White Cheddar Scones

Sharing is caring!

White cheddar scones are absolutely packed with sharp cheddar flavor! Buttery and flaky, cheesy and crisp, with a hint of red pepper spice.

These scones might look a little plain, but I promise you  they taste anything but plain. This savory scone recipe works well with any meal you’d serve bread with and a treat when paired with a charcuterie board and your favorite wine. 

Do you like sharp white cheddar? I recently got a beautiful Jersey Supreme White cheddar from a local creamery and it’s the sharpest cheese I’ve ever eaten. When you get a really beautiful artisanal ingredient like that you don’t need a lot of fancy stuff to make it shine and that’s what is so great about these scones. They are simple to make. Simple flavors, but together they make a stunning combination.

Honestly though, that’s just a great description of scones in general and that’s why I love them so much. You’ll find lots of scone recipes here on AHB and even a Pinterest board dedicated to just scones. 

Here are some of my favorites: 

• Caramel Apple Scones
• Lemon Sugar Scones
• Blackberry Cream Cheese Scones
• Instant Oatmeal Scones

Although I love baking scones, they seem to cause some people problems so here are my go to tips for baking scones. 

There are 2 very important things to pay attention to: temperature of the ingredients, and handling of the dough. Always make sure your butter and liquids are super cold and don’t handle the dough any more than absolutely necessary. 

For this recipe you’ll need: 

• A high quality sharp white cheddar cheese
• Flour
• Baking powder
• Sugar 
• Salt
• Cayenne pepper
• Black pepper
• Unsalted butter, frozen
• Heavy cream (no substitutions)
• An egg

Special tools needed are: 

• A box grater
• Parchment paper or a silicone baking mat
• Baking sheet pans

Step by step:

You’ll start by adding the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and peppers to a mixing bowl and giving it a good stir. 

Next, grate the frozen butter and combine it with the flour. The pieces should be small. Break up any clumps with a pastry blender or fork.

Stir in 1 cup of coarsely grated white cheddar into the flour mixture. 

The cream and egg need to be whisked together first and then poured over the flour mixture.

Stir the scone dough until all the cream is absorbed and the dough starts to form a ball. There will still be some loose flour in the bottom of the bowl. Gently knead the ingredients in the bowl a few times so the dough is no longer sticky and most of the flour has been incorporated. This should only take 3-4 kneads. 

Turn the dough out onto a parchment lined baking sheet and pat it into an 8 inch round that’s approximately 1 inch thick. Using a sharp knife cut the scones into 8 wedges and gently separate them.

Now it’s time to bake! They’ll bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.

Serve these scones alongside a charcuterie board, with your favorite soups and stews, or in place of biscuits with your breakfast. They taste best still warm from the oven the day they are made, but they also reheat well. Just stick them in a 350 degree oven for about 5 minutes.