Brown Butter Pistachio Scones
These brown butter pistachio scones are so warm and toasty and will feel like a warm hug to start the day at breakfast or end the day at dessert.
I don’t know why I didn’t think of this flavor sooner. Pistachios are one of my most favorite nuts, and scones are one of my most favorite baked goods so pistachio scones are a match made in heaven for me.
A lot of pistachio flavored things use pistachio pudding or something other than just the nuts to get the flavor. I personally don’t want to do that. When I made my Chocolate Chunk Pistachio Bread, I just diced the pistachios very finely and it had the effect I wanted, so I chose to do the same here.
I’ve never really made brown butter scones as well, because browning butter cooks out the water. Scones need the water in butter to create steam and lift for the rise. For these pistachio scones I wanted some browned butter flavor, because I felt the nuttiness would compliment the pistachios and help amplify the flavor. So I browned half the butter for the flavor, leaving the other half to do the traditional job butter does. Additionally, one extra tablespoon of butter is browned for the glaze. Which a brown butter glaze? OMG one of my favorite things in life (both my Cinnamon Rolls and Maple Bundt Cake have one and it is to die for).
Baking Notes & Tips
Scones are not difficult to make, and they are a fairly quick bake. However, there are definitely things that will help you have better scones, these pistachio scones included.
If you have never made scones, my Best Vanilla Cream Scones are a great recipe to look over even if you are making these ones instead. That blog post has tons of helpful information for making the best scones. The main points are, keeping your ingredients cold and not overworking your dough. Scones are not like bread, and we DON’T want gluten forming.
When you are chopping your pistachios for the scones, how roughly or finely you chop them is personal preference. I used a knife and spent just a few minutes so there were both larger and finer pieces. You could use a food processor to make quicker work of it. The pistachios in the glaze should be much more finely chopped though.
Brown Butter Pistachio Scones Key Ingredients
- Butter – Butter provides an important role in scones helping with flavor, texture and rise. You do not have to buy fancy butter for scones, but your tastebuds will always be rewarded if you do. I usually do most of my scone testing with Costco butter, however when I really want to level them up a little I’ll buy European butter which has a higher butterfat percentage.
- Pistachios – The most cost effective way to make these scones will be to buy pistachios in the shell, and shell them yourself. But if you want to save your fingers and some time, you can buy shelled pistachios. I personally used Lightly Salted No Shells Pistachios. These pistachio scones salt level is also based on using a lightly salted version. So, if you use unsalted you may want to add about another half teaspoon of salt, and if you use regular salted pistachios you might want to cut the amount of salt in half.
- Heavy Cream – Heavy cream also contributes to the texture and flavor of scones (these are cream scones after all), so I always advocate for you to buy the best cream you can. Make sure it’s heavy cream, which has a higher fat percentage.
Ingredients
- 113 g Unsalted butter ½ cup, cold, divided
- 285 g AP flour 2½ cups
- 50 g Granulated sugar ¼ cup
- 2½ tsp Baking powder
- ¼ tsp Baking soda
- ½ tsp Salt
- 80 g Pistachios ~â…“ cup, chopped
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- 1 large Egg cold, beaten
- 160 g Heavy cream â…” cup, cold
- 1 tbsp Heavy cream for brushing
Glaze
- ½ tbsp Browned butter
- 1-2 tbsp Whole or 2% milk
- 60 g Powdered sugar ½ cup
- g Pistachios finely chopped
Instructions
- Take 4 tbsp/56g and place it in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stirring it frequently after it has melted.
- The butter will melt, then begin to bubble up, then foam. When the milk solids begin to brown and the butter smells nutty and fragrant, immediately remove from heat and into a small bowl.
- This butter should be cooled down so if you have a small metal prep bowl and can put that bowl in an ice bath, that can help cool it down quicker (but isn't necessary, it can just be left on the counter or placed in the refrigerator and stirred every 10 min or so). It doesn't need to solidify, but it should be cool and somewhere in between liquid and solid, sort of a sauce-like consistency.
- Remove half a tbsp and reserve for the glaze.
- Put the other 4 tbsp/56g butter in the freezer, leaving it there for about 20 minutes.113 g Unsalted butter
- Line a baking sheet with parchment or silicone mat
- Mix together your dry ingredients: flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda and mix with a fork.285 g AP flour | 50 g Granulated sugar | 2½ tsp Baking powder | ¼ tsp Baking soda | ½ tsp Salt
- Take your semi-frozen butter and grate it over your flour mix. Fluffing it in to the flour after grating.
- Make a well in the center of your ingredients and pour in your cream, vanilla, cooled browned butter, and beaten egg.1 tsp Vanilla | 1 large Egg | 160 g Heavy cream
- Bring in the sides of the well into the center, forming a rough and shaggy dough.
- Pour in your finely chopped pistachios and mix in.80 g Pistachios
- Try to handle the dough as little as possible, while still bringing into something cohesive. When you have most of the dough forming, you will probably have a little bit of loose flour at the bottom of the bowl. Take that and put it on top of the dough and fold the dough over on itself 2-3 times.
- Take your dough and place it on your parchment or silicone. Press it out into about a 1-1½ inch thick disc or square.
- Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut your dough into 8 wedges or 9 squares. Make sure to cut straight down and not use a sawing motion.
- Arrange your scones on the pan with 1-2 inches between them, and then place your baking tray in the freezer.
- Preheat your oven to 425°F
- When your oven is ready and your scones have been in the freezer for 15-20 minutes, take them out and brush with heavy cream. Place them in the oven on the center rack. As soon as they are in, reduce the temperature to 375°F.1 tbsp Heavy cream
- Bake for about 22-25 minutes, scones will be golden brown and fragrant.
- Remove scones from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
- While scones are cooling, whisk together browned butter, milk and powdered sugar. If your brown butter has solidified, microwave it for just a few seconds until it is liquid but not hot.½ tbsp Browned butter | 1-2 tbsp Whole or 2% milk | 60 g Powdered sugar
- After the glaze is smooth, add the finely chopped pistachios to the glaze.g Pistachios
- Once scones are no longer hot, pour glaze over tops. Store your scones in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Enjoy!
