Healthier Scones Made With Yogurt

A Reformed Protein Scones Recipe

Scones are delicious but making scones sounds intimidating, doesn’t it? Particularly when you’ve never made them before and you want healthier scones made with yogurt and no refined sugar for kids to enjoy without causing a sugar rush.

When I first decided to make a healthier scones recipe, I was a little scared because I thought they would be hard to make. But on my first try, I discovered they are actually quite easy and every batch I’ve made since has turned out amazing. So if you’re feeling a little nervous about making scones, it’s actually pretty simple.

My original goal in making this scones recipe was simply to eliminate what I felt were the least healthy parts about scones: The sugar and the heavy cream.

Not that I have anything against heavy cream in occasional treats. I love to use heavy cream to make honey-sweetened mint chocolate chip ice cream and whipped cream or chocolate mousse. But it’s very rich and a lot of fat to fill your kids tummies with for breakfast or a snack.

So my aim was to replace the cream and sugar with healthier alternatives. I used whole milk and maple syrup as healthy replacements. And my kids absolutely loved these scones from the very first batch!

But, the scone reformation wasn’t quite done. Although my kids were eating up these healthier homemade scones like candy, and although they were much better for their bodies than the typical scones recipe, I had one regret. I kept seeing recipes on Pinterest for scones made with yogurt and I wished I had made mine with yogurt.

Even though the beneficial bacteria in yogurt gets killed by the heat in baked goods, it still adds something essential: Protein. Extra protein is always a big hit for parents with picky-eating kids.

So I tried making my exact same healthy chocolate chunk scones recipe with Greek yogurt (which has more protein than regular yogurt) in place of the milk. And guess what? They still turned out just as amazing! This yogurt-version of protein scones is kid-verified to be every bit as amazing as the original milk-version and it has an impressive 7 grams of protein per scone.

Now, you can find other healthy blueberry scones recipes or healthy chocolate chip scones recipes online that are high in protein. But they are usually made with protein powder. I am not a fan of adding processed protein powder to my kids’ foods.

I do love the Mama Natural collagen powder because it helps my daughter with her gut and overall health in place of bone broth that she will not drink. But I use it as a necessary supplement; I don’t load her up on it to get a bunch of protein into her. I much prefer to use natural, less processed protein sources for my kids’ snack and breakfast items.

And that’s why I love that this homemade scones recipe can be made a higher-protein breakfast by simply replacing the milk with Greek yogurt 🙂

When You Should Make Homemade Scones

When should you make these easy homemade scones instead of buying some? All the time 😀 When your kids beg for a sugary scone from Starbucks, go home and make them some of these healthier scones made with yogurt. When your kids ask you to buy a box of unhealthy pastries at the grocery store bakery, go home and whip these up instead.

Something that is particularly wonderful about these healthy scones made with yogurt is the fact that there are two flavor options. When you want a refined sugar free protein breakfast option for your kids, make the blueberry scones recipe. And when you want something that is a little more decadent for a special after-school snack or dessert, make the chocolate chunk scones recipe.

But whatever purpose you want an easy scones recipe for, the best time to make these healthy scones is anytime you have twenty minutes of uninterrupted time to throw the dough together and 15-20 minutes to let them bake. I like to make them up on the weekend or a free afternoon and have them as quick and easy school breakfasts for my kids throughout the week.

Something to note is that if you want to use my super easy homemade honey-sweetened chocolate chunks recipe, you need to make the chocolate up a little bit ahead of time so it has time to fully harden in the freezer. It only takes five minutes to make the chocolate and it needs about a half hour in the freezer to fully harden.

And I love that you can also make these anytime you have either milk or yogurt. Use the exact same recipe and amounts to make either version of these incredible healthier scones.

You can also make them with whatever mix-ins your prefer besides blueberries or chocolate, so you don’t have to worry too much about what ingredients you have on hand besides the basic staples.

Just be prepared to make a second batch almost as soon as the first batch comes out of the oven because they will get eaten up as quickly as they cool down!

Ingredients

• Butter: Butter is what creates that beautifully flaky, fluffy texture in the scones. I like to use Irish grass-fed or organic butter.

• Flour: Any all-purpose flour will work. I use unbleached organic flour from Costco.

• Baking Powder: To get that light and fluffy rise out of these healthier scones, you need a good amount of baking powder. Make sure to buy aluminum-free baking powder.

• Salt: A little salt helps to amplify the flavor in this scones recipe. I use pink Himalayan sea salt.

• Greek Yogurt or Milk: You can use either yogurt or milk to add moisture to the scones batter. Greek yogurt will give you the most protein, but milk will also add a little bit of protein. Both are good options for an easy scone recipe with a light and tender texture. I use organic Greek yogurt or organic whole milk.

• Maple Syrup: Instead of refined sugar, this healthier scones recipe uses maple syrup to add just the right amount of sweetness for little sweet tooths. I like to use Grade A dark maple syrup for its richer flavor, but any 100% pure maple syrup will work.

• Egg: An egg acts as a binder in this scone recipe and also boosts the protein up a little higher. I use organic, cage-free eggs.

• Vanilla or Lemon Extract: Use vanilla extract to enhance the flavor in the chocolate chunk scones or optionally use lemon extract to brighten up the flavor in the blueberry scones.

• Blueberries or