Easy Gluten Free Strawberry Scones

• servings: 8 servings
• active time: 20 minutes
• total time: 1 hour

Ingredients

50 g (¼ cup) caster/superfine or granulated sugar

zest of 1 lemon (Ideally, use organic unwaxed lemons.)

240 g (2 cups) plain gluten free flour blend, plus extra for flouring the surface

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp xanthan gum (Omit if your gluten free flour blend already contains xanthan gum.)

¼ tsp salt

115 g (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cubed

90 g (⅓ cup + 1 tbsp) full-fat plain or Greek-style yoghurt, cold from the fridge

1 tsp vanilla bean paste (or 2 tsp vanilla extract)

170 g (about 1¼ cups) fresh strawberries, with tops removed and cut into ½-inch (1cm) pieces

For brushing the scones:

15 g (1 tbsp) full-fat plain or Greek-style yoghurt

10 g (2 tsp) whole milk

Strawberry icing:

30 g (about 2 medium) fresh strawberries, with tops removed

120 g (1 cup) powdered/icing sugar

½ tsp vanilla bean paste (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)

Directions

Making the scone dough:

Note: It's very important that the scone dough stays cold at all times if you want to get the perfect scone texture and appearance. So, make sure that your butter and yoghurt are cold (straight from the fridge) and work quite quickly – don’t overwork or over-handle the dough, as that can make the butter start to melt.

Add the sugar and lemon zest to a large bowl, and use your fingertips to rub the zest into the sugar.Tip: This helps to release more essential oils from the zest, and it'll make your scones even more lemony and fragrant.

Add the gluten free flour blend, baking powder, xanthan gum and salt, and whisk well to combine.

Add the cold cubed butter and work it into the dry ingredients until you get a mixture resembling breadcrumbs, with a few pea-sized pieces here and there.

Add the cold yoghurt and vanilla, and stir everything together until the dough starts clumping together in places but it’s still uneven with some patches of dry flour – the dough will appear VERY dry at this point.

Add the chopped strawberries and stir well until they’re evenly distributed and most of the flour has been hydrated. Your dough will still be fairly crumbly and shaggy at this point, it shouldn’t hold together or form a ball.

Shaping & chilling the scones:

Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and use your hands to press it together into a rough ball. Be careful not to overwork it, it needs to stay as cold as possible, otherwise the butter could start to melt. You don’t need to knead it – the aim is to press it together so it won’t fall apart when you cut it into the individual scones, but it doesn’t have to be perfectly smooth.***At this point, you can add a tiny bit more flour (if the dough is too sticky) or a tiny bit more yoghurt (if it’s too dry and won’t stick together).

*Press the dough into a roughly 7-inch (18cm) disc, about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick.

Cut it into 8 wedges, either with a sharp knife or with a straight-edged metal pastry cutter (bench scraper).

Transfer the scones onto a lined baking sheet, cover with a sheet of plastic wrap/cling film (to prevent them from drying out) and chill for at least 20 minutes in the fridge. While the scones are chilling, start pre-heating the oven.Tip: This chilling step sets the butter in the dough and it prevents the scones from spreading too much during baking. This way, they'll puff up in the oven but still retain their pretty wedge shape.

Baking the strawberry scones:

Adjust the oven rack to the middle position, pre-heat the oven to 400ºF (200ºC) and line a large baking sheet with parchment/baking paper.Tip: I like to transfer the chilled scones onto a new, room temperature baking sheet (not the one they've been chilled on). That ensures that their bottoms start baking straight away and further prevents spreading.

Place the chilled scones onto the lined baking sheet, spaced as far apart as possible, as they will puff up during baking.

Mix together the yoghurt and milk, and lightly brush the mixture on top of the scones.

Bake them at 400ºF (200ºC) for 20-22 minutes until golden brown on top and slightly darker around the edges.

Once baked, cool them on the baking sheet for about 5-10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool until either lukewarm or at room temperature.While the scones are cooling, make the strawberry glaze.

Strawberry glaze:

Add the strawberries to a bowl or deep plate, and use a fork to mash them up.

Add the powdered/icing sugar and vanilla, and whisk well until you get a fairly thick, smooth icing.Tip: You can adjust the icing consistency by adding extra mashed strawberries (to make it runnier) or more powdered/icing sugar (to make it thicker), as required. However, note that you should make the icing thicker than you might think is necessary, especially if you want to get a thick layer on top of the scones. If the glaze is too runny, much of it will run and drip off the scones.

Drizzle the strawberry glaze over the cooled scones, spreading it evenly across the top with the back of a spoon.

Allow the glaze to set and dry out slightly (about 10-15 minutes at room temperature) before serving.

Storage:

The gluten free strawberry scones are at their best on the day of baking, but you can store them in a closed, air-tight container in a cool, dry place for up to 2 days. Note that they will soften with time, as they absorb some of the ambient moisture and also the moisture from the strawberries.

Notes

6/4/26 made using 252 g flour, -1/8 teaspoons baking powder, 107 g yogurt + 1 tablespoon and 2 teaspoons milk in order for it to come together. I added more flour for altitude but next time don’t add more flour given how dry it was and needing to add more moisture. Sit in fridge 1 hour on small cookie sheet not separated-just cut into 8 pieces. Bake at 420 for 20-22 minutes.

Use mixer with whisk to blend in the butter to crumbs and small pieces but be careful to not do too much.