Looking for the best gluten-free scones recipe? These easy scones are adaptable for a variety of flavors – blueberry, chocolate chip, apple cinnamon, or mixed berry. They are so tender and fluffy, no one will know they are in fact gluten-free!
Easy recipe for gluten-free scones
Learn how to make light, buttery, flaky scones with this easy gluten-free recipe! Whether you’ve never made scones before, or have been unsuccessful with a gluten-free versions, these scones are about to change your life!
The dough is versatile for savory, like gluten-free cheese scones, or sweet, like chocolate chip or blueberry scones with a creamy glaze. The recipe also includes metric measurements to be used universally.
Ingredients needed
Below are the suggested ingredients for sweet scones, but this gluten free recipe may be adapted for many other versions. Scroll down for more variations, including fruit scones, savory, or chocolate chip!
- Gluten-free flour – The most essential criteria for achieving the best scone is starting with a quality flour. Through my baking experiments for the website, and when writing my gluten-free cookbook, I’ve found Cup4Cup to be superior, but for an alternative gluten-free flour blend see my best gluten-free flour resource.
- Granulated sugar – Reduce the amount of sugar for a less sweet or savory scone.
- Butter – For flakiness and easy handling of the dough, the butter should be well-chilled.
- Sour cream – Gives the tang of buttermilk, but keeps dough sturdier to help structure. Plain yogurt may also be substituted.
- Egg yolk – Since gluten-free flour doesn’t absorb liquids as readily, use just the yolk to help with binding, while reducing liquid.
- Mix-ins – Fresh or frozen blueberries, berries, chocolate chips, apples, or dried fruit.
How To Make gluten-free scones recipe
To keep the recipe easy and no-fail, each step is broken down. Make sure the butter and yogurt are well chilled to maintain a tender texture, instead of dense and hard. Also, for best results, do not skip resting the dough in the refrigerator before baking.
(Below shows step-by-step photos and modified instructions. For the complete recipe, along with ingredient amounts, scroll down to the recipe card.)
- Begin by whisking together the dry ingredients – gluten-free flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
- Use a pastry blender, fork, or your fingers to cut in the cold butter until there are small, uniform crumbly pieces.
- At this point I like to stir in the blueberries, or other stir-ins, to not overmix the dough. Also, the flour coats the blueberries, keeping them evenly distributed throughout.
- Whisk together the wet ingredients – sour cream, yolk, and vanilla extract. Stir into the flour / blueberry mixture.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes while the oven preheats. This gives time for the moisture to absorb into the starches, avoiding a gritty texture.
- On a baking tray with greased parchment paper, shape the dough into a 7″ disc, 1″ thick. Use a sharp knife to cut into 8 triangles.
- Spread the scones out, brush tops with milk or cream, and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
- Bake on the LOWER MIDDLE rack for 16-18 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. Allow the scones to cool for 5 minutes on the pan before transferring to a wire rack.
- If topping with the glaze, mix together the ingredients and use a small spoon to drizzle on the frosting.
one dough for many scone flavors!
Gluten-free scones recipes come in many flavors. Just like in this gluten-free strawberry muffin recipe, this versatile dough makes a variety of tastes!
- Gluten-Free Blueberry Scones – Mix in 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries in the dry ingredients before adding yogurt mixture.
- Blueberry Lemon Scones – Add 1 tablespoon lemon zest to the dry ingredients. For a lemon glaze, combine the powdered sugar with 1 tablespoon lemon juice.
- Savory Scones – Reduce or omit the sugar and leave out blueberries. For cheddar scones, follow this recipe for gluten-free cheese scones.
- Apricot – Omit the berries and add 1/2 cup diced, dried apricots.
- Chocolate Chip – Replace the blueberries with 1 cup mini chocolate chips.
- Apple Cinnamon – Add 1 teaspoon cinnamon to the dry ingredients and mix in 1 1/2 cups peeled, diced apples.
- Mixed Berry – Mix in 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen strawberries, raspberries, or blackberries in the dry ingredients before adding yogurt mixture.
Storing, freezing, and make-ahead tips
Storing: They may be kept in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days, but will lose optimal taste and texture quickly. Refrigerating will dry out the scones, and is not recommended.
Freezing: If not enjoying the same day, individually wrap the scones after they have completely cooled (at least 3 hours). Transfer to a ziplock freezer bag and freeze up to 3 months.
Thaw on the counter for 1 hour or, for a grab-and-go breakfast, unwrap and defrost in the microwave.
Make-Ahead: To bake the scones right before serving, shape the dough in triangles and place the baking tray in the freezer until they are solid. Wrap the unbaked scones in plastic wrap and transfer to a ziplock freezer bag. Freeze up to 3 months.
To bake, place unwrapped, frozen scones on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake at 425ºF (220ºC), extending the baking time by a few minutes.
Go to this free and valuable gluten-free baking resource for more storage and freezing tips!
how to fix common problems
In order to make the best scones that taste anything but gluten-free, some common problems needed to be addressed.
Crumbly – Gluten-free flour lacks gluten, which makes dough bind together. Make sure your all-purpose gluten-free flour contains xanthan gum to mimic the elasticity in flour. Also using an egg helps as a binder.
Dense – This can be a combination of things, such as not using enough leavener or overmixing. Gluten-free baking recipes need more assist with rising, so adding a touch more baking powder in scones helps. To help with overmixing, add the blueberries with the flour so you are not overworking the dough to incorporate them at the end.
