Name: Earl Grey Scones
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 12 min
Ingredients: 2¼ cup all purpose flour; 4 tsp baking powder; ½ tsp salt; 2 tbsp sugar; 1½ tbsp earl grey tea (use loose tea leaves or tea bag); 3 tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature, cubed; ⅔ cup plus 2 tbsp milk or half and half

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These fragrant Earl Grey scones are perfect for tea lovers. They’re easy to make and just right for breakfast or a cozy afternoon tea.

Traditional British Scones

These scones follow the style of traditional British scones—light, tender, with a touch of sugar. Unlike American scones, that are often large, dense, and packed with sugar, British scones are more delicate and meant to be enjoyed with clotted cream, jam, or a simple pat of butter. My recipe is adapted from one of my favorite afternoon tea books, The London Ritz Book of Afternoon Tea by Helen Simpson.

Not only do I love classic scones, but I also have a soft spot for Earl Grey scones. I once had some that was made by a British pastry chef, and it was so fragrant and comforting that I’ve been in love with them ever since. When they’re fresh and warm from the oven, they taste like Earl Grey tea with warm milk!

Difference Between British Scones and Biscuits

If you love biscuits and think British scone recipes are basically the same (which is what I used to think), there are actually some key differences that set them apart.

Butter Ratio – Traditional British scones typically use less butter than biscuits – anywhere from 3 tablespoons to 5 tablespoons. Biscuit recipes on the other hand, often call for 8 tablespoons (a whole stick), though some use slightly less.
Cold vs. Room Temperature Butter – Biscuits use cold butter to create those signature flaky layers. British scones use room temperature butter, which blends more easily into the dough and results in a softer, cake-like texture.
No Folding Required – Biscuit dough is typically folded several times to build layers. Scones skip this step—just a gentle mix is all you need to keep the texture light and tender.

How to Make Earl Grey Scones

You need the following simple ingredients to make mouth watering scones!

2¼ cup all purpose flour
4 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon sugar
1½ tablespoon earl grey tea – Loose tea leaves (chop the leaves so you don’t get large long pieces of tea leaves) or use tea bags.
3 tablespoon unsalted butter at room temperature and cubed
⅔ cup plus 2 tablespoons milk or half and half
1 egg

Sift together dry ingredients in a bowl, add butter and combine butter and flour mixture with your fingers until it resembles bread crumbs.

Whisk together egg and milk or half and half. Reserve 2 tablespoons of egg mixture.

Add egg mixture to the bowl gradually and combine with flour mixture. Once combined, turn the dough onto a well-floured surface and gently pat into a 1″ thick round disk with your hands.

Cut out scones using a biscuit cutter and place them on a baking sheet. Cut the dough straight through and avoid twisting the biscuit cutter.

I used a 2.4″ biscuit cutter and was able to cut out eight scones. There were enough scraps left to make one more scone so I was able to produce 9 scones total from this recipe.

Don’t forget to brush the top of scones with reserved egg wash.

Bake for 10-12 minutes in a 425 degree oven until golden. Let scones cool for 5-10 minutes before serving!

Serving Earl Grey Scones

In the UK, scones are traditionally served with a pot of tea and topped with clotted cream and jam. If clotted cream isn’t easy to find where you live, a simple combination of butter and jam works just as well. I enjoyed these Earl Grey scones with a pot of Victoria Grey tea from Fortnum & Mason and topped with marmalade and blackcurrant jam from St. Dalfour!—delicious!

The tableware featured in this post is from one of my favorite pottery brands: Burleigh Pottery. The light blue and white pieces are part of the Blue Asiatic Pheasant collection, which I’ve featured many times on the blog. The plate holding the scones is from Burleigh’s vintage Pink Victorian Chintz collection. I love its soft color and the delicate pattern of damask roses and primroses. Although this pattern is retired, I was lucky to find a few pieces in excellent condition from sellers on Etsy—my go-to source for vintage tableware!

More Teatime Treats

Print Recipe

Earl Grey Scones

Scone Recipe adapted from The London Ritz Book of Afternoon Tea by Helen Simpson.

Prep Time15

Cook Time12

Servings: 9

Equipment

2.4" biscuit cutter

Ingredients

2¼ cup all purpose flour
4 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
1½ tbsp earl grey tea (use loose tea leaves or tea bag)
3 tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature, cubed
⅔ cup plus 2 tbsp milk or half and half

Instructions

Whisk together egg and milk in a small bowl. Save 2 tablespoon egg wash and set aside.
Line baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat oven to 425°. Sift together dry ingredients in a bowl, add butter and combine butter and flour mixture with your fingers until it resembles bread crumbs.
Add egg mixture to the bowl gradually and combine with flour mixture. Turn the dough onto a well floured surface and gently pat the dough into 1" thick round disk.
Cut out scones with a biscuit cutter. Cut the dough straight through and do not twist the cutter. Place scones on a baking sheet and brush top of scones with egg wash. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden.
Let scones cool for 5-10 minutes on a cooling rack and serve with clotted cream, and jam or butter.