Chocolate Chip Scones
These Chocolate Chip Scones are soft, tender, easy to make, and topped with a simple vanilla glaze. Perfect for breakfast or dessert!
Have you ever made homemade scones? I used to associate scones with being dry and bland, but if they’re made correctly they’re actually the complete opposite. These chocolate chip scones are a little crisp on the outside, but the inside is incredibly soft and tender and they literally melt in your mouth.
One thing that I love about scones is that they don’t too long to make. Since all of your ingredients need to be cold, you can mix up the dough in about 10 to 15 minutes. Then all you have to do is work the dough together, cut out your scones, and bake them.
This scone recipe is also incredibly versatile and you can mix in just about anything that you like. I love to use fresh fruit sometimes and top them with a different glaze. But let’s be honest, I really love chocolate chips in these scones because it just gives me a reason to eat chocolate for breakfast.
Recipe Ingredients
This is such an easy scone recipe, and you can top the scones with a vanilla glaze if desired. Either way, these scones are delicious! Here are the ingredients you will need to make them:
- All-purpose flour: Be sure to spoon and level the flour when measuring it, otherwise you’ll wind up with dense, dry scones.
- Granulated sugar: Sweetens the dough without adding any flavor.
- Baking powder: You may notice there’s a tablespoon of baking powder in these scones and I promise it’s not an error! You need a good about of baking powder to get a good rise and one tablespoon is the perfect amount.
- Salt: You need a good pinch of salt to enhance the flavor of these scones and balance out the sugar.
- Butter: It’s important to make sure your butter is cold in these scones when they go into the oven. Why? The cold pieces of butter will melt in the oven and create little steam pockets, giving the scones a soft, tender texture and helping them rise too.
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips: I prefer using mini chocolate chips, but you can use regular if desired.
- Heavy whipping cream: Should be at least 36% fat.
- Egg: Helps to bind the dough together.
- Vanilla extract: Adds flavor. Use pure vanilla extract, if possible.
How to Make These Chocolate Chip Scones
To make these scones, you’ll start by whisking together the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt. Then, you’ll cut in the cold cubed butter. Once the butter is cut into the dry ingredients, stir in the chocolate chips.
Then, you’ll whisk together the heavy whipping cream, an egg, and vanilla extract and add it to the dry ingredients. The mixture may seem a little crumbly at first, but as you work it together with your hands it will come together pretty easily. You want to turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, work it together, then pat it down into a circle.
Then, just cut the dough into 8 equal sized pieces and place them on a baking sheet. I like to brush the scones with a little extra heavy whipping cream too. This step is optional, but it gives the scones a shinier, crispier top which I really love!
You can leave off the glaze if you prefer or even try these with a chocolate glaze!
FAQ’s
How to Store Scones
Store chocolate chip scones in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 to 3 days.
Can I Add Different Mix-Ins?
I’m sure you could use chopped nuts, dried fruit, or different baking chips instead. If you give this a go, leave me a comment telling me how your homemade scones turned out!
Baking Tips
- When measuring your flour, don’t scoop it out of the container with the measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour around, spoon it into your measuring cup, and level it off with the back of a knife.
- Make sure to use cold ingredients when making the scones, including the butter.
- If you want to try these scones with a chocolate glaze, you can use the glaze in this recipe.
More Homemade Scones to Try!
Chocolate Chip Scones
Ingredients
For the chocolate chip scones:
- 2 cups (250 gram) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/3 cup (65 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoons (85 grams) cold unsalted butter , cubed
- 2/3 cup (120 grams) mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy whipping cream , plus extra for brushing on top of the scones
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the vanilla glaze:
- 1 cup (120 grams) powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) milk
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
To make the chocolate chip scones:
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (204°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the cubed cold butter and cut it into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter or fork until you have small pea-sized crumbs. Stir in the mini chocolate chips and set aside.
- In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the heavy whipping cream, egg, and vanilla extract until fully combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently mix until the dough starts to come together, it will be a little bit crumbly.
- Scoop the dough onto a lightly floured surface and work it together with your hands into a ball. The dough may seem a little crumbly or dry at first, but keep working it together gently with your hands. Flatten the ball of dough into a disc about 1-inch thick.
- Cut into 8 equal sized pieces and place each piece on the prepared baking sheet, making sure to leave a little room between each one.
- Brush the tops of each scone with a little bit of heavy whipping cream.
- Bake at 400°F for about 20 minutes or until lightly golden brown (check at about 17-18 minutes if your oven runs hot). Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
To make the vanilla glaze:
- In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract until well combined and no lumps remain. If the glaze is too thick, mix in a little extra milk. If the glaze is too thin, mix in a little extra powdered sugar until it has reached your desired consistency.
- Evenly distribute the glaze between all 8 scones and allow to sit for 10 minutes for the glaze to harden.
I made the lemon blueberry loaf & it was a big hit. So yummy thank you.
So glad to hear that, Judy! It’s one of my favorite recipes 🙂
I love how all your recipes have chocolate! These look amazing at every stage!
Thank you, Anna! 🙂
I made these with blueberries. DELICIOUS. Thank you for all your wonderful recipes.
So glad you liked the scones, Barbara!
Absolutely delicious! It was firm on the outside, but soft and flaky inside. It was not too sweet and had a savory taste as well. The kids and the husband loved it. Thank you for the recipe….
So happy you liked the scones, Natalia!
I’m only 11 and made your scones without needing to call on my mom for help! They were amazing! Thank you!
So glad the scones turned out great for you, Riley!
I made heart-shaped versions of these for my family and they were perfect. So flaky and delicious.
Too much baking soda. Overpowered the entire recipe.
Sorry you didn’t like the recipe Kathy, but this recipe calls for baking powder not baking soda.
Making my Second batch today. Swapped chocolate chips for coconut flakes
This recipe is perfect!
Made these gluten free & added pecans – a family favorite! Already made 2 batches!
So happy to hear that, Jen!
Can I make these with half and half instead of heavy cream?
That would be fine!
First time ever making scones!
Thank you, It was delicious. I can’t wait to try more recipes!
Hi! Can I substitute buttermilk for the heavy cream? How will it affect the texture and taste?
Yes, that would be okay. The scones may be a little bit tangier, so you may want to add a bit more sugar, but I think they’d still taste fine!
My scones are flat. Didn’t really rise. Any tips? I did use 1 tablespoon of baking powder. Maybe my butter wasn’t cold enough I thought it was.
Was your baking powder fresh? Was your dough and butter cold when the scones went into the oven? Did you happen to flatten the dough too much before cutting it out? And was your oven at the correct temperature before you put them in? Those are a few reasons they may not have risen very much.
Can I make the dough, freeze and pull out to bake in about a week?
Yes, that would be fine! If you bake them from frozen, you will probably need to add a few extra minutes to the baking time. If they start to brown too much on top, just place a piece of foil over them until they are done.
First time ever making scones from scratch – they turned out perfectly! Everyone in my house loved them. A new favorite recipe, thank you!
First time making scones and it turned out really well. Even better than the €4.50 a piece that I used to get from the bakeshop.
This is a really good beginner recipe. I was looking for a texture similar to a little bakery that closed down in my town a couple of years ago. They were heavier and denser. This recipe was light, softer and delicious as well. Not what I wanted but a happy discovery all the same.