That’s right everybody: Lemon Lavender Scones!
Lemon!
And Lavender!
IN SCONES!
Are you ready for this elegant combination?
If you know what’s good for you, you definitely should be. And if not, you better get ready. And fast.
I have a sneaking suspicion that these easy, elegant scones are going to be your go-to brunch recipe for every summer weekend from here-on-out.
In fact, we’re all going to be looking for excuses to have brunch because Lemon Lavender Scones must make their weekly appearance.
THE PERFECT TIME FOR LEMON LAVENDER SCONES
Speaking of brunches… is there anything better than a scone with coffee at a lazy weekend brunch? Or even at a brunch where you’re expected to put on some nicer clothes and are sipping mimosas.
Like, I don’t know, a bridal shower brunch?! I swear every friend I’ve ever had got married this past year. Which means a whole lot of bridal showers. My gal pals, my brunch buddies, they’re all gettin’ hitched!
And eventually the bridal showers will turn into baby showers, and that means a whole lot more scones to be had. Anyone else feel like they’ve been to ALL the showers lately?
Now, what’s a single girl to do with all this love and marriage around?! Bring Lemon Lavender Scones to each and every occasion, that’s what!
While scones are the perfect addition to brunch – and these ones are so easy to make! – they don’t need to be secluded to this singular event. I’m a huge fan of having scones with tea in the afternoon (maybe I have some UK vibes in me?).
And dare I say…dessert? I’m thinking Lemon Lavender Scones, with a scoop of ice cream – how about lavender ice cream? Or honey? Then toss in some fresh blueberries, and a drizzle of honey with fresh mint leaves on top? Holy cow, I think we just perfected a light, spring-summer dessert.
BAKING WITH LAVENDER
Until now, lavender played a purely help-me-calm-the-heck-down type role in my life. It was the essential oil I’d diffuse after a long day when I needed some relaxation, the one I’d drop in my bubble bath, the one I’d slather on my wrists when I couldn’t sleep.
But my friends !!! Lavender flowers are SO lovely to bake with.
And they’re especially delicious in scones.
Haven’t baked with lavender before? Never fear, Lemon Lavender Scones are the perfect place to start. They’re easy to make, and the lavender flavor is subtle throughout, making them the best kind of beginner scone and lavender recipe out there.
Baking with lavender makes the scones (or whatever baked good) lightly floral. It adds such a unique, comforting flavor, without being overpowering.
Now I know, where do you actually find lavender flowers? Amazon, of course. I went ahead and bought this lavender – can’t argue with high quality, organic lavender straight from the fields of France (not sponsored, but it is an affiliate link). Do be warned, because it’s au natural, you may need to pick out an extra branch here or there before mixing it into your scones.
I’ve also seen lavender in the bulk spice section at my local Whole Foods (yay for bulk sections!). Check out your grocery store, you could be surprised!
TIPS FOR MAKING SCONES
So you’re looking at a scone recipe and wondering how you’re going to come out with scones that are light, and fluffy, and have layers and layers. Am I right?
These are real fears, and I hear you. I’m happy to report back that these scones are quite easy to make, and as long as you don’t have too much of a heavy hand when kneading, you’ll be met with layers inside your light, fluffy scones.
That being said here are my top tips for making perfect scones:
- Use cold butter – you can even stick it in the freezer after you cube up the butter to keep it chilled. Think pie dough – you don’t want the butter to melt into the flour until it’s baking.
- Don’t over-knead – it’s tempting to think of scone dough like bread and want to knead, knead, knead, but don’t! You’ll end up with a tough mess of scones. Instead, lightly press the dough together and gently form it into shape. Light hands, light hands.
- Mixing the milk with the lemon juice creates a “buttermilk” – giving the scones extra flavor and moistness (yes, sorry I said moistness).
In the end – give it a try and I promise you won’t be disappointed. Lemon Lavender Scones deliver a bright punch of lemon with warm, fragrant lavender. The pairing is dynamite.
Top the scones off with a drizzle of icing because OF COURSE there has to be a drizzle of icing. I mean, I guess you could leave it off… but really, why, oh why would you?
Now go, my sweet dear foodie friends, go impress everyone at your next brunch with a batch of elegant Lemon Lavender Scones.
I’d also love to hear if you’ve baked (or cooked!) with lavender before – leave me a comment and give me your favorite lavender recipe I should try next!
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Lemon Lavender Scones
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 12 scones 1x
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Description
Warm and fragrant lavender is lightly infused throughout the scones, with a burst of lemon – topped with a drizzle of sweet icing for the perfect addition! Excellent for an elegant brunch.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 Tablespoons lemon zest (~3 lemons)
- 3/4 cup milk + more for brushing
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 1/2 teaspoons lavender flowers
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) cold butter, cubed
ICING:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 – 1 1/2 Tablespoons milk (sub with lemon juice for extra lemon flavor – but don’t use both)
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, combine sugar and lemon zest, rubbing between your clean fingers until a coarse sand-like mixture forms (this helps infuse the lemon flavor!).
