Who doesn’t love a scone and an Irish Scone at that. Typically, an Irish Scone is a bit less sweet than scones here, and they use less butter. Butter and jam are a favorite way to serve these scones in Ireland.
This recipe has been modified slightly from an Irish Scone recipe given to me at the Dublin Cookery School. We made these our first week at school, and they are amazing. Light and airy, perfect with tea, and they love their tea, they do.
What makes a scone Irish?
Irish scones are always round and always made with butter. The biggest difference between American scones and Irish scones is the amount of butter used. Irish Scones are made with quite a bit less (as well as less sugar). Why? Because you add butter and jam after they are baked, and ohhhhh so good.
What you’ll need to make these Irish Scones:
- Large and small mixing bowls
- Whisk
- Rimmed baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Biscuit cutter
- Cooling rack
- Digital scale*
- Measuring cups and spoons
Let me ‘weigh in’ on weighing ingredients
Why? Because it’s easier, faster, and most importantly, more accurate.
Measuring (dry ingredients especially) by volume in a cup will always give different results. If you scoop vs. spoon it in if you fluff up the flour before scooping and if you press down, even a little, you will get a different result.
Weighing with a digital scale* will be accurate every time. Plus, fewer dishes to wash, win-win.
Use this conversion chart from King Arthur when you are in a pickle. Trust me on this, life is easier when you weigh.
Oh! One more preach. Were you like me in grade school and absolutely ‘petrified’ of the Metric System? Well boy, have we been wrong. Gram measurements are just about 1000% easier to navigate than fractions. What the heck have we been doing all these years?
Try it, I’m here to help and guide you. 🙂
Some other fun Irish baking/sweet recipes to try:
Tasty treats for any time of day.
Irish Scones
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 12-15
- Total Time: 22-25
- Yield: 12 1x
- Category: Breads
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Irish
Description
One thing to remember about Irish Scones, is they are always round. So if you decide to make a disk with the dough and divide it into triangles, then it’s not Irish, it’s just a scone. And don’t even think about using anything other than butter!
Ingredients
- 450g (1 lbs) flour (add in a little whole wheat if you like, but you may need more buttermilk)
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoons kosher salt (affiliate link)
- 106g (4 tablespoons) butter*, cold and cut into small cubes
- 50g (1.75 oz) brown sugar
- 300ml (10 oz.) buttermilk, extra if necessary
- 1 egg
- Extra flour for dusting
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet (affiliate link) with parchment paper (affiliate link), set aside.
2. In a medium-size bowl, whisk the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and salt) until well combined. Add the butter, and using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour until it resembles craggy breadcrumbs. It’s alright if there are some pieces a little larger than others. You can certainly use a food processor (affiliate link) for this, but it’s not that hard to do with your own two hands!
3. Add the brown sugar to the dry butter mixture and mix well. At this point, if you would be adding any other treats like currants or fruit, this is where you would add and mix with the dry.
4. In a measuring jug, whisk together the buttermilk and the egg.
5. Add the buttermilk mixture to the dry butter mix and combine with hands, adding more buttermilk if needed (be sure to get all the dry bits at the bottom of the bowl).
6. Pop onto a floured surface and gently knead until the whole mixture comes together in a large mass. Do not overmix. This dough is very soft; you only need to make it cohesive.
7. Using your hands, lightly sprinkle with flour and press into a circle about 1″ thick (it’s the height that matters at this point, not the circumference of the circle).
8. Using a 2″ biscuit cutter, flour the cutter. Without wiggling the cutter or dough, cut as many circles as you can.
9. Combine the remaining dough and press out for the remaining scones.
10. Place scones on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden brown.
11. Optional to brush the top with a bit of buttermilk and egg mixture (that’s remaining in the jug, if there is any). You could sprinkle a little extra sugar on top for added sweetness and crunch.
12. Remove from oven and serve right away or cool on a wire rack (so they won’t get soggy).
13. Serve with butter and some lovely jam, it’s the Irish way!
Notes
*good Irish butter if you can swing it.
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