling, but it’s still going to result in more flour than if you weighed your flour or sifted it then measured. I hope that addresses the problem.
May 26th, 2021 at 5:41 am
Turned out beautifully! I didn’t do the egg wash but mixed powdered sugar with lemon juice for a light glaze. What surprised me was that the blueberries that were cut when cutting the triangles didn’t “seep” all over the baking sheet – yay!
April 13th, 2022 at 9:17 am
Can the dough be frozen if I wanted to make the dough one day and bake it another?
April 13th, 2022 at 9:27 am
Elizabeth – Yes, you can freeze the dough! But I’ve read that it’s best to shape and cut the scones, then freeze them. When frozen solid, bag them in an airtight bag or container and store in the freezer. When you are ready to bake, take the scones out of the freezer and arrange on parchment or silpat while the oven preheats. Apply your cream or egg wash and finishing sugar and then pop in the oven. You may have to adjust the baking time, so be sure to start checking them frequently around the original baking time (in case they need more time). Good luck!
December 1st, 2022 at 10:11 pm
Olá Jenyu sou do Brasil e amei sua receita !
Conheci essa receita outro dia e fiz ontem.
A massa ficou um pouinho mole, mas fui pondo um pouco de farinha por cima e conseguir modelar. Achei uma receita rápida e deliciosa !
Amei suas fotos das flores, ficaram lindas !
E obrigada pela receita !