- In a separate bowl, combine milk, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. This will form a “buttermilk” like consistency. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and lavender. Add the lemon-sugar mixture and stir to combine. Cut in the cold butter until a pea-sized mixture forms. Gently stir in milk with a wooden spoon until just combined (do not over mix).
- Place dough on a lightly floured surface and knead gently until formed together (again – do not over knead, gently push the dough together). Form the dough into an 8 x 5 inch rectangle. Cut the rectangle down the middle, lengthwise, and then cut the other side (short side) into thirds (you will have 6 squares). Cut each square in half to form two triangles. This will result in 12 small triangles.
- Place the scones on the baking sheet with plenty of space in between each one (they will expand when they bake). Brush the tops and sides of the scones evenly with a bit of additional milk to add color as they bake. Bake the scones for 19-22 minutes until bottoms and tops are slightly golden brown. Remove and let cool slightly before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- To make the icing (optional but recommended :)), stir together powdered sugar, milk (or lemon juice if substituting it), and lemon zest until combined. Drizzle on cooled scones.
Notes
Make sure the butter is cold! I usually cube it before I start the other ingredients, and then place it in the fridge until ready to incorporate. You can use a food processor, just be sure to not over work the dough. The food processor tends to chop the lavender up more, so I like to add extra if I’m making the scones this way.
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 scone
- Calories: 228
- Sugar: 14.9g
- Sodium: 213mg
- Fat: 8.3g
- Saturated Fat: 5.1g
- Carbohydrates: 35.7g
- Fiber: .8g
- Protein: 3.3g
Keywords: brunch, summer, spring, bridal shower, baby shower
Fork in the Kitchen is part of the Amazon Affiliate Program. This post contains Amazon Affiliate Links.
This post was originally published in June 2018; the photos were updated in August 2019. No changes were made to the recipe.
Liz
Mmmmm lemon and lavender – that combo sounds just magical! I absolutely adore scones, but for some reason I haven’t made them in quite a while. That certainly needs to change ASAP!
Becca
Agree! For some reason I don’t get around to making them often but they’re so good! That’s definitely changing now!
Katie Y
Recipe is great however when do you add the lemon sugar to the mix? The first time I made it I forgot to add the lemon sugar and just used it for the icing on top. I am making them again and added lavender flowers to the lemon sugar and planning on adding it the same time I add the lavender.
★★★★
Becca
Katie – I am so sorry I left that key step out of the directions! I updated the recipe – I add the sugar mixture to the flour right before I cut in the butter. I’m glad to hear you’re making them again! 🙂 Enjoy!
Jody Noel
Can you double the recipe? Sometimes when baking you can’t double. Have you tried it with this recipe?
Becca
Hi Jody! I haven’t tried doubling this recipe myself, I’d just recommend being careful to not overwork the dough still. You could also cut the dough into smaller triangles if you’re looking for a smaller bite to feed a crowd (and likely reduce baking time if you do make them smaller!). Let me know how it turns out!
Jody
I doubled the recipe and they came out wonderful. The only thing I had a hard time with was blending the butter. It took longer, should’ve used food processor.
Highly recommend making scones 😋
Becca
Yay! So glad it worked out! 🙂
Shelly
These were so pretty and delicious!
I shared with friends so that I wouldn’t devour them all.
★★★★★
Becca
I’m so happy to hear, Shelly! I’m glad your friends were able to enjoy them, too! 🙂
Theresa
Hi Becca,
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. I made them today for the first time and they came out great! Definitely will make these again. I started growing lavender for tea and aromatherapy but this was the first time I baked with it.
★★★★★
Becca
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed them, Theresa! I LOVE that you used your own lavender!
Ana
Replaced butter for vegan butter based on almond oil and milk with almond milk! Turned out amazing!!!!
★★★★★
Becca
Ana, I am so glad to hear they were amazing with vegan butter and almond milk! Helpful tip for others making the recipe, too, thank you for sharing! <3
Brittney
Hi! I clicked on the link you provided for the lavender flowers. I’m wondering, if you used those exact ones, did you have to pick out the lavender buds from the other little bits and pieces of the plant? Someone commented on Amazon that the lavender they normally buy doesn’t have that stuff in it and it was almost impossible to bake with these because of the “debris”. Do you just throw it all in the scone? Thanks!
Becca
Hi Brittney! Great question. I do use the lavender linked in the post. There are some larger “stick-like” pieces that I remove when baking with it, but it hasn’t ever been much of a problem for me. Are you on Instagram? I’d be happy to show you what it’s like. Send me a DM if you are and I’ll send over a video. Otherwise, happy to send one via email if it’d be helpful.