If you are avoiding sugar during Lent, these wonderful flaky scones are a delicious sugars-free treat with coffee or tea.
Updated 2026; first posted 2015
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| UNFORGETTABLE BUTTER SCONES 'The flakiest, butteriest, tenderest scones in the world!' Blogger |
Scones are a unique English combination of bread and cake. Light, fluffy, often a couple of centimetres high, they have a crisp exterior and fluffy, tender, flaky middles. They are the perfect vehicle for lashings of cream and jam, washed down with good English tea. For a delightful change, however, bakers often add fruit or savoury bits like cheese and bacon/pastrami or date and nuts.
67goingon50’s Classic Scone Recipe is the foundation of the scones in this post. Master this recipe for a fuss-free preparation, and you’ll have plenty of wonderful variations to please family and friends.
The recipe has also been tested for dairy-free using Timor plant butter and plant milk. There is also an egg-and-butter-free version. They both taste lovely and are nicely layered but don’t rise as high as with standard ingredients.
Classic English Scones (UPDATED 2026)
These scones are the best 67 has ever had and they've been in the family cookbook in various delicious permutations for years. They are the flakiest, most tender biscuits in the world. And they have no added sugar.
The recipe is taken straight from Robert Carrier, one of the first celebrity chefs, and 67 makes no apologies. Best known for classical French (!) cooking, Carrier in his later years produced a wonderful cookbook for the home chef ( sadly out of print.)
The recipe is taken straight from Robert Carrier, one of the first celebrity chefs, and 67 makes no apologies. Best known for classical French (!) cooking, Carrier in his later years produced a wonderful cookbook for the home chef ( sadly out of print.)
The biscuits do have a high fat content; anyone with health issues should proceed with caution.
To make them healthier, 67 experimented with 100% wholemeal flour. The scones were still light and delicious but a two parts white flour, one part wholemeal is probably a better mix if you're after lightness with added fibre.
To make them healthier, 67 experimented with 100% wholemeal flour. The scones were still light and delicious but a two parts white flour, one part wholemeal is probably a better mix if you're after lightness with added fibre.
Portion control is always a good bet for good health: use a smaller scone cutter!
The scones are best on the day but reheat and/or freeze well.
Cost: £3.50 (Feb '26)
Makes: 12-14
Ingred:
12 oz/350gm plain flour (organic gives fantastic flavour)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
5 oz/150 gm cold, cubed dairy or plant butter
2 eggs, well beaten
7 tbsp very cold milk.
Method:
1. Preheat oven to very hot -- 200c; 400f
2. Sift dry ingred. into a bowl; rub or process in butter until mixture resembles peas - don't overdo it!
3. (If using cheese, add it here, stirring it into the flour mix until the cheese strands are coated)
4. Beat eggs and milk. Make a well in the centre of the flour; pour in eggs & milk; stir lightly with a fork until mixture just holds together.
5. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and press lightly and quickly into a rectangle about 1/2 inch (1 cm) thick. Mentally divide the rectangle into three, lengthwise. Fold the left hand side onto the middle; and the right hand side onto the middle & left sides. (This method creates i layers in the dough, like puff pastry. I promise you, it is worth it!) Repeat twice, rolling lightly with a rolling pin between each folding, handling dough as little as possible
6. Roll it out to just over 1inch (2 cm) thick. Cut, without twisting, into 2.5 inch/6cm (or smaller rounds) with a floured biscuit cutter, reforming leftover dough. OR cut into 12-14 rectangles or triangles
7. Bake in the centre of the oven on an ungreased baking sheet 12-15 min until richly golden.
8. Cream tea scones for a crowd: allow scones to cool completely; halve and spread with clotted cream and jam (if not worried about sugar) or fresh sliced strawberries or other berries on each half. (Catering portions are half a scone each)
Cost: £3.50 (Feb '26)
Makes: 12-14
Ingred:
12 oz/350gm plain flour (organic gives fantastic flavour)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
5 oz/150 gm cold, cubed dairy or plant butter
2 eggs, well beaten
7 tbsp very cold milk.
Method:
1. Preheat oven to very hot -- 200c; 400f
2. Sift dry ingred. into a bowl; rub or process in butter until mixture resembles peas - don't overdo it!
3. (If using cheese, add it here, stirring it into the flour mix until the cheese strands are coated)
4. Beat eggs and milk. Make a well in the centre of the flour; pour in eggs & milk; stir lightly with a fork until mixture just holds together.
5. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and press lightly and quickly into a rectangle about 1/2 inch (1 cm) thick. Mentally divide the rectangle into three, lengthwise. Fold the left hand side onto the middle; and the right hand side onto the middle & left sides. (This method creates i layers in the dough, like puff pastry. I promise you, it is worth it!) Repeat twice, rolling lightly with a rolling pin between each folding, handling dough as little as possible6. Roll it out to just over 1inch (2 cm) thick. Cut, without twisting, into 2.5 inch/6cm (or smaller rounds) with a floured biscuit cutter, reforming leftover dough. OR cut into 12-14 rectangles or triangles
7. Bake in the centre of the oven on an ungreased baking sheet 12-15 min until richly golden.
8. Cream tea scones for a crowd: allow scones to cool completely; halve and spread with clotted cream and jam (if not worried about sugar) or fresh sliced strawberries or other berries on each half. (Catering portions are half a scone each)
Variations
Flaky cheese biscuits add 3oz/75gr strong grated cheddar (cheddar with chives & onion is a favourite)
Chocolate Nut Twists
no added sugar, budget friendly
Tips:
Flaky cheese biscuits add 3oz/75gr strong grated cheddar (cheddar with chives & onion is a favourite)
Chocolate Nut Twists
no added sugar, budget friendly
Tips:
- another variation adds a couple of tablespoons of finely chopped mixed herbs
- re-heat in an 180c/350f/Gas Mark 3 oven for 5-10 mins.
Savoury Salty Cranberry Scones (UPDATED 2025)
| Salty bacon/pastrami contrasts with tart crunchy cranberries in feather-light scones |
'I ate these plain with a cup of tea and really loved them. The meat added a flavour entirely of its own.' Taster
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| First made by the blogger years ago for a visitor allergic to eggs, the results were so delicious and flaky, they were as much of a treat as conventional scones |
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| Just Double cream, fizzy water & flour (with fresh fruit. in this case peaches) produce these quick & easy fresh fruit scones. |
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These recipes have been developed by B M Lee/ Bright Sun Enterprises. It may not be reproduced without the author's written permission.
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