Carrot Cake Scones

Tips for Making These Scones

Here are a few tips to get perfect scones every time:

Keep your butter as cold as possible. When you cut cold butter into your mixture, it stays solid until it goes into the oven. Once the scones start to bake, the butter melts and creates those flaky layers that we all love. When making your scones, keep the butter in the fridge (or even the freezer) right up to the moment that you need to use it.

Don’t overmix your dough. Overmixing your dough leads to tough and chewy scones, which nobody wants! After adding in your liquid ingredients, make sure to only mix until just combined.

Chill your scones in the freezer before baking. Chilling the scones in the freezer for at least 30 minutes before baking lets them firm up and helps the gluten relax. This also helps keep the butter cold, which enhances those beautiful layers.

Drizzle the glaze on the scones while they’re still a bit hot. Don’t drizzle the glaze immediately after the scones come out of the oven, but don’t wait too long either. If the scones are still a bit warm, they will soak up the glaze and taste just that much more delicious.

Tray full of carrot cake scones next to cream cheese frosting

Common Questions About These Scones

Does the butter temperature matter when making scones?

Yes — when making scones, it’s essential that the butter is as cold as possible. By using very cold butter, it stays solid until it hits the heat of the oven. Then, it melts in the oven, creating flaky layers and helping the scones rise.

Can you use pre-shredded carrots?

For this recipe, I highly recommend shredding the carrots yourself. The pre-shredded carrots you get from the grocery store are usually hard and dry, so they won't produce soft and moist scones.

How long do these scones stay fresh?

After they’ve completely cooled, you can keep these scones in an airtight container for up to 2-3 days at room temperature. You can also wrap them in plastic and keep them in the freezer for up to 3 months.

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Carrot Cake Scones

★★★★

3.7 from 3 reviews

Author: Leslie Jeon
Total Time: 1 hour
Yield: 8 scones 1x

Print Recipe

Description

A unique spin on the classic Easter dessert, these Carrot Cake Scones are moist and flavorful! Packed with shredded carrots and spices, these scones make a delicious breakfast or dessert.

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400°F (204.4°C). Line a sheet tray with parchment paper and set aside.
Make the scones: In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, light brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and grated carrot. Then, use a pastry cutter or a fork to cut in the butter until the butter is about lentil-sized. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, ¾ cup heavy cream, and vanilla extract. Add the liquids to the flour mixture and mix until just combined.
Transfer the dough to the parchment paper-lined sheet tray and pat into a circle. If the dough is sticky, sprinkle a bit of flour on the dough. Continue patting the dough until it is about an 8-inch disk. Then, use a bench scraper or knife to cut the circle into 8 wedges. Pull the wedges out a bit so that there is space in between each scone.
Freeze the scones for at least 30 minutes. This allows the gluten to relax and helps them firm up before baking.
After the 30 minutes, remove the scones from the freezer, then brush the tops with heavy cream. Sprinkle the tops liberally with turbinado sugar.
Bake the scones in the preheated oven for 25-28 minutes, or until they’re golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle of one comes out clean.
Make the cream cheese glaze: When the scones have just come out of the oven, whisk together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk. While they are still warm, drizzle the glaze over the scones and serve.
Wrap any leftovers in an airtight container, and store at room temperature for 2-3 days.