These melt-in-your-mouth buttery tea scones are so delicious that you won’t believe they’re gluten-free! Whether you make them plain or mix in your favorite scone fillings, they are sure to become a favorite that you’ll make again and again!
It’s tough to turn down a scone, especially when they are tender, buttery, and practically melt in your mouth.
What if I said that this recipe is also very easy to make…
…AND that the scones are gluten-free…but you would never know it?
I know that sounds crazy, but it’s true!
Easy To Make Dough
This is basically a gluten-free version of my UBC Tea Scones recipe which SO GOOD that it only made sense to come up with a gluten-free version. Just like the UBC Tea Scones recipe, this gluten-free version is really easy to make.
One of the first steps in making the dough is to cut or blend the butter into the dry ingredients, and I use a pastry blender, as pictured here, to accomplish that.
Basically, it helps to “cut” the butter into the flour so that bits of butter are all coated in flour and well dispersed in the dough before the wet ingredients are mixed in. All those butter bits will melt when the scones are baked, lending to the wonderfully tender melt-in-your-mouth texture.
If you don’t have a pastry blender, you can use a couple of knives to cut the butter into the flour, but avoid mashing the butter with a spoon or using your hands as you don’t want the butter to melt from handling.
Mix in the egg and milk to create your dough, which will be quite sticky. It is not meant to be handled or kneaded because the less we mess the dough, the more tender the scones will be.
Finally, if desired, it’s time to stir in your favorite scone fillings, whether it be grated cheese, dried cranberries, blueberries, chopped nuts, etc. You can also leave them plain as these scones have plenty of flavor all by themselves.
Baking the Scones
I simply drop them by heaping spoonfuls onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Gently flatten any points or edges in the dough with slightly dampened fingers to round the scones out. Pop them into a 450F/230C oven and the delicious smell of scones will drift through your home!
Many traditional scone recipes involve handling the dough and shaping it into one fat big disc before cutting into wedges. You can do that with this recipe if you’d like. However, you would need more flour to create a cohesive dough you can shape, and adding more flour and working the dough can make the scones less tender.
All that amounts to is more work for a less desirable result…and I’m all about making this recipe as easy as possible so you can enjoy a fabulous scone as soon as possible!
It Will Be Hard To Stop At One
It will be difficult to restrain from eating one of these scones right out of the oven, but let them cool a bit before taking a bite. Once you do, you really will be completely amazed that something that is gluten-free can taste THIS GOOD. Buttery, tender, delicious…you will be in love!
For a point of comparison, I made a batch of the regular scones and this gluten-free version and they were both equally a hit! People with gluten allergies don’t have to miss out anymore!
Enjoy one (or two) of these scones for breakfast or during an afternoon break. Pair it with a hot Yummy Cuppa English Tea Latte, Soothing Ginger Honey Tea, or Ginger Milk Tea Latte. Dress up a plain scone or blueberry scone with a slather of homemade 3-Ingredient Blueberry Jam.
No matter how or when you decide to eat one, or whether you call this a scone or a biscuit, it will give you hope that gluten-free can not only be good, it can be awesome.
~ Lisa.
Gluten-Free Buttery Tea Scones
Ingredients
- 240 grams brown rice flour
- 160 grams tapioca starch
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 5 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup cold butter, cut into small chunks
- 1 cup milk
- 1 egg, beaten
Mix in 1 cup (optional):
- Fresh blueberries
- Dried cranberries
- Grated cheddar
- Chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven 450F/230C.
- Combine brown rice flour, tapioca starch, sugar, baking powder, xanthan gum, and salt in a mixing bowl and whisk together to combine.
- Add cold butter chunks to the flour mixture and use the pastry cutter to cut the butter into the dry ingredients. Butter should be well-blended into the flour and resemble coarse flour.
- Add milk and beaten egg to the flour-butter mixture and mix well with a spoon until dry ingredients are well incorporated. Dough will be sticky.
- Stir in 1 cup of scone fillings, if desired.
- Scoop moundfuls of dough onto parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Flatten any edges or points on the scone mounds with slightly wet fingers.
- Bake for 12 minutes.
- Let cool on rack for 10 minutes before serving.
- Store leftover scones in a sealed container or bag for 2-3 days. Warm in the toaster oven or the microwave to soften.
Equipment Used
Notes
- If you do not have a pastry blender, you can use two knives to cut the butter into the flour.
- You can also pulse the butter and flour in a food processor, being careful not to process too much. You do not want the butter to get too soft.
- Add dry flavorings like cinnamon or pumpkin spice to the dry ingredients.
- Add wet flavorings like lemon zest or vanilla with the milk and egg.
- If adding fillings to your scones, mix them in after you have mixed the flour mixture with the milk and egg.
- Lightly dampen your fingers to push down any rough spots on the scones before baking.
- Store leftover scones in a sealed container for a couple of days. If necessary, heat scones in a toaster oven or microwave briefly to soften.
Nutrition
Wow these look fantastic! I’d totally make a batch and take them to the office to share!
Thanks, Wanda!
You’d never guess these are gluten-free! Brown rice flour with tapioca is such a great combination. I find the brown rice adds lots of flavour to scones. Thanks for posting!
Thanks, Elaine!