These easy, light and fluffy cheese scones come together in a matter of minutes. Flavoured with cheddar, parmesan and spices, enjoy these scones hot out of the oven with a smattering of butter.
I love a savoury scone. I have grown up eating regular South African (or British) scones, whether paired with cream and jam or completely savoury with fillings like cheese, onions, spices, maybe some bacon if feeling a little extra naughty.
However, what we call savoury scones in many of the Commonwealth Countries such as South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia, are called "biscuits" in the US.
Now, this is slightly confusing because in South Africa (as well as with many of the Commonwealth sister countries), we generally use the word "biscuit" to denote a small, usually fairly thin, sometimes crisp cookie. But we do also have cookies, which is closer to the US term as well.
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What You Need for this Recipe
Equipment
For this recipe, you will require a mixing bowl, bench scraper (optional), cookie cutters or a knife, and a baking sheet.
Ingredients
Flour - plain flour, standard grade, or all-purpose flour is used to make these cheese scones.
Baking Powder to give the scones a bit of lift.
Butter (salted) adds flavour and gives a flakey tenderness to the scones. As the scones bake, the steam released from the butter raises the scone (in conjunction with the baking powder) and leads to a flakey, soft, and fluffy scone.
Parmesan adds a nice strong cheese flavour.
Cheddar - preferably mature or vintage cheddar, but tasty cheese (regular cheddar) will do just fine, particularly when paired with parmesan.
Milk adds moisture to the scones. Whole or lower-fat options can be used.
Mustard powder, cayenne pepper, and paprika add a nice depth of flavour and a bit of spiciness to the scones. These are optional and can be left out to make plain cheese scones.
Note - there is no added salt in this recipe because cheese can be rather salty, I opted for salted butter, and the baking powder also contains salt. However, if using unsalted butter add in ¼ - ½ teaspoon of table salt.
Making Cheese Scones (Cheese Biscuits)
Note - all ingredients must be cold for this recipe.
Step 1 - Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C Fan.
Step 2 - Grate the cheeses, keeping aside approximately 40 grams of the cheddar to place on top of the scones before baking.
Step 3 - Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, mustard, cayenne pepper and paprika. Grate the butter or cut it into small blocks. Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the cheeses into the flour, and mix through with your fingers until well distributed.
Step 4 - Pour the milk into the flour mixture, using a fork, stir to make a rough dough.
Step 5 - Lightly flour a dough board or kitchen counter. Place the dough in the middle of the floured surface and bring the dough together into a rectangle. Using a knife or bench scraper, cut the dough into thirds and fold the outer edges on the middle section. Press down using your hands or a rolling pin until the dough is about 3cm thick. Repeat the process twice more. This laminates the dough.
Step 6 - Either using a cookie cutter or knife, cut 6 to 8 large scones. If using a round cookie cutter, bring together the left-over dough, by kneading the dough together and forming a disk or square to cut out additional scones. Try to work with the dough as little as possible.
NOTE - for mini cheese scones, simply divide the batter into 12-16 smaller pieces. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes.
Step 7 - Using a pastry brush, brush the tops of the scones with the milk and sprinkle the leftover cheddar over the tops of the scones.
Step 8 - Bake for approximately 15 minutes. The scones would have risen, and be golden brown in colour. Remove from the oven and place on a wire cooling rack to cool down slightly before serving warm with butter.
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Substitutions / Variations
No parmesan, no problem. Simply increase your cheddar by the equivalent grams of parmesan.
Add half a finely chopped and sauteed onion for a little more flavour oomph.
Milk can be substituted with buttermilk - but then substitute the baking powder with 1 teaspoon of baking soda.
Storage
Store the scone dough in the fridge overnight before baking or freeze for up to 3 months. Store baked scones in an airtight container, at room temperature for 3 days.
Pro Tips for this Recipe
Weighing Ingredients
Weighing ingredients is more accurate than measuring cups overall, and this is my recommendation for my recipes as they are all developed and tested using grams only.
However, I have activated the grams-to-cup conversions on the recipe card. Simply click on "cups" underneath the ingredient list. For these conversions, cups are equal to 236mL/8 fluid ounces, tablespoons are 15mL and teaspoons are 5mL.
