These lemon blueberry almond flour scones are tender and punctuated with a fine nuttiness from the use of almond flour. There's a punch of citrus in the dough and in the sweet lemony glaze, and fresh blueberries are speckled throughout. They are really delicious and I hope you give them a try -they're great for those following gluten free diets or for those who just, you know, love to eat tasty things.
What do I need to make gluten free scones?
Let's discuss a few of the important ingredients in this recipe:
- Almond Flour: Finely ground almond flour makes super tasty baked goods for those who need (or want) to avoid gluten or who prefer to use a more complex carbohydrate than traditional white wheat flours offer. Scones made with almond flour have a slightly nutty, robust flavor and a texture that's a bit more tender/fragile than those made with other flours. I have only tested this recipe using finely-ground almond flour, so I'm not sure how using other flours will result.
- Egg: A large beaten egg is an important ingredient in these scones. The egg acts as a binder for the almond flour and will help hold everything together.
- Honey: I used my favorite organic honey to sweeten these scones. You can also use maple syrup or agave syrup. If you would like to use a low carb or totally sugar free sweetener, try using ¼ tsp of pure liquid stevia. If you do this, add 2 TBS of almond milk to the dough to replace the liquid lost.
- Frozen Grated Butter: I use a small amount of butter so the solid fat can do lovely things to both the texture and flavor of the scones. I place ¼ stick (2 TBS) of unsalted butter into the freezer for an hour or so before I begin baking, and then grate it directly into my dry ingredients. Using frozen butter instead of just "fridge cold" gives the butter some extra time before it starts to soften before the scones are baked, which will prevent excessive spreading in the oven. If you frequently make pastries, I recommend keeping a stick of butter in your freezer at all times. That way you can grate what you need, put the rest in the freezer, and replace as needed. You'll love the difference in your pastry recipes!
- Lemon Zest and Juice: One single lemon will be enough zest to add a nice citrus hit to the dough and the glaze.
- Powdered Sugar or Swerve Confectioner's: Powdered sugar is used to add sweetness and structure to the glaze, but those of you watching the sugar are in luck, because Swerve Confectioner's will work perfectly in its place!
- Greek Yogurt: The creaminess of plain Greek yogurt keeps the scones moist and adds even more protein. Between the almond flour, egg, and the yogurt, this is one protein-loaded treat!
A Few Tips For Working With Almond Flour
Almond flour works well in most baking applications, but there are a few things to keep in mind to ensure success:
- It browns quickly. Most almond flour recipes use a lower temperature so that the whole thing bakes through before the top gets too brown. Traditionally, scones are baked in a very hot oven, but this recipe keeps the temp down at 350F.
- Don't pack the flour. This is a good tip for any flour, but is especially important with almond flour. For best results, gently spoon the flour into the measuring cup until it's heaping, and then level it off with a butter knife.
- Liquid may vary. Almond flour absorbs less liquid than regular flour, so recipes need less liquid to get the dough to come together. Even still, since brands of almond flour vary wildly, I've left a note in the recipe about adding extra flour (or liquid) if the dough is too loose or too dense. Like any pastry, it's a "feel thing". You don't want it to be loose and wet, but you also don't want it to be chalky and dry.
Can I Freeze These Scones?
Yes, these will do well in the freezer! To freeze before baking, follow the recipe to the end of step 5 - aside from preheating the oven - and wrap the disc tightly in plastic wrap. To bake the frozen scones, remove them from the freezer and remove the plastic wrap. Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet while your oven is pre-heating. Bake as directed, increasing the bake time a bit until the scones are done (just check them frequently)
To freeze after baking, make sure the scones are completely cool before attempting to move them. Wrap each individual wedge in plastic wrap and then place the wedges in a freezer-safe plastic bag.
With either method, I recommend using them within a few months for best flavor.
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Almond Flour Lemon Blueberry Scones
- Total Time: 25 mins
- Yield: 8 scones 1x
Description
Almond flour scones with fresh lemon and blueberry, drizzled with a lemony glaze, offer a gluten free alternative to this wonderful breakfast pastry.
Ingredients
- 2 cups finely-ground almond flour, spooned and leveled + more as needed.
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 TBS lemon zest
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 TBS unsalted frozen butter, grated
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt
- 3 TBS honey
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ⅔ cup fresh blueberries
Lemon Glaze:
- ¼ cup powdered sugar or Swerve confectioner (for sugar free)
- 1 TBS fresh lemon juice
- 1-2 TBS milk or heavy cream (or as needed for desired consistency)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F with the rack in the center position. Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a bowl, stir together the almond flour, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt.
- Add the grated frozen butter to the bowl and stir it around until the pieces of butter separate and are evenly dispersed into the dry ingredients.
- Add the Greek yogurt, honey, beaten egg, and vanilla extract. Stir until just incorporated. If the dough seems loose (won't hold its shape), add in more almond flour 2 tablespoons at a time until it holds its shape when you push it around with a spoon. The dough should not be wet and should also not be too stiff. Gently fold in the blueberries.
- Scrape the dough out onto the prepared baking sheet and press into a flat disc shape about ¾" tall. Use a knife or bench scraper to cut into 8 equal wedges.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. If edges start to brown too much before the center is done, tent the outside edges with foil to prevent them from burning.
- Almond flour baked goods are extremely fragile when warm, so allow the scones to cool completely before trying to move them.
- While the scones are cooling, make the glaze by whisking together all 3 ingredients. If you want a thinner consistency, add more milk or cream. If you want it thicker, add more sugar/Swerve.
- Drizzle the glaze onto the scones and serve. Keep leftovers in the refrigerator.
