Gingerbread scones are for the holidays. Not that you can’t make them in summer, but gingerbread is very much a winter favorite. Scones are something I feel like you either love or hate. Most of the hate though, in my opinion is undeserved. There’s a lot of bad scones out there. Too sweet, too cakey, too dry, the list goes on. These gingerbread scones I’m confidently placing in the good scone category.
Gingerbread is also kind of controversial and people either love it or hate it. Its not sweet enough, its too hard, its too bitter or spicy. It can be a strong flavor. I think I have balanced these gingerbread scones to be both sweet and spiced, clearly not too hard, but warming and a nice flavor.
Baking Tips
I love making scones, and my Best Vanilla Cream Scones are a great resource if you’ve never made them before. Some of the highlights of keys to success in making scones are: keep your ingredients cold, work quickly, and don’t overwork the dough. In order to do this I recommend prepping and/or measuring everything before you start. Put your butter in the freezer. Crack and beat your egg, measure your cream, and add your molasses to it and put all the cold ingredients back into the fridge. Weigh out your dry ingredients into a big bowl, get out your baking sheet, parchment, grater and bench cutter. Doing this will help you move quickly and keep the dough cold.
I never have used a mixer for making scones. You don’t need anything fancy, I use a fork until my hands work better. Overworked scones create gluten which makes them less tender.
Gingerbread scones can be brushed with cream and sprinkled with demerara or turbinado sugar before baking, or skip this and glaze with a simple cinnamon glaze which is also included in the recipe card. The glaze is as written for a slightly thinner glaze that can be drizzled on, if you would like it thicker to frost them, reduce the cream. Either way is delicious, the glazed version being slightly sweeter.
Here are some other great scone flavors you might enjoy: Sweet Potato Cardamom Scones, Rich Chocolate Orange Scones, & Cinnamon Cream Cheese Scones w/Brown Butter Glaze.
Gingerbread Scones Key Ingredients
- Molasses – Personally, I think of molasses first when I think of gingerbread. That seems odd but it’s one of the key ingredients in making it. I always use Grandma’s Molasses as it’s pretty easy to find everywhere.
- Ginger – Ground ginger not fresh. Fresh ginger has a slightly different flavor profile and the taste is much more mellow.
- Heavy Cream – Many scone recipes use milk, however I abide by the full fat bible of butter and heavy cream. All the fat creates a very tender, not dry scone. Use the best cream you can find, especially if you have access to a local farm cream.
Ingredients
Scones
- 300 g AP Flour 2½ cup
- 50 g Dark brown sugar ¼ cup
- 3 g Salt ½ tsp
- 2 tsp Baking powder
- ¼ tsp Baking Soda
- ¾ tsp Cinnamon
- ¾ tsp Ground ginger
- 112 g Unsalted butter ½ cup, very cold
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- 85 g Molasses ¼ cup
- 1 Large egg cold, beaten
- 120 g Heavy cream ½ cup, cold
Cinnamon Glaze
- 60 g Powdered Sugar ½ cup
- 2½ tbsp Heavy Cream
- ¼ tsp Cinnamon
- pinch Nutmeg
Instructions
- Place butter into freezer for about 20 minutes. This step is not necessary but incredibly helpful.
- Measure out flour into a large bowl, and add in salt, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda ginger, and cinnamon. Whisk together
- In a small bowl, beat 1 egg and add vanilla and molasses to the beaten egg.
- Grate half the butter into the flour mix, fluffing with a fork so the butter is distributed and coated in flour, then repeat with the remainder of the butter.
- Create a well in the center of the flour mixture and add in egg, molasses, and vanilla mix, and heavy cream. Use a fork to mix until dough starts to come together. Do not over mix.
- Fold the dough over onto itself several times in the bowl before transferring to a baking sheet lined with parchment.
- Press the dough out into a circle that is about 1-2 inches thick. Using a knife or bench scraper, cut the dough into 8 equal size wedges. When cutting use a straight down cut, do not saw back and forth.
- Spread the scones out, leaving a few inches between them. Place the baking sheet in the freezer.
- Preheat oven to 425.
- When scones are ready to go in the oven, if you are not frosting them, brush them with cream and sprinkle with demerara or turbinado sugar. If you are frosting them, put them directly into the oven.
- Reduce the temperature to 375°F immediately, and bake for about 22-25 minutes. Scones will be dark golden on the edges when ready.
- Remove from oven and transfer to a wire cooling rack.
Cinnamon Glaze
- Whisk together ½ cup powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and cream. If you want to drizzle the glaze over the scones for a light glaze, use the amount of cream listed in the recipe card. If you want it thicker to frost them, reduce to 1½ tbsp.
- Glaze your scones after they have cooled for at least 20 minutes. Enjoy while warm, and store in an airtight container to keep fresh.
