These simple bakery-style sourdough scones, made with buttermilk and sourdough discard, bake up with a subtle tang that balances their rich, buttery crumb. Crack through that crisp, caramelized top and you’ll find a soft, tender, fluffy interior with a delicate hint of vanilla. Warm from the oven, they are ready for a smear of clotted cream and jam – deeply satisfying in the very best way.
This simple recipe is one of my favorite ways to use up that jar of sourdough discard waiting in the fridge. It yields 8 generous sized scones (or 12 smaller ones, just make sure to reduce bake time slightly). They’re perfect for breakfast or an afternoon treat, and they freeze beautifully so you can tuck a few away for a rainy day.
Ingredients for sourdough scones
You’ll need all the same ingredients to make sourdough biscuits, plus egg and vanilla – these are the only major differences between my scones and my biscuits! If you want to skip ahead, the complete list of ingredients with quantities is in the recipe card at the end of this post, as always.
Notes on key ingredients
- Buttermilk, starter discard, egg and butter should all be cold.
- I use 100% hydration sourdough starter discard, just like all my other sourdough discard recipes. You can choose to use ripe sourdough starter as well for these scones but it will not contribute to the rise. What helps these rise are the chemical leaveners – baking powder and baking soda.
- If you don’t have buttermilk, you can substitute about half a tablespoon of lemon juice plus enough regular whole milk to make half a cup (or 120 grams), stir together and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Or you can use half whole milk and half sour cream or yogurt mixed together. Just keep in mind that your substitution needs to be acidic to react with baking soda.
- I based this recipe on Wild Wild Whisk’s popular buttermilk scones but I add a tad more sugar to balance out the tanginess of the sourdough discard. You can easily adjust the amount of sugar in these scones to your liking and preference without needing to make any other changes.
- You can use granulated sugar for the topping but I usually like to sprinkle a little bit of turbinado sugar (not pictured) on top instead for some crunch.
Make sourdough discard scones with me!
Love seeing each step in photos? Follow along visually as we whip up these scones for tea time. Otherwise, you can skip ahead, detailed instructions are in the recipe card below.
1. Cut butter into flour
Combine dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and incorporate cold butter with a pastry blender or by pressing it into the flour with the tips of your fingers.
2. Mix egg with buttermilk
Whisk together egg and buttermilk in another mixing bowl and reserve 2 tablespoons to use as egg wash.
3. Prepare the wet ingredients
Whisk in sourdough discard and vanilla to complete the wet ingredient mixture.
4. Form the dough
Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid mixture. Fold with a spatula to form a shaggy dough. Cover and rest in the fridge for about 10-15 mins.
5. First roll and fold
Roll out the dough and fold in thirds, like a letter. Use your bench scraper to help you lift the dough from the surface.
6. Second fold
Turn the dough 90 degrees, roll out and fold in thirds again. Feel free to do this once or twice more.
7. Cut the scones
Pat the dough out to about 1″ thick and cut into 8 with your bench scraper by pressing it straight down. Use flour to prevent sticking. Freeze for 30 minutes.
8. Bake
Place frozen scones on a lined baking sheet, brush on the reserved egg wash and sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Bake for 10 mins at 450°F, and then 12-13 mins at 400°F.
Baker’s tips
- How much to work the butter – You want visible pieces of butter still in the dough since this will melt when it hits the hot oven, creating steam, lifting the scones, giving them height as well as layers. But be mindful not to leave the pieces too large because they can melt and leak out of the scones, leaving them too dry in the end.
- Resting the dough – You will notice that the recipe calls for resting the dough in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes after mixing. If you start working on this dough right away, it will be quite wet and sticky. I find that resting the dough helps make it easier to work with, and you will only need very minimal flour for dusting, maybe about 2 tablespoons of extra flour while rolling and shaping.
- Folding layers – Similar to making croissants or Danish pastry, and even pie dough and sourdough biscuits, folding the dough over itself creates layers, making the scones “flaky” when baked. The more times you fold, the more layers you’ll create. I recommend folding this dough at least twice.
