Apple Butter Crumble Scones

Recipe Ingredients

Here’s a look at the ingredients you need to make the ultimate fall scone.

Apple Butter: Apple butter is like a thick, spiced apple jam that is a seasonal favorite, but there are only a few widely available commercial options. Any apple butter you love will work here, try a local sourced favorite or even make your own! We have a great apple butter recipe that would shine in this recipe or give our double ginger apple butter a try.

Frozen Butter: Freezing and shredding the butter for these scones prevents you “handling” the dough too much and keeps the butter from warming and creating a dense or heavy scone.

Gold Medal™ All Purpose Flour: A great base for these scones, it contains just enough protein to hold the scones together while remaining soft and light.

Other ingredients you’ll need for these scones: baking powder, brown and granulated sugars, salt, whole milk, an egg, melted butter, and cinnamon.

How to Make Apple Butter Crumble Scones

Here are some tips for making the best scones. Be sure to follow the recipe for complete instructions.

1. Make and Chill the Crumble

Do this part first so the crumble can chill and freeze while you prepare the dough. If you’re including some of the crumble in the scone dough as a mix-in, be sure to freeze it so it doesn’t disintegrate into the flour as you make the scones.

2. Freeze and Grate the Butter

Freeze the butter before grating, both to keep it as cold as possible and to make it easier to grate.

3. Combine the Shredded Butter and Dry Ingredients

Use your hands to toss the flour and frozen butter together, coating all of the butter in the flour mixture. Then rub some of the butter into the flour, while leaving some whole flakes of shredded butter. Like one or two palmfuls, you don’t want to overhandle and warm the butter.

4. Fold in the Wet Ingredients

There’s just enough liquid in this recipe to bring the dough together. Folding the liquid in with a spatula (or, my preferred tool for this specific task, a rice paddle) is essential to avoid overmixing. Ideally, you want the mixture to be dry and shaggy before shaping, much like biscuit dough.

5. Bring the Dough Together and Shape

Kneading the dough a few times is necessary for bringing the dough together. Fold and press it a few times, gathering the straggly bits as you go, until it just forms a dough that you can pat into a circle.

6. Layer On the Apple Butter and Crumble

Spread a layer of apple butter over the top of the scones and top with the chilled crumble. Then cut the scones into wedges and place on a prepared baking sheet. Scoop up any fallen crumble and press back onto the scones.

7. Bake the Scones

Baking the scones in a relatively hot (425°F) oven makes sure the cold butter in the dough melts quickly and releases steam, giving these scones a light and soft texture.

How to Store (and Reheat) Apple Butter Crumble Scones

Use these tips to store your scones.

Room Temperature Storage

Ideally, you can enjoy the scones the day they are baked, so storage won’t be necessary. Scones tend to go stale after a day, but if you must, wrap in plastic wrap or store in an airtight container for 1-2 days.

Freezing

You can freeze both unbaked and baked scones. I prefer freezing the scones unbaked, then baking them off as needed. Freeze the scones on a baking sheet after they have been layered with the apple butter and crumble and cut into wedges. Then freeze wrapped (individually or as a whole round) for up to one month. You can bake them from frozen, just add 1 minute to the bake time.

Thawing and Reheating

Thaw any frozen baked scones, still wrapped, at room temperature. Reheat in the microwave for 10 seconds or in a toaster oven for a few minutes. The apple butter may be hot, so use caution.