Vegan Lemon Blueberry Scones

These easy vegan lemon blueberry scones (other berries welcome!) are ‘buttery’, tender, and moist in the middle with crispy, flaky edges and bursting with juicy berries in every bite!

Flaky, Tender Lemon and Blueberry Vegan Scones

Scones are one of our favorite easy bakes to veganize because they’re just so effortless! With just a few inexpensive pantry ingredients, one bowl, and minimal effort (no ‘cutting’ the vegan butter into the flour or chilling the dough!), you can whip up a batch of walnut oat scones, vanilla coconut scones, vegan lemon blueberry loaf, or these vegan lemon blueberry scones in around 30 minutes!

These bakery-style lemon blueberry vegan scones are soft and tender inside, loaded with zesty lemon and juicy berries (blueberries or others like raspberries, blackberries, cranberries, or strawberries!). They’re topped off with a crunchy golden brown sugar top (or optionally a tart lemon glaze) with a perfectly crisp and flaky exterior.

They’re also a delicious crowd-pleasing treat, perfect for serving at your next weekend brunch, afternoon tea, Mother’s Day, Easter celebration, bridal shower, baby shower, or just as an easy mid-week treat to enjoy with tea or coffee!

Cost: About $.85 / scone.

The Vegan Blueberry Scones Ingredients

This lemon blueberry scone recipe only requires a few simple and inexpensive pantry staples for a quick morning or afternoon treat.

• All-purpose flour: Alternatively, use pastry flour, a 50/50 blend of whole wheat and AP flour, or spelt flour.
• Leavening agents: These blueberry vegan scones require baking soda and baking powder for lift and fluffy scone texture.
• Sugar: We use regular granulated white sugar, but you can use brown sugar, coconut sugar, etc. Feel free to replace some (or all) sugar with granulated sweetener, like erythritol.
• Salt: Just a little to enhance the flavor in the lemon blueberry scones recipe.
• Vegan butter: Use your favorite (cold) vegan butter, like Miyoko’s or Earth Balance. Hard coconut oil also works, but yields drier scones.
• Lemon zest: Or orange or lime zest. Alternatively, use lemon extract.
• Berries: We used blueberries (fresh or frozen). If using more delicate berries, like raspberries/ blackberries, it’s best to use fresh berries as frozen become mushier, break apart, and bleed into the dough too much.  

Some of our favorite combinations include lemon raspberry scones, blackberry lemon scones, cranberry lemon scones, and strawberry lemon scones.  

• Non-dairy milk: Use any. i.e., soy milk, almond milk, oat milk, etc. Use canned coconut milk for extra moisture and richness.

We also use extra granulated sugar and non-dairy milk to top the blueberry lemon scones.

What Else Could I Add To Vegan Lemon Scones?

• Vanilla extract: (1 tsp) to add depth to the berry scones.
• Almond extract: Just a few drops for that little something special.
• Lemon lavender scones: 1 ½-2 tsp dried culinary lavender flowers for subtle floral taste.
• Ginger: ¼-⅓ cup finely diced crystallized ginger.
• Fresh rosemary: (1 tbsp maximum) for a sweet-savory flavor.
• Vegan chocolate chips: Depending on your combination of fruit and zest, use dairy-free dark or white chocolate chips for extra sweet pockets.
• Nuts/seeds: For extra crunch, stir in chopped nuts/ seeds (walnuts, pecans, pistachios, sunflower seeds to make yummy lemon poppy seed scones, etc.)
• Lemon glaze: To create a lemon glaze for scones, combine 2 tbsp of lemon juice with powdered sugar and a pinch of salt (for balance) into a drizzle consistency.

How to Make Vegan Lemon Blueberry Scones?

Following a few really simple steps, making these vegan blueberry lemon scones is easy enough for even baking novices!

• 1) First, preheat the oven to 400F/200C, and line a baking sheet with either parchment paper or a silicone mat.
• 2) In a large bowl, combine the flour, leavening agents, and salt, mixing well.

• 3) Then add the sugar, vegan butter, lemon zest, plant-based milk, and berries, stirring until everything is just combined and dough-like.

• 4) Next, flour a work surface and work the dough into a circle about ½-inch thick. Use a sharp knife to slice it into 8 pizza-style slices for a ‘coffee house’ type scone.

Alternatively, you can roll it out and use a round cutter. Re-roll and cut any scraps.

• 5) Brush plant-based milk over the top of the blueberry and lemon scones and sprinkle them with sugar, then spread them across the prepared tray, leaving space in between.

• 6) Bake for 13-15 minutes until they’re golden brown. Leave them to cool for at least 15 minutes (and optionally add lemon glaze), then enjoy!

FAQs

Top Recipe Tips and Notes

• Don’t over-mix the dough: Otherwise, you can overwork the gluten in the flour, and the vegan blueberry scones may become dense and chewy.
• To avoid crumbly scones: Allow them to cool before slicing. You can reheat them after slicing if preferred.
• To avoid spreading in the oven: Unless you’re baking them immediately, pop the scones into the fridge to chill. Likewise, if you live in a warm climate or think the dough has gotten overly warm, a quick 20-30 minutes in the fridge before baking can reduce spreading.
• Don’t overcrowd the tray: They won’t crisp up on the sides and may connect.
• The sweetness: Feel free to increase or decrease the amount of sugar slightly.

Serving Recommendations

When serving the blueberry scones, we often enjoy them alone. However, like most scones, there are a few popular serving options.

• Dairy-free butter
• Vegan whipped cream (or coconut whipped cream)
• Jam (and vegan cream)
• Vegan lemon curd
• Coconut butter
• A dollop of plant-based yogurt

These vegan lemon blueberry scones are also a great treat as part of a larger brunch, with items like tofu scramble, root vegetable hash, pancakes, waffles, muffins, etc.

Make Ahead and Storage Instructions

To prepare these vegan blueberry scones ahead, you could prepare and shape them, then leave them covered in the refrigerator for up to a day before baking. You can also freeze them unbaked for up to a month and bake them from frozen, increasing the time by a few minutes.

Once baked, we highly recommend consuming them fresh, though any leftovers will store in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days or slightly longer (4-5 days) in the fridge.

These lemon blueberry vegan scones are also freezer-friendly. Spread them across a baking tray, not touching, to flash freeze, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow them to thaw in the fridge overnight or at room temperature for several hours.

It’s best to bring them back to room temperature before enjoying them. You could also reheat them in a microwave (15-30 seconds), toaster oven, or oven (10-15 mins at 300F/150C).

More Vegan Brunch Recipes

• Easy vegan French toast
• Vegan lemon loaf cake
• Blueberry pancakes
• Carrot Cake Muffins
• Blueberry Banana Muffins
• Vegan cinnamon rolls
• Blueberry breakfast bread

You might also enjoy browsing our list of 36 easy vegan breakfast recipes!

Photos by Alfonso Revilla