- Freezing before baking – This scone dough will spread, freezing the scones before baking will not eliminate all spread but will definitely help curb it.
- Oven temperatures – You’ll notice I bake these scones at 2 oven temperatures. The first half of the bake, I use a higher temperature – 450°F – to get oven spring, more height, and to set the exterior of the scones. The second half of the bake, I reduce it to 400°F to fully cook the center of the scones without burning the exterior.
- Customize it – This base dough is ready for all sorts of customizations using citrus zest – like these lemon scones with poppy seeds, different flavor extracts and spices – like these cinnamon scones, as well as adding filling such as dried fruits, fresh fruit – like these blueberry scones, nuts, chocolate chips, ect. They are endlessly adaptable!
Sourdough Scones Recipe
Equipment
- Mixing Bowls
- Bench Scraper
- Rolling Pin
- Baking Sheet
Ingredients
- 270 grams (2 cup) all-purpose flour about 2 cup
- 12 grams (1 tablespoon) baking powder
- 2 grams (¼ teaspoon) baking soda
- 3 grams (½ teaspoon) kosher salt
- 100 grams (½ cup) granulated sugar
- 113 grams (4 oz) unsalted butter cold
- 120 grams (½ cup) buttermilk cold
- 1 large egg cold
- 5 grams (1 teaspoon) pure vanilla extract 1 teaspoon
- 120 grams (½ cup) sourdough starter discard 100% hydration, cold, < ½ cup
- Turbinado sugar for topping
Instructions
- Prepare dry ingredients – Sift flour, baking soda and baking powder into a large mixing bowl, add kosher salt and sugar, whisk to combine.270 grams all-purpose flour, 12 grams baking powder, 2 grams baking soda, 3 grams kosher salt, 100 grams granulated sugar
- Cut in the butter – Add cold cubed butter to the flour mixture, work the butter into the flour with your fingertips or a pastry blender until all the butter pieces are about pea and lima bean size.113 grams unsalted butter
- Prepare wet ingredients – Add cold buttermilk and egg to another mixing bowl, whisk to combine. Reserve 2 tablespoons in a small bowl to use as egg wash later.120 grams buttermilk, 1 large egg
- Incorporate sourdough discard – Add sourdough discard and vanilla to the buttermilk mixture and whisk to combine.5 grams pure vanilla extract, 120 grams sourdough starter discard
- Make the dough – Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and pour in the liquid mixture. Fold with a spatula or wooden spoon until a shaggy dough forms. Cover and rest in the refrigerator for 10 to 15 minutes to allow the dough to hydrate.
- Roll and fold the dough – Scrape the dough out onto a well-floured board or countertop, and roll out into a rectangle about ½” thick. Fold the dough in thirds, like folding a letter. Rotate 90 degrees, roll it out again and fold in thirds, at least one more time. Finally, shape the dough into a rectangle about 1” thick. Cut into 8 portions. Put them on a small baking sheet or large plate that fits your freezer and freeze for about 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Bake the scones – Place the frozen scones on a lined baking sheet, brush the top and sides with the reserved egg wash, and sprinkle generously with turbinado sugar. Bake at 450°F for 10 minutes. Then lower the oven temperature to 400°F and bake for another 12 to 13 minutes until golden brown.Turbinado sugar for topping
- Cool – Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet 5 – 10 minutes before transferring the scones to a wire rack to cool completely. Best served warm.
Notes
- These sourdough scones will keep at room temperature for a few days in an airtight container. You can also freeze them for 3 to 6 months for long term storage.
- Reheat in the toaster oven or in the regular oven at 325°F-350°F for 5 – 7 minutes. My toaster oven/air fryer tends to run hot so I always use the lower temperature setting.
- Customize this recipe using citrus zest, different flavor extracts and spices, as well as adding filling such as dried fruits, fresh fruit, nuts, chocolate chips, ect.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
