Pumpkin Spice Scones Recipe | Foodal (2024)

When I first started baking, scones were among the first few recipes that I tried and tested. I loved the simplicity of scones, and how easy they are to make.

Naturally, when I was living in the United States last fall and pumpkins were everywhere, I knew that I had to make a batch of pumpkin spice scones that featured the flavors of this popular winter squash, and warming spices as well.

I remember savoring them the moment they came out of the oven, eating one after the other because they were just too good for me to stop.

These pumpkin spice scones are my personal tribute to those beautiful fall memories, and I want to show you today how easy they are to make.

If you’ve already had enough of those overly sweet pumpkin desserts – classic pie or cheesecake bars, anyone? – but still want to make use of the bounty of the harvest, I can assure you that this recipe is your answer.

In my opinion, much like my apple caramel version, these autumnal scones are the perfect baked good for the season!

They’re great for accompanying a hot cup of tea or coffee, especially with our pumpkin coffee creamer, and they’re the best option for satisfying a more subtle sweet tooth.

If you’ve never made scones before, don’t be afraid. They’re much easier than they may seem to prepare in your own kitchen.

When baking, it’s important to consider how you work the dough, and to knead it well – but not excessively – until it comes together. Here in Argentina where I currently live, people say you have to amasar con ganas – which literally means to knead the dough with desire, or better said, with intention.

The trick is in combining both the dry and wet ingredients together and then kneading the dough until it is smooth and can easily be shaped into a circle. Once that’s done, all you need to do is to cut and bake them until they are golden brown.

I like to cut mine into wedges, but you could just as well cut out circles instead.

That’s how easy it is to make these scones. Ready to make a batch right now? Let’s go straight to the recipe!

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Cooking by the Numbers…

Step 1 – Preheat Oven and Prepare Mise en Place

Begin by preheating the oven to 350°F.

To improve your baking routine, it’s important to first read through the entire recipe and make sure you have everything you need an understand the prep procedures.

Gather all of the necessary cooking equipment and utensils. Measure each of your ingredients, both wet and dry, so they will be ready to go.

You can make your own unsweetened pumpkin puree with Foodal’s help, but a store-bought version will work just as well here.

I loved making and freezing large batches when I would visit the farmers markets in the fall!

Step 2 – Combine Dry Ingredients and Butter

Whisk the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves together in a large bowl until combined.

Grate the butter with the coarse side of a box grater and scatter the pieces over the flour mixture. Cold butter is best for this step – it will be difficult to grate room temperature or softened butter.

Cut the butter into the flour with a pastry cutter or two butter knives, until it resembles cornmeal.

Step 3 – Combine Wet and Dry Ingredients

In a separate bowl, combine the wet ingredients. Add the pumpkin puree, honey, heavy cream, egg, and vanilla. Whisk until all of the ingredients are combined completely.

Pour the pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture, thoroughly scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula so you don’t waste anything. Stir well until a soft, crumbly dough forms.

Transfer the dough to a floured piece of parchment paper and knead it well with floured hands until a smooth dough comes together. Be careful not to excessively overwork the dough, or your final product will not come out light and tender.

I like to work directly on the parchment paper – that way, I’m not making too much of a mess on my kitchen table or counter that I need to clean up later, and I can then easily transfer the entire thing to the baking sheet.

Step 4 – Shape

Use your hands to shape the dough into a circle that’s about two inches thick, and then cut it into 8 even triangles – the way you would slice a pizza in wedges.

If you prefer, use a floured cookie or biscuit cutter to cut it into circles instead, and push the remaining dough back together to continue cutting circles out until you have used most of it up.

Transfer the parchment paper with the dough triangles onto a baking sheet.

Reposition the wedges so that there is about 1 inch of space between each one. You need to do this so that they bake evenly on all sides.

Step 5 – Bake

Place the sheet in the middle of the oven and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the scones are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Immediately transfer each wedge to a cooling rack. Let them cool for about five minutes before serving.

Drizzle and Impress

In my opinion, these treats are amazing on their own, or served with a smear of butter.

But if you prefer to sweeten them up a little more, you can always drizzle a bit of honey on top of the baked scones, or some other type of glaze of your choosing.

Try a simple powdered sugar icing with a touch of vanilla extract or orange zest.