Blackberry Scones

Berries are always a nice addition to scones, because even the most buttery scones can be a little bit dry (hence the popularity of clotted cream and other spreads as condiments) and berries add a punch of flavor as well as a little bit more moisture to every bite of an otherwise buttery scone. This recipe for Blackberry Scones starts out with a basic vanilla scone dough. Butter is rubbed or cut into a flour mixture to create a flaky dough base, which is held together with milk before whole blackberries are kneaded in.

I happened to have a lovely basket of fresh blackberries in my kitchen and added those to my scones. Frozen blackberries will work just as well, and since they’re much firmer than my fresh berries, they won’t make as much of a mess when you knead them in. Don’t worry if blackberry juice gets into the dough as you incorporate the berries: the juice will add color and flavor to your scones. I topped my scones off with a generous sprinkling of coarse sugar before baking, adding a little extra sweetness and a nice crisp topping.

These scones are best when they are still a bit warm from the oven, when the berries are still firm and that sugary topping is still crunchy. Serve them plain, with a cup of tea or coffee, or put them on your table with butter, clotted cream or even whipped cream (because those things are still excellent with berry-filled scones). If you can’t eat all of these in one sitting, they will keep well for a couple of days when stored in an airtight container, but taste better if they are slightly warmed before serving.

Blackberry Scones
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup butter, chilled
3/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup blackberries, fresh or frozen
1 tbsp coarse sugar, for topping

Preheat oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut butter into 6-8 chunks and add to flour mixture, tossing to coat. Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour until mixture is sandy and butter is well distributed, with no pieces larger than a big pea.
Combine milk and vanilla extract and pout into flour mixture. Stir until dough comes together.Add blackberries and gently knead into the dough. It is ok if some berries get slightly squished.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and flatten dough into a disc about 3/4-inch thick. Use a knife to divide disc into six triangles. Place scones on prepared baking sheet.
Sprinkle generously with coarse sugar.
Bake for 20 minutes, until scones are golden brown.