Measuring cups and spoons are an essential addition to every kitchen! Especially if you don't use a kitchen scale. Invest in a set to ensure you add the correct ingredients for accurate measuring. When in doubt - always use a level spoon or cup measure.
Cold is a must for great scones
- Keep all the ingredients in the fridge until you are ready to make the scones. Grate the cheese and butter ahead of baking and pop them back into the fridge while you prepare everything else.
- If it is particularly warm, you may even want to chill your bowl. And once you have shaped your scones, place them on a baking sheet and pop them into the fridge while the oven is heating up. This is will result in extra light and fluffy scones.
- If you have warm or hot hands, handle the dough using a bench scraper.
Handle the scone dough as little as possible for light and fluffy cheese scones. Even though we are laminating this dough to an extent, keep the dough handling to an absolute minimum.
Scone dough lamination is a trick I picked up watching American biscuits being made on YouTube many moons ago. I applied this to my scones, and it works really well. It creates nice layers of butter (and cheese) which result in delicious flakiness.
Scones can be baked from frozen scone dough. Simply add another 5 minutes to the baking time to account for defrosting in the oven.
The temperatures stated are for conventional ovens. For convection, fan-forced, fan-assisted, or air-fryers, the temperature must be reduced by 20°C/25°F, or the gas mark by 1.
For best baking results invest in an oven thermometer, as the temperature dials on the oven may not be accurate.
Cheese Scones FAQ
Yes. Before freezing, allow the scones to completely cool before wrapping them in a reusable plastic bag (or plastic wrap) and placing them in an airtight container. Scones can be frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost the scones in the fridge overnight. Even better, freeze the scone dough and bake them from frozen, and add another 5 minutes to the baking time.
The best cheese is a strong-tasting cheese like mature cheddar or a vintage cheddar.
Scones can be "freshened" up by microwaving for 10-20 seconds with a small bowl of water (to moisten the scones). Or place them in an oven at 150°C for about 5 to 10 minutes, adding a bowl of water in a heat-proof container will add some moisture to the scones.
Scone dough that has been overworked will result in tough and hard scones. Work the dough as little as possible.
Yes. Once you have made your dough and cut out your scones (cut into the desired shape) you can place the scones in the fridge overnight (covered in clingfilm or in an airtight container). They can be baked directly from the fridge.
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📖 Recipe
Spicy Cheese Scones (Cheese Biscuits)
Ingredients
- 300 grams plain flour
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 60 grams butter salted
- 60 grams parmesan
- 100 grams cheddar
- 200 mL milk
- 3 tablespoons milk
- ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ¼ - ½ teaspoon of table salt if using unsalted butter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 220°C/430F. Note - all ingredients must be cold for this recipe.
- Grate the cheeses, keeping aside 40 grams of the cheddar to place on top of the scones before baking.60 grams parmesan, 100 grams cheddar
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, mustard, cayenne pepper and paprika. Grate the butter or cut it into small blocks. Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the cheeses into the flour, and mix through with your fingers until well distributed.300 grams plain flour, 4 teaspoons baking powder, 60 grams butter, 60 grams parmesan, ½ teaspoon mustard powder, ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon paprika, ¼ - ½ teaspoon of table salt, 100 grams cheddar
- Pour the milk into the flour mixture, using a fork, stir to make a rough dough.200 mL milk
- Lightly flour a dough board or kitchen counter. Place the dough in the middle of the floured surface and bring the dough together into a rectangle. Using a knife or bench scraper, cut the dough into thirds and fold the outer edges on the middle section. Press down using your hands or a rolling pin until the dough is about 3cm thick. Repeat the process twice more. This laminates the dough.
- Either using a cookie cutter or knife cut 6 to 8 large scones. If using a round cookie cutter, bring together the left-over dough, by kneading the dough together and forming a disk or square to cut out additional scones. Try to work with the dough as little as possible.
- Using a pastry brush, brush the tops of the scones with the milk and sprinkle the leftover cheddar over the tops of the scones.3 tablespoons milk
- Bake for approximately 15 minutes. The scones would have risen, and be golden brown in colour. Remove from the oven and place on a wire cooling rack to cool down slightly before serving warm with butter.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is an estimate, accuracy of nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.. If scaling the recipe remember to scale your cook and bakeware accordingly.
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