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–+ servings
a golden scone on a white plate
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4.93 from 14 votes

Almond Paste Scones

Tender, moist, lightly almond-flavored scones use homemade almond paste for a flavorful and cheap option. These scones will melt in your mouth!
Prep Time40 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Total Time1 hour 23 minutes
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8 scones
Author: Erika Kwee

Ingredients

For the scones

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 3 tbsp sugar
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 5 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4" cubes
  • 1 cup heavy cream

Almond Paste

  • heaping 3/4 cup almond flour
  • 9 tbsp powdered sugar
  • 1.5 tbsp water
  • 1/2 tsp almond extract

Assembly

  • 3-4 tsp raspberry jam or jam of your choice, optional
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Make the scones

  • Preheat the oven to 400F. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt until combined. Rub the cold, cubed butter into the dry ingredients with your fingers until the texture is powdery with some chunks of butter still the size of peas. Pour in the heavy cream (reserve 1 tbsp or so for brushing) and stir until a soft dough forms--try not to overmix. Use your hands to gently knead any stray dry crumbs into the dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap or cover the bowl with a towel and set in the fridge to rest while you make the almond paste.
  • In a food processor, add the almond flour and powdered sugar and process to combine. Add the water and almond extract and process until a paste forms. (You should have about 2/3 cup or ~175g of paste.)
  • On a floured surface, roll out the scone dough a rectangle around 4x10". Divide almond paste in two. Roll out one portion of almond paste into a 4x10" rectangle and cut into 2 equal squares. Repeat with the second portion of almond paste for a total of 4 squares.
  • Working quickly to keep the dough cold, place one square of almond paste on the bottom of the dough rectangle. If using the optional jam, spread ~1 teaspoon evenly over the almond paste. Fold the top piece of dough over the bottom and roll out the dough to the same dimensions (around 4x10"). Repeat with the almond paste 3x until all the almond paste squares are used up.
  • Roll out the layered scone dough a little thinner the last time (to around 6x12" if you can). Cut the dough in half, then in quarters to make 8 scones. Brush scones with a tablespoon of cream and sprinkle with granulated or turbinado sugar if desired. Transfer scones to a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 22-25 minutes, or until golden and fragrant. Let cool slightly and enjoy! These are best fresh out of the oven, but they also reheat well.

Notes

Recipe based on scones from America's Test Kitchen via Smitten Kitchen and almond paste from ElaVegan