Grittiness – For the scones, I use the same technique as in the fluffy gluten-free biscuits recipe to avoid a gritty texture. Letting the dough sit before baking allows for the moisture to absorb into the starches, avoiding grittiness.
expert tips and tricks
- The butter and sour cream / yogurt should be well-chilled for a flaky texture.
- Add the blueberries or other mix-ins to the flour mixture before stirring in the wet ingredients. This prevents over-mixing to incorporate everything.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes before shaping and cutting. This gives time for the moisture to absorb into the starches, avoiding a gritty texture.
Click here to see the
step-by-step web story instructions for this recipe!
If you love gluten-free scones recipes, try these!
- Gluten-Free Banana Bread
- Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins with Cream Cheese Glaze
- Sausage Muffins with Cheese
- Easy Applesauce Muffins
- Gluten-Free Cinnamon Bread
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Gluten-Free Scones
Ingredients
Gluten Free Scones
- 1 ¾ cup (245 g) gluten-free all purpose flour, (I use and recommend Cup4Cup brand)
- ⅓ cup (67 g) sugar
- 1 tablespoon (14 g) baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoons (85 g) unsalted butter, chopped into ½” pieces and chilled
- ⅔ cup (153 g) sour cream (may substitute yogurt)
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups (222 g) fresh or frozen blueberries, berries (see recipe notes for other stir-ins)
Optional Topping
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) milk or cream
- 1 tablespoon turbinado (coarse) sugar
Optional Glaze
- ½ cup (60 g) powdered sugar
- ½ – 1 tablespoon (15 ml) milk or cream
- ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large bowl whisk together the gluten-free flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Use a pastry blender or fork to cut in chopped butter until the butter is uniformly mixed with the flour in very small, crumbly pieces.
- In a small bowl whisk together the sour cream, egg, and vanilla extract. First, gently stir fresh or frozen fruit, or other mix-ins, into the flour mixture. Then, pour in sour cream mixture and gently combine until no flour pockets remain. The dough will be quite thick. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes while the oven preheats.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
- Place the dough in the center of the prepared baking sheet and shape it into a ball. Flatten the dough with your hands into a 7-inch (18 cm) disc, 1-inch (2.5-cm)–thick. If the dough is sticking, spray your fingers with cooking spray to shape. Cut the disc into 8 triangles, using a sharp knife. Use a small spatula to spread the cut scones around the baking sheet so they are about 2 inches (5-cm) apart.
- If topping with sugar, brush on milk or cream and sprinkle tops with sugar. Bake on the LOWER MIDDLE rack for 16-18 minutes, rotating halfway through, until the tops and bottoms start to turn golden brown. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.
- For glaze, mix together ingredients. The glaze should be thin enough to drizzle on, but thick enough it stays on the scone. Place a piece of waxed paper under the cooling rack and then use a small spoon to drizzle glaze over the tops. Allow glaze to harden before stacking or storing.
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Equipment Needed
Recipe Notes
optional mix-ins and flavors
- Blueberry Lemon Scones – Add 1 tablespoon lemon zest to the dry ingredients. For a lemon glaze, combine the powdered sugar with 1 tablespoon lemon juice.
- Savory Scones – Reduce or omit the sugar and leave out blueberries. For cheddar scones, follow this recipe for gluten-free cheese scones.
- Apricot – Omit the berries and add 1/2 cup diced, dried apricots.
- Chocolate Chip – Replace the blueberries with 1 cup mini chocolate chips.
- Apple Cinnamon – Add 1 teaspoon cinnamon to the dry ingredients and mix in 1 1/2 cups peeled, diced apples.
- Mixed Berry – Mix in 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen strawberries, raspberries, or blackberries in the dry ingredients before adding yogurt mixture.
Storing, freezing, and make-ahead tips
Storing: They may be kept in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days, but will lose optimal taste and texture quickly. Refrigerating will dry out the scones, and is not recommended.
Freezing: If not enjoying the same day, individually wrap the scones after they have completely cooled (at least 3 hours). Transfer to a ziplock freezer bag and freeze up to 3 months.
Thaw on the counter for 1 hour or, for a grab-and-go breakfast, unwrap and defrost in the microwave.
Make-Ahead: To bake the scones right before serving, shape the dough in triangles and place the baking tray in the freezer until they are solid. Wrap the unbaked scones in plastic wrap and transfer to a ziplock freezer bag. Freeze up to 3 months.
To bake, place unwrapped, frozen scones on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake at 425ºF (220ºC), extending the baking time by a few minutes.
Nutrition
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Cristina Santini says
Excellent and delicious!!!
Melissa says
Thank you so much, Cristina!
Cici says
I tried this and it came out great! I’d like to try this with raisins, which should be fine, but I would like to add fine-ground flaxseed for a little more texture and flavor. Can I substitute it for some of the flour?
Melissa says
Hi Cici,
Yes, raisins would be fine as well as ground flaxseed. I would replace 1/4 cup flour with an equal amount of ground flaxseed. Great suggestion!
Best,
Melissa
Cici says
Recipe lists 1/2 tsp (5 mL) vanilla for batter and for glaze.
A full teaspoon = 5 mL.
Which is correct?
I’m planning to make these today.
Melissa says
Hi Cici,
You are correct. It is 1/2 tsp, but usually such a small amount of mL is rounded up. A 1/2 tsp more of vanilla wouldn’t hurt anything, but I will change the mL just to avoid any confusion. Thanks for writing!
Melissa