Wake up to the taste of sunshine with these Lemon Poppy Seed Scones. Tender, flaky scones infused with bright lemon zest and a sprinkle of poppy seeds, they're the perfect way to start your day with a burst of flavor.
Why You'll Love This Lemon Poppy Seed Scones Recipe
Who doesn't love the classic flavor combination of lemon and poppy seed? Lemon poppy scones are packed with zesty citrus flavors that are complemented by a sprinkle of poppy seeds throughout.
With a hint of vanilla, each warm scone will melt in your mouth for the most delightful breakfast treat.
Plus, you don't need to be a baking-guru to make them - all it takes is about 25 minutes from start to finish for delicious, homemade scones!
Ingredients Overview
Now you can enjoy this tasty duo in these easy-to-make and perfectly sweetened Lemon poppy seed scones right at home! Keep reading to find out how you can make this lemon poppy seed scones recipe at home with our step-by-step guide.
For Lemon Poppy Scones Recipe
- Flour - All purpose flour.
- Sugar - Granulated white sugar.
- Brown sugar - Light brown sugar.
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Unsalted butter - Cubed, or frozen and grated.
- Poppy seeds - Dutch blue poppy seeds are the typical poppy seeds sold in the spice jars.
- Lemon juice - Fresh squeezed.
- Milk
- Vanilla extract
- Butter - Extra butter, melted to brush the tops of each scone with before baking. OPTIONAL.
- Sugar - Extra sugar to sprinkle the tops of each scone before baking. OPTIONAL.
PRO TIP: If using salted butter, omit the ½ teaspoon of salt in the recipe.
Lemon Glaze
- Powdered Sugar
- Lemon Juice - fresh squeezed.
- Lemon zest - fresh.
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How To Make The Best Lemon Poppy Seed Scones
- Preheat your oven to 400F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, a Silpat mat, or spray with non stick cooking spray.
PRO TIP: For a more modern way to 'cut in butter' simply freeze the butter. Then grate it using an ordinary box grater. Add the frozen, grated butter to the dry ingredients and toss to coat the grated butter. This is a HUGE time saver to cutting in butter the old fashioned way!
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, add the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add in the softened, cubed butter and cut into the flour using your hands or a pastry cutter.
- Mix in the poppy seeds so that they are evenly distributed. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients.
- Add the egg, lemon juice, lemon zest, milk, and vanilla extract to the well in the dry ingredients.
PRO TIP: If the dough seems a bit sticky before cutting, add about ¼ cup more of more flour to the dough.
Handle dough gently, you will not be kneading like bread, just simply folding the dough over on itself until the flour is blended and the ball holds together. The trick to flakey scones it to not over mix.
- Mix ingredients together until a dough ball forms.
- On a clean work surface, shape the ball of dough into a flat disc and cut into 6 equal wedges.
Prepare the Lemon Glaze while the poppy seed scones are cooling. Wait until they are completely cooled before drizzling with the lemon glaze, so that it does not melt.
- Transfer dough wedges to the baking sheet. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in preheated oven.
- Remove and set on a cooling rack. Prepare the Lemon Glaze while cooling.
Lemon Poppy Seed Scones Serving Suggestions
These fresh baked muffins are a delightful treat that can be enjoyed at any time of day. Pair them with a cup of coffee for a satisfying breakfast or brunch, or serve them as a sweet snack with a glass of milk. These muffins are also a great addition to picnics, potlucks, and tea parties.
For a truly indulgent experience, top your lemon poppyseed muffins with a dollop of whipped cream or a drizzle of honey.
Substitutions and Variations
Here are a few scrumptious variations making this lemon poppy seed scones recipe:
- Blueberry Scones - See our Glazed Blueberry and Lemon Scones for a delicious copycat from your favorite coffee house.
- Matcha Scones - Our Green Tea Matcha Scones are unique and different with a slight earthy note from the matcha green tea.
- Cherry Scones - You will love Cream Scones with Dried Cherries also, they are a tangy and flaky cream scones recipe.
Tips for Success
- Don't over mix the scone dough, it will toughen up the crumb.
- Don't over-bake, the scones will continue to cook while cooling on the baking sheet for a few minutes.
- Freezing the butter and grating it, then adding to the dry ingredients and tossing to coat the grated butter is a HUGE time saver to cutting in butter the old fashioned way!
Storage and Reheating
- To store, place lemon poppy seeds scones in a tightly sealed container at room temperature.
- To freeze, wrap individually and freeze, or simply place sealed container with scones in the freezer. You can freeze these lemon poppy scones recipe, baked or unbaked, easily for up to three months.
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Frequently Asked Questions
By cutting cold butter into flour you create layers of flour and butter. This is even easier when blending in grated butter. The water moisture in the butter creates steam while baking, creating a light and airy scone. Cold butter, either cut in with a pastry cutter, your hands, or flour coated grated frozen butter results in a better rise and a flakier scone.
Yes! After cutting into wedges, freeze in the freezer. When frozen, store in a freezer bag until ready to bake. Place frozen on a baking sheet and let defrost for 30 minutes, then bake at 375 F for 15 minutes.
You can, if you don't have lemon juice. BUT, be sure to increase the milk measurement ¼ cup, or what the lemon juice would have provided, so your liquid measurement for this lemon poppy scone recipe is wet enough.
Usually, two lemons. A softened lemon will usually give up 2 to 3 tablespoons of juice.
You don't need an egg. True scones are like biscuits, leavened by laminated butter, baking powder, and baking soda. An egg will make your scones cakey and heavier.
Breakfast Recipes
Get The Recipe!
Lemon Poppy Seed Scones
Equipment
- Large Rimmed Cookie sheet with cooling racks
- Silpat Mat
- Parchment Paper Sheets
Ingredients
Lemon Poppy Seed Scones
- 2 cup flour
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ⅛ cup brown sugar light
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter unsalted, cubed or grated.
- 2 tablespoon poppy seeds
- ¼ cup lemon juice fresh squeezed
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest fresh zested
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoon melted butter optional, for brushing dough tops with.
- 3 tablespoon sugar coarse, for sprinkling on tops of dough.
Lemon Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice fresh
- ½ teaspoon lemon zest
Instructions
Lemon Poppy Seed Scones
- Preheat the oven to 400 ℉, and either line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, a Silpat mat, or spray with non stick cooking spray.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, add the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.2 cup flour, ¼ cup granulated sugar, ⅛ cup brown sugar, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt
- Add in the softened, cubed butter and cut into the flour using your hands or a pastry cutter.PRO TIP: Freeze the butter, the grate it with a box grater. Then, add to the flour mixture and simply toss to coat with the dry ingredients. Makes cutting in butter a breeze!½ cup butter
- Mix in the poppy seeds so that they are evenly distributed. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients.2 tablespoon poppy seeds
- Add the egg, lemon juice, lemon zest, milk, and vanilla extract to the well in the dry ingredients.¼ cup lemon juice, 1 teaspoon lemon zest, ¼ cup milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Mix ingredients together until a dough ball forms.
- On a clean work surface, shape the ball of dough into a flat disc about 1" to 1½" thick, and about 9" to 10" wide. Cut into 6 equal wedges.
- Transfer dough wedges to the prepared rimmed baking sheet. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar (optional). Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in preheated oven.3 tablespoon melted butter, 3 tablespoon sugar
- Remove and set on a cooling rack. Prepare the Lemon Glaze while cooling.
Lemon Glaze
- Mix the powdered sugar with the lemon juice and lemon zest in a small bowl. Use enough lemon juice so that the icing runs from a spoon in a trickle, then drizzle over the cooled lemon poppy seed scones in zig-zag patterns. Serve!1 cup powdered sugar, 2 tablespoon lemon juice, ½ teaspoon lemon zest
Notes
- If using salted butter, omit salt in the recipe list.
- Don't over mix the scone dough, it will toughen up the crumb.
- Don't overbake, the scones will continue to cook while cooling on the baking sheet for a few minutes.
- Freezing the butter and grating it, then adding to the dry ingredients and tossing to coat the grated butter is a HUGE time saver to cutting in butter the old fashioned way!
Pattie Cartwright says
I made a batch this morning. Great instructions. I did cut into 8 pieces since they seemed so big if only 6. I baked them 15 minutes and they had a light golden brown crunchy exterior with soft and flaky interior. I will definitely make again. Thanks Kelly!