I don’t know about you, but I am getting a little stir crazy being home all the time, so I am doing a lot of baking, including these Amazing Earl Grey London Fog Scones. Baking has truly become my stress reliever, there is just something so soothing about kneading, rolling out, and beating ingredients into submission. Plus, there is the whole “making my family very happy” with all the baked goods thing! In the past week, I’ve made a Chocolate Cake, two loaves of ciabatta bread, four loaves of honey whole wheat bread, two batches of Peanut Butter Snickerdoodle Blossoms, and these scones.
Oh my, these scones!
Amazing Earl Grey London Fog Scones
Are you familiar with a London Fog Latte, a hot tea beverage made with earl grey tea, honey, vanilla, lavender, and foamed milk? If you’ve never had one, you must one sometime, they are sublime.
This Earl Grey London Fog Scone recipe is basically a London Fog tea Latte made into a delicate little scone. Also, sublime. As a matter of fact, if you have one of these whole drinking a London Fog Latte, you might just explode from happiness. And we could all use a little happiness right about now, even if just for a few minutes. Right?
Main Ingredients of Earl Grey London Fog Scones
There are a few important ingredients you should know about before making this recipe. Some of these can be substituted but others are necessary to keep the recipe intact. Please see my notes on substitutions.
Buttermilk: Buttermilk is usually used to give dough “lift” but this recipe also uses baking powder, so the extra lift is not needed. We like buttermilk for the light tanginess it adds to the scone, but if you are not a fan of buttermilk or don’t have any handy, you can use heavy cream instead, but you must use the baking powder if you don’t use the buttermilk. Make sure your buttermilk is extra cold!
Baking Powder: Use a double-acting baking powder in this recipe. The baking powder interacts with the buttermilk to give the scones a nice fluffy “lift”. Do not substitute or remove from the recipe.
Baking Soda: There is a pinch of baking soda in this recipe to help with the leavening and balance the acidity of the buttermilk. Do not substitute or remove from the recipe.
Earl Grey Tea: I use Harney & Sons London Fog loose tea (see below the recipe) because it already has the honey and lavender flavors inside. If you do not have Harney & Sons, Teavana makes an Earl Grey Cremé tea that is similar. If you do not care for the lavender flavor, use Earl Grey tea and an extra tablespoon of honey in the dough.
Butter: I use unsalted butter in this recipe. Make sure the butter stick is completely frozen before grating. Putting the raw scones in the freezer before baking helps the butter solidify in the dough again so that when it goes in the oven, little pockets form, adding a tenderness to the scones.
Flour: I use whole wheat pastry flour in this recipe but you can use a regular pastry or all-purpose flour. Pastry flour keeps the dough fluffy and whole wheat keeps the recipe a bit healthier.
Lavender: If you like the flavor of lavender, mix a little lavender syrup or edible lavender buds into the dough.
Eggs: If you prefer vegetarian-style scones, use silken tofu.
Note: Some people like a glaze on their finished scones. We are purists, so prefer them plain or dusted with a touch of confectioners sugar. If you want to use a glaze, mix together 1 cup of confectioners sugar with 2-3 Tablespoons of milk, whisk until completely blended, and drizzle over the top.
What to Serve With Scones
A good cup of tea or coffee is perfect with a scone, but these Earl Grey London Fog Scones are also delicious served with butter, clotted cream, Devonshire cream, jam, and lemon curd. These scones are especially tasty with raspberry or strawberry jam or drizzled with honey.
Amazing Earl Grey London Fog Scones
Deliciously light and fluffy baked scones with the taste of London Fog tea lattes with earl grey, vanilla, honey, and lavender.
Ingredients
- 3/4 c. Buttermilk
- 1/4 c. Heavy Cream
- 1/4 c. Honey
- 1 Egg, whisked
- 6 Tbsp. Butter, Frozen
- 1 tsp. Baking Powder
- 1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
- 2 Tbsp. Loose London Fog Tea (or 2 teabags) See above
- 1/2 tsp. Salt
- 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
- 2 c. Whole Wheat Pastry Flour (or All-Purpose Flour)
- 2 Tbsp. Heavy Cream (for brushing the scones)
- Optional: 1 Tbsp. Violet Lavender syrup or extract (See below)
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Place the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Mix together.
Sprinkle the loose tea over the flour mixture and blend together. Note: If you use tea bags, cut up the edge of the teabag and pour the contents into the flour bowl.
In a separate bowl whisk together the buttermilk, honey, vanilla extract, and heavy cream.
Grate the frozen butter then put the butter back in the freezer for 5 minutes. Add the butter to the flour mixture and blend until mixed. The dough will be crumbly.
Form a hole in the middle of the flour mixture and pour in the buttermilk mixture. Knead the wet and dry ingredients together by hand until the mixture is incorporated, but do not over knead the dough.
The dough should be semi-dry but it should stick together well. If it is too dry, add a tablespoon of heavy cream and knead for 30 more seconds. If it is too sticky, sprinkle with 1-2 Tbsp flour and knead until mixed.
Lightly flour a flat surface and roll out the dough into a large circle about 3 inches thick. Cut the dough in half, then cut those in half again, forming triangles.
Place the triangles on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and place the baking sheet in the freezer for 20 minutes.
Remove the baking sheet from the freezer, brush the top of the scones with heavy cream, and place it in the heated oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool. You can add a glaze when they are cool but my family prefers our scones unglazed.
Notes
If you do not have whole wheat pastry flour, use regular pastry flour or regular all-purpose flour. Pastry flour makes the scones extra light and fluffy.
If you want a true London Fog flavor, use the lavender syrup I feature below.
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Nutrition Information
Yield 10 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 357Total Fat 13gSaturated Fat 8gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 4gCholesterol 52mgSodium 363mgCarbohydrates 53gFiber 5gSugar 13gProtein 9g
All nutrition information is approximate.
If you are looking for another tea-inspired recipe, check out my Michelle’s raisin scones. as well as a few other tea-inspired recipes from a few of my blogger friends:
- Irish Tea Cakes
- Green Tea Cupcakes
- Vanilla Chai Inspired Cinnamon Rolls