Notes
See post above for freezing instructions.
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
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5 star taste! 4 star dough; This is a very good almond flour scone recipe—-but I did add 1/3 cup brown rice flour to get the dough to a ‘scone’ consistency; formed the dough into individual scones after reading other reviews; Baked for 22 min and they came out perfect. Thank you for a very easy and delicious low carb/low sugar recipe.
★★★★★
Thank you so much for your feedback!! It'll help other home bakers when they make it, too.
Really yummy recipe... I had to add a LOT of extra almond flour (probably between 1/2-1 c.) and even added a little all purpose GF flour since it was so sticky. It's hard finding almond flour recipes that aren't keto (I have celiac), so I appreciated this one. Even my non-celiac husband loved them.
★★★★★
I've made these several more times and have them perfected. I just follow the recipe but add a 1/2 c. GF Flour blend and they turn out absolutely perfect! Everyone in the family loves them.
★★★★
Thank you for sharing your variation! I'm glad you love them!
I made mine way to big lol I had used frozen blueberries which made it a little bit more sticky added lots more almond flour there just coming out of the oven in about five mins Will be making them again
★★★★★
Would it be possible to use gluten free flour instead of almonds? Any ideas on how to bump up the protein with out the almond flour? Thanks.
Can you use coconut flour instead of the almond flour? I can do almonds.
Hey Becky. This recipe wouldn't be a good candidate for coconut flour as written as you only need a fraction of coconut flour to almond flour (1/4 cup coconut flour per 1 cup almond flour). I looked that ratio up as I have not had personal experience working with almond flour, so proceed with caution if you try this as the results might not be what you're looking for and I'd hate to have you waste ingredients! Happy baking and thanks for visiting!
These look delicious...Just a note. On Instagram, there are no listed ingredients for almond flour....I read it twice and could not find it.
Arghhh- my scones were wet, did not rise and were still under baked in center with 25 min baking time. I added 4 extra Tbsp almond flour but stopped there because I worried they’d get tough with over mixing as is common with ‘quick breads’. Oven differences not withstanding I’m not sure what I did wrong . I love the ingredient list snd followed it to a T. Very sad.
Hi Michelle, that is certainly frustrating - I'm sorry you had that experience with this recipe! Let me see if I can offer you (and other readers) some troubleshooting tips, since baking with almond flour can be quite tricky. Because almond flour is dense and does not have gluten, it will not rise as much as traditional flours, so the rise in these scones will not be as dramatic as with a scone made with wheat flour.
Almond flour is naturally more moist and the amount of moisture will vary between brands and how the almonds are processed before being ground into flour. That's the main reason for me encouraging the addition of extra flour in the directions if dough is too wet. If your dough was wet when it went into the oven, it definitely could have benefitted from even more almond flour spooned into the dough.
The blueberries in the dough will vary in exactly how much juice they release. If your berries were particularly juicy this likely exacerbated the texture problem.
Finally, if the scones were brown on the edges and underdone in the center, this was in part due to the wetter texture of the dough. However, if the scones need an extra few minutes to finish baking in the center, tent the outside edges with foil to prevent them from becoming too brown (almond flour browns much faster and can burn easier than wheat flours)
I hope this helps if you decide to give this recipe another try - I find that each time I make it I use a different amount of flour. It really is a feel thing based on the particular makeup of the ingredients I'm working with that day (much like when you're bringing together a traditional yeasted dough). Thanks for giving the recipe a try!
We really enjoyed these - the lemon glaze was a perfect finish.
★★★★★
These were fantastic! I used a more coarse almond flour so I spooned in a little extra just until the dough held its shape and they baked off fine.
★★★★★
I made these day a boy were they delicious! I didn’t use the glaze listed. Instead I combined vanilla Greek yogurt with a little milk, a little lemon juice, and a teaspoon of honey. Oh, I also used 1/4 cup of egg beaters instead of an egg to cut down on cholesterol. I had to add slightly more Almond flour to get the right consistency.
Would frozen blueberries work in this recipe?
Yes, that should work fine!
Hello! This recipe sounds terrific. Wondering if I could substitute dairy free sour cream for the Greek yogurt?
Thank you!
I'm sorry I missed this comment! I know it's late, but for others who may be asking the same thing, this substitution should work well as long as the consistency of your sour cream is similar to Greek yogurt.
These look Delish! What is the nutritional value with no honey and replacing with Swerve?
Hey there! I actually wouldn't recommend replacing the honey with swerve as that will alter the liquid content of the recipe. You can, however, use Swerve Confectioner's in place of the powdered sugar in the glaze. Hope this helps!
I made these tonight using exact ingredients, no substitutes. The dough was not as thick as say cookie dough but maybe like a brownie batter. I think it may have been to thin. At 20 min it didn’t seem done so I went to 22min. Browned at the top, but even when completely cooled, it did not set up enough to pick it up by hand. We had to use a fork. Thoughts? Thanks
Hi Kim, sorry I'm late with this comment - almond flours are so varied in their texture that I'm gonna bet that yours needed a bit extra flour to form the dough. Mine was not as thick as cookie dough, per se, but it is supposed to hold its shape when placed onto the baking sheet. Sorry it didn't work out for you - hopefully you give it another try!
I just realized I read your comment incorrectly! Revision: I wouldn't recommend omitting the honey due to what I said above - it will alter the liquid content of the recipe. To replace the powdered sugar with swerve, you can find the nutritional content here: https://swervesweet.com/products/swerve-confectioners
Hey Teresa, Figure this out yourself. ANNOYING comment.