Orange Scones are tender, flakey and oh-so-delicious! Made with both orange juice and orange zest, then drizzled with a simple glaze, they pair perfectly with a cup of coffee in the morning! 

Orange scones don’t really sound like they’d be my “thing”, but they absolutely are my thing. 

See, I enjoyed orange-flavored baked goods, like my orange cake, cranberry orange muffins and my orange hot chocolate, but these scones are the real deal! The texture is superb and they’re only lightly sweetened, plus they pair perfectly with this boozy hot chocolate (just saying!).

Recipe features

• Made with orange juice and orange zest, so you get plenty of orange flavor
• Moist, tender, fresh, and flakey all at the same time
• Drizzled with a simple orange glaze to increase the sweetness a bit 

Scones Ingredients

Flour – All purpose flour is the way to go, or substitute gluten free 1:1 baking flour if you want to keep these gluten free. 

Sugar – Cane sugar is best, but you can substitute coconut sugar if you want these to be less sweet tasting. 

Orange – Freshly squeezed orange juice is best. You only need 1 orange, and the result is much better than using store-bought juice. 

Egg – I haven’t tested this recipe without egg, but you may be able to get away with using a flax egg (let me know if you try it this way!).

Milk – Any kind will work (I used oat milk).

How to Make Orange Scones

Step 1: Combine ingredients. In a medium bowl, stir the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and orange zest together. In a separate large bowl, whisk the egg, orange juice, milk, and vanilla extract together. Then, pour the dry ingredients into the wet and stir to combine. 

Step 2: Form the scones. Flour your hands (the dough will be sticky!), then form the dough into a ball and transfer it to a parchment paper-lined baking sheet or a silpat mat. Press the ball down and form a disc about 1/2 inch thick and 7-8 inches wide. Use a sharp knife to make 6 cuts into the dough, forming the scones, then separate them slightly from one another. 

Optional: brush each scone with a bit of melted butter, then sprinkle with a little sugar. 

Step 3: Bake. Place the scones in the oven and bake them at 350° for about 20 minutes. Leave them on the baking sheet for a few minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack to cool.

Step 4: Add the orange glaze. Whisk milk, orange zest and powdered sugar together until you have a smooth consistency, then drizzle it over the scones. 

Erin’s tips and tricks

• The dough will be sticky, so be sure to flour your hands before handling it, and to place the dough on a floured surface before forming it into a ball/disc.
• If you want the glaze to solidify, you’ll need to wait for the scones to cool before adding it; otherwise, it’ll melt and spill right off of the scones.
• Add-ins: feel free to bulk up orange scones by stirring in some shredded coconut, dried cranberries or even some blueberries. 

How do I get scones to rise?

They should rise naturally thanks to the full tablespoon of baking powder. However, you can also ensure they’ll be fluffy by not forming the scones to be too thin. Make sure they’re 1/2″ or even 3/4″ thick before baking them.

Are these orange scones healthy? 

I mean, kind of! Most scone recipes contain both butter and sugar, but this recipe doesn’t have any butter in it and instead uses orange juice and milk. It does have some sugar though! 

Storage

• Room temperature: Scones should stay fresh when stored in a container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
• Freezer: Alternatively, you can freeze them. Simply prep them as-is, then place the pre-cut scones in a container, separating them with parchment paper. You can bake them straight from frozen, just know you’ll need to bake them for a bit longer. 

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If you made this recipe, be sure to leave a comment and star rating below. Thanks!