The Pioneer Woman’s Lemon Cream Scones

It’s abundantly clear that Ree Drummond (better known as The Pioneer Woman) knows what she’s doing in the kitchen, but she’s truly outdone herself with her perfect cream scones. They’re buttery and the best kind of melt-in-your-mouth crumbly and I speak from experience when I say that it’s incredibly difficult to stop at just one. She takes her basic recipe and sometimes flavors it with rosemary or berries or vanilla, but here we’ve left them simple with bright, sunny lemon. I could go on and on about their wonderful texture and flavor, but all I really need to say is – I don’t think I’ll ever need another scone recipe.

With her method you sift together the dry ingredients, and stir together the wet ingredients (the cream, lemon zest, vanilla, and egg) and let the cream mixture sit to steep for a few minutes. This seems to help that lemon flavor really permeate every bite, so go ahead and follow instructions here. You can let it sit while you cut the butter in, so you’re not standing around waiting or anything.

Cut the (cold!) butter in until it resembles coarse crumbs and then stir in the wet ingredients until you have a loose and lumpy dough. Resist the urge to overwork it, that lumpy texture is what ensures these end up so wonderfully tender and flaky when they come out of the oven.

A quick lemon glaze finishes them off and it adds the perfect extra bite of sweetness. These are buttery, but the cream also adds a clean and sweet moistness, so while they melt in your mouth, they’re never dry.

Makes 16 scones — approximately 4 WW Points each

Ingredients

For the Scones:

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons light butter, chilled and cubed
1 large egg
1/2 cup fat-free Greek yogurt
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Zest of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

For the Lemon Glaze:

3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1–2 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk
1 teaspoon lemon zest

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
Add the chilled light butter and cut it into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, Greek yogurt, almond milk, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently mix until a soft dough forms. Do not overmix.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and gently shape it into a circle about 1 inch thick.
Cut the dough into 16 triangular wedges.
Place the scones on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 15–18 minutes, or until lightly golden.
Allow the scones to cool completely.
To make the glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar, lemon juice, almond milk, and lemon zest until smooth.
Drizzle the lemon glaze over the cooled scones.
Let the glaze set for a few minutes before serving.