Sourdough Discard Scones with Blueberries and Lemon

These sourdough blueberry scones are soft and tender, filled with juicy plump blueberries, lemon zest, and topped with lemon glaze. They use an easy recipe for tender scones that can be adapted to other flavors too.

This is a sourdough starter discard recipe and the sourdough starter helps give them an extra tender crumb. They are light and soft with beautiful bursts of juicy blueberries.

Sourdough scones

A sourdough scone recipe is a great way to use discard sourdough starter. This is a sourdough starter that is unfed, quite runny, and acidic. It's the acid component in the starter we want in this recipe.

The acid helps to break down the gluten in the flour to make them tender scones. Often scone recipes use buttermilk, which is also acidic, to give this tenderness. In this sourdough scones recipe, a sourdough starter is the buttermilk substitute.

Acid is often used in pastry dough too to help keep things flaky and tender and the perfect texture!

The discard starter is not used for the leavening process in the scones. The scones use baking powder for the leavening part (NOT baking soda!)

The ingredients

The ingredient amounts are in the recipe card below but here is an overview of what you need for these delicious sourdough scones.

• all-purpose flour
• granulated sugar
• baking powder
• salt
• butter (salted butter or unsalted. If using salted butter, reduce the other salt in the recipe)
• Blueberries, frozen or fresh
• Lemon zest
• Discard sourdough starter
• Egg
• Heavy cream or whole milk. Heavy cream (or pouring cream) will give a richer flavor than milk. You can also use buttermilk if you have some.

The glaze

• lemon juice
• powdered sugar

Measurements

The amounts listed below use grams as their measurement. I highly recommend getting a kitchen scale if you don't yet have one. They are by far the most consistent way to measure things. Especially when it comes to baking where measurements are so important.

Cups can come in different sizes depending on if you're using US cups or using metric cups. It also depends on how you're filling the cup. If you really want to use a measuring cup, here is a website that has some basic US cup measurement conversions.

The blueberries

These blueberry scones scream summer. The fact that blueberries are in season then is one reason why, but it’s the colors too. Bright pops of purple against a soft yellow background. It’s just so cheerful!

Blueberry picking season really amps up from mid-summer onwards but these sourdough starter scones work well (if not better!) with frozen blueberries.

The trick to flaky scones is keeping the butter nice and cold, and frozen blueberries are brilliant little helpers in achieving that.

I have a guide you can follow if you need to know how to make a sourdough starter.

The method

The dough

In a large mixing bowl combine all-purpose flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. To this flour mixture, cut in cubes of cold butter. You can use a pastry cutter, a food processor, or even a box grater to grate the butter for this step. If using a box grater it helps to use frozen butter so the warmth of your hands doesn't melt it too quickly.

Cut the butter into the flour until it resembles chunky bread crumbs, with a few pieces the size of peas throughout it. Don't let the butter melt as the pieces of butter will give the scones their flakiness.

Add in the blueberries and lemon zest and stir them throughout the flour to coat them.

in a separate large bowl, combine the discarded starter, egg, and 3 tablespoons of heavy cream or whole milk and whisk until well-combined. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients.

Shaping

Use a fork to gently combine the mixture together until it clumps together, but it is still quite a shaggy dough.

Tip it into a lightly floured surface and gently fold it together with your fingers until it is combined into a mound. Don't over mix the dough or your scones will be tough. It should be a slightly sticky dough, that's still fairly crumbly but sticks together easily with pressed.

If the mixture isn't coming together well, add in the remaining 1-2 tablespoons of milk or cream if necessary. If it's too sticky you can add a little extra flour. Form the dough into an 8-inch circle (20cm).

Use a knife or a bench scraper to cut the circle into 8 wedge pieces. Place the cut scones on some parchment paper. Use a pastry brush to brush the top of the scones with a little heavy cream or milk. Place them into the fridge while the oven preheats. 

If using frozen blueberries, this extra chilling step of the unbaked scones can be skipped, as the berries keep the butter cold. If skipping this step, preheat the oven while you mix the scone dough.

Baking

Bake the scones in the preheated oven for around 18-20 minutes until golden brown on the top.

Let the scones cool on a wire rack before glazing.

The glaze

In a small bowl add the lemon juice and enough powdered sugar until it makes a thick but pourable glaze. Drizzle it over the cooled scones. Alternatively, they can simply be dusted with powdered sugar.

Making scones in advance

The unbaked scones can be made and chilled in the fridge up to 12 hours in advance. Place them in an airtight container or cover them with compostable plastic wrap. The unbaked scones can also be frozen in an airtight container.

Bake them from frozen or let them thaw first in the refrigerator. If baking from frozen, add 2-3 minutes of baking time as needed.

Storing

Any leftover scones can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to 4 days. They can be reheated in the microwave or in a low-temperature oven until warmed through.

Baked and un-iced scones can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Let them thaw at room temperature or in the refrigerator. They can be reheated in the microwave or in a low-temperature oven until warmed through.

Other ingredients to try next time

These blueberry sourdough scones use a basic scone recipe with basic ingredients that can be adapted to other flavors too. Instead of blueberry and lemon, you could try:

• Dried cranberries (or other dried fruit) and citrus zest
• Chocolate chips (Chocolate chip sourdough scones are so yum!)
• Orange scones with a pinch of ground cardamom or ground cinnamon
• Whole or chopped berries like strawberries, blackberries, or raspberries, with a little vanilla extract
• Other seasonal fruits

If you're after a savory version, here are some flaky and cheesy sourdough cheese scones that use a similar recipe.

Other great sourdough discard recipes

Looking for more sourdough discard recipes? Why not try -

• Gourmet sourdough crackers
• Sourdough banana bread
• Puff pastry with sourdough starter
• Sourdough discard pizza crust
• Waffles with discarded starter
• Pancakes with sourdough starter
• The best sourdough chocolate cake

Continue to Content

Sourdough Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze

Yield: 8

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 18 minutes

Total Time: 33 minutes

These scones are soft and tender, filled with juicy plump blueberries, lemon zest and topped with lemon glaze. They use sourdough discard starter which helps give them an extra tender crumb.

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Ingredients

• 250g all-purpose flour
• 100g granulated sugar
• 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 100g cold butter
• 1 heaped cup fresh blueberries, frozen or fresh
• 1 ½ tablespoon lemon zest
• 100g discard sourdough starter, approx ½ cup
• 1 large egg
• 4-5 tablespoon milk or pouring cream

Lemon Glaze

• 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 120g icing sugar

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder and mix it well together. Cut the cold butter into cubes and add it to the flour. Use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into small pea-sized pieces.
2. Alternatively, use a food processor to cut the butter into the flour, or a cheese grater to grate the butter before adding it into the flour (then use your finger tips to rub it in, until it resembles coarse bread crumbs.)
3. Add in the blueberries and lemon zest and toss to combine.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sourdough starter, egg and 3 tablespoons of the milk or cream. Reserve the remaining tablespoons of milk or cream.
5. Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture, then pour in the sourdough mixture. Use a fork to combine it into a shaggy dough. If the mixture isn't coming together well, add in the remaining 1-2 tablespoon of milk or cream if necessary.
6. Tip the shaggy dough into a clean bench and gently push it together with your fingers until it is combined into a crumbly but slightly sticky mound. Don’t overknead the dough or it will become tough. Push the dough into a circle.
7. Use a knife or a dough scraper to cut the circle into 8 wedge pieces. Place the pieces on some baking paper and pop them into the fridge while the oven preheats. If using frozen blueberries, this extra chilling step can be skipped, as the berries keep the butter cold. If skipping this step, preheat the oven while you mix the scone dough.
8. Preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F) fan-bake, or 200°C (392°C) regular bake.
9. Bake the scones in the preheated oven for around 18-20 minutes until golden brown around the edges. Once baked, leave the scones to cool before glazing.

Lemon glaze

1. In a bowl, add the lemon juice and enough icing sugar until it makes a thick but pourable glaze. Drizzle it over the cooled scones.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1 grams
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 338Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 7gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 51mgSodium: 308mgCarbohydrates: 55gFiber: 1gSugar: 25gProtein: 5g

Have you made these sourdough lemon and blueberry scones? Tag me and let me know! @home_grown_happinessnz