How to Make Almond Poppyseed Scones for Afternoon Tea

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So, today, we’re going to make some almond poppyseed scones inspired by all my new friends on Instagram. Then, we’re going to pair them up with lemon curd and have ourselves a nice afternoon tea party. You ready?

I’m following all these wonderful folks on Instagram who are working their way through Claire Saffitz’s book Dessert Person. After Easter weekend, many of them posted about her almond poppyseed cake. While I have recently updated my lemon poppyseed cookies and posted an amazing lemon poppyseed cheesecake, I am not done with poppyseeds yet. No sir.

Why We Love Poppyseeds

Thank God we don’t have to do random drug tests for work… I am definitely breezing through poppyseed recipes like a fiend. But really, what’s not to love! These beautiful little black flecks add the nicest delicate crunch to any recipe. They are absolutely adorable in a yellow, lemony cake or contrasting the pure white of an almond scone.

Poppyseeds are nature’s sprinkles. Tell me I’m wrong.

A Case for Almond Poppyseed Scones at Tea

Now, let’s talk about scones. You know I’m a huge fan of making some boldly flavored scones, and maybe almond poppyseed scones seem a little boring. I’m sorry… I don’t do “boring” scones.

These beauties are understated, yes. They’re easy to make, too. However, they are hardly boring.

The flavor of almond is fragrant, delicate, a little floral, and reminiscent of cherries. Each bite is springtime bliss. Close your eyes. Now, you’re in an English rose garden shaded by blossoming cherry trees, Julie Andrews telling you that you’re a princess.

By the way, if you don’t mindfully eat, you really should try it. It’s a trip. You can daydream about the best scenarios as you enjoy your food. It makes the whole experience that much better. So, seriously, put your phone away while you eat.

3 Tips for Fluffy Almond Poppyseed Scones

There are a couple tricks to making sure your scones come out tall and fluffy. The first is my time-tested favorite: use frozen butter and grate it. I use a box grater to shred my frozen butter into the dry ingredients. Because the butter is so cold, it won’t melt prematurely. If it melts too soon, you end up with oily, flat scones.

This next trick is something I learned watching Nadiya Hussain‘s show on Netflix. Rub the butter into the flour, and then shimmy the bowl to bring the larger bits to the top. Continue rubbing it in until there are no more big clumps. By doing this, you coat the grains of flour in butter and prevent excess gluten formation. Your scones come out tender and light as a result.

My final trick is cutting them properly. Usually, I go with my bench scraper and cut a round of dough into wedges. Today, we’re using a biscuit cutter for perfect round scones. However, there’s a trick to this, according to my mother-in-law. You have to press down and pull up, NO twisting. Do not, under any circumstances, twist your cutter. Your scones will come out lopsided if you do.

The Science of Soda

Now, this is not so much a tip as it is a science lesson. You must use a hot oven. It seems counterintuitive to expect light, fluffy, tender scones to prosper in high heat. However, we are banking on a good chemical reaction in the baking powder to achieve that texture. For that, we need lots of heat.

Baking powder might fluff up your dough a little just when you add the liquid. However, it explodes when heat is applied. So, when faced with a 400ºF oven, it’ll puff your baking right up.

Combined with the cold butter creating pockets of steam, the baking powder helps your scones rise tall and fluffy. Plus, the heat gives the top a beautiful golden brown.

How to Serve Almond Poppyseed Scones

Once you’ve pulled your scones from the oven, you might hope it’s time to serve. However, you must let them cool for about 5 to 10 minutes. For tea, scones are best served at room temperature. This allows them to serve as a solid (though still tender) vehicle for lemon curd, butter, or jam.

Personally, I’m loving these scones with my easy, homemade lemon curd. It’s sweet, tangy, and buttery – the perfect scone condiment.

However, these scones are also bonkers good when paired with a dollop of raspberry jam. I’ve even gotten a little wild and tried them with some of my amaretto-cherry pie filling warmed up until syrupy.

They are great as the one and only treat at tea, but you could also give your party other options like finger sandwiches, macarons, or other flavors of scone.

Storing Your Scones for a Rainy Day

If you need to save your scones for another day, you have options. Store them in an airtight container or bag (remove all the air you can) for a week. They’re less than optimal by day 5, but still good.

You could also wrap them individually in plastic wrap and freeze them for up to a year. It’s important that they’re wrapped tightly though to avoid ice crystals and freezer burn.

To defrost them, let them thaw on the counter until soft. Then, enjoy as is, or pop them in a 350ºF oven for 5 minutes to reheat.

It’s important to note that this does not apply to iced scones. The icing doesn’t hold up to freezing and thawing. So, if you make any of my other recipes, only ice what you need so you can store them.

Tools You’ll Need for Almond Poppyseed Scones

You don’t need much for making scones, but this is my recommended kit. You’ll need a dough blender, bench scraper, baking sheet, and silicone baking mat. You could use parchment paper instead, but the mat is more sustainable. Additionally, you will need a 3-inch biscuit cutter (This link is for a nice set that comes with a carrying case for storage)

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Comment below if you have questions, concerns, or opinions. And tag me @ellejayathome on Instagram or Twitter if you share pictures from any of my recipes. I love to hear from you!

Almond Poppyseed Scones

Class up your afternoon tea with delicate, fluffy almond poppyseed scones. Pair them with a lush homemade lemon curd, and enjoy!

5 from 2 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Course Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine American

Servings 6 scones

Equipment

• Sheet pan and cooling rack
• Parchment paper or silicone baking mat
• Medium mixing bowl
• Bench scraper
• 3-inch biscuit cutter
• Pastry brush

Ingredients

  

• 2¾ cup all purpose flour
• ⅓ cup pure cane sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ cup unsalted butter frozen
• 1 Tbsp poppyseeds
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk plus more for brushing
• ½ tsp almond extract
• 2 Tbsp turbinado sugar optional for topping

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 400ºF.
• In a cold bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, poppyseeds, and sugar.
• Grate your frozen butter in, and rub the butter in until no large chunks remain – no chunks larger than a pea.
• Gently mix in the almond milk until just barely combined. Then turn it out onto your work surface.
• Using a bench scraper, fold the mixture until it's more cohesive.
• Form a 1-inch thick rectangle, and cut out at least 6 round scones. As needed, stack the remnant dough, and press it back to a 1-inch thickness to cut more. Do not twist the biscuit cutter; only use a clean up-and-down motion to cut. You can probably get a 7th scone out, but it's going to be a bit messy. That's okay. It'll still be tasty.
• Place the scones onto a lined baking sheet, and brush with a bit of milk. Sprinkle turbinado sugar on top for decoration, if you want to.
• Bake for 15 minutes.
• Allow them to cool for 10 minutes on the sheet before serving.
• Serve with lemon curd and raspberry jam. Pairs wonderfully with oolong tea!

Keyword Almond, Poppyseed, Scones

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