Soft and tender, high altitude cinnamon raisin scones, lightly sweetened with brown sugar. These scones have a fluffy, biscuit-like texture inside, and a crunchy cinnamon sugar coating on top.
You might also love these high altitude tested recipes for almond cream cheese scones, brown butter oatmeal raisin cookies, and rum raisin apple butter cake.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Easy to Make. The biscuit dough comes together quickly and easily, and then you simply need to pat it out onto a baking sheet to bake. If you have a scone pan, you can use that with this recipe, too. They’re rustic and homey, and just delicious with a cup of hot tea or coffee.
Not Too Sweet. When developing this recipe, I wanted these cinnamon raisin scones to be full of spice, but not overly sweet. If you’d like them sweeter, rather than adding more brown sugar to the dough (which can cause the dough to spread too much as the scones bake), you can drizzle the baked scones with a simple powdered sugar icing.
High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
- Flour. Plain all purpose flour gives the scones structure and strength.
- Baking Powder. Leavens the scones so they’re light and fluffy.
- Salt. Enhances the flavors.
- Sugar. You’ll need light brown sugar to sweeten the dough, and granulated sugar for sprinkling on top of the scones.
- Spices. Cinnamon and cardamom add warmth and coziness.
- Butter. The butter adds fat, for a tender, biscuit-like texture in the scones.
- Whole Milk. Moistens the dough to bind it together.
- Vanilla Extract. Flavor.
- Raisins. You could also use dried sweetened cranberries instead of the raisins, or any chopped dried fruit like figs, apricots, apples or cherries.
- Cream. Brushed over the scones before baking, this helps the cinnamon sugar stick to the top for a crunchy finish.
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, brown sugar, cinnamon and cardamom.
- Add the butter, and use a pastry cutter to cut the butter in until crumbly, and the pieces of butter are no bigger than peas.
- Add the milk, vanilla and raisins, and stir together into a shaggy dough.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and scrape the dough onto the paper. If the dough is sticky, dust it lightly with a little more flour, and use your hands to shape it into a thick disk, about 7-8 inches in diameter. Set the pan in the freezer to chill for 10 minutes while you preheat the oven.
- Position a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat the oven to 375 F.
- Brush the top of the dough with the cream, and sprinkle with half the cinnamon sugar. Use a bench scraper or a sharp knife to cut the dough into 8 wedges, but do not separate the wedges.
- Bake the scones for 30 minutes. (After about 20 minutes, I take the pan out of the oven, and if the scones are spreading a little too much, I push them back together to help keep their shape. Return the pan to the oven to finish baking the full 30 minutes.)
- After 30 minutes, cut the scones again and separate the wedges. They should be baked through, but if they still seem a little doughy in the center, you can bake them for an additional 2-5 minutes.
- Sprinkle with the rest of the cinnamon sugar and serve the scones warm. (If adding icing, drizzle it on while the scones are warm, and wait a few minutes for it to set.)
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
How should I store leftover cinnamon raisin scones?
Store leftover scones in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
What’s the best way to reheat scones?
I prefer to reheat scones and biscuits in a toaster oven, rather than in the microwave. Place the scones directly on the rack or on a baking sheet in a toaster oven, and warm them for about 8-10 minutes at 300F. Serve with softened butter.
Do you have an icing recipe for scones?
For a sweeter finish, simply whisk together these icing ingredients and drizzle over the warm scones, then sprinkle with more cinnamon sugar.
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 – 2 tbsp milk or cream
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High Altitude Cinnamon Raisin Scones
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Pastry Cutter
- Baking Sheet + Parchment Paper
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- 4 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- â…“ cup light brown sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- 10 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks or thin slices
- ¾ cup cold whole milk
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup raisins
- 1 tbsp cream
- 2 ¼ tbsp cinnamon sugar (2 tbsp granulated sugar + 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon)
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, brown sugar, cinnamon and cardamom.
- Add the butter, and use a pastry cutter to cut the butter in until crumbly, and the pieces of butter are no bigger than peas.
- Add the milk, vanilla and raisins, and stir together into a shaggy dough.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and scrape the dough onto the paper. If the dough is sticky, dust it lightly with a little more flour, and use your hands to shape it into a thick disk, about 7-8 inches in diameter. Set the pan in the freezer to chill for 10 minutes while you preheat the oven.
- Position a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat the oven to 375 F.
- Brush the top of the dough with the cream, and sprinkle with half the cinnamon sugar. Use a bench scraper or a sharp knife to cut the dough into 8 wedges, but do not separate the wedges.
- Bake the scones for 30 minutes.Baker's Note: After about 20 minutes, I take the pan out of the oven, and if the scones are spreading a little too much, I push them back together to help keep their shape. Return the pan to the oven to finish baking the full 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, cut the scones again and separate the wedges. They should be baked through, but if they still seem a little doughy in the center, you can bake them for an additional 2-5 minutes.
- Sprinkle with the rest of the cinnamon sugar and serve the scones warm.Baker's Note: If adding icing, drizzle it on while the scones are warm, and wait a few minutes for it to set.
Notes
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 – 2 tbsp milk or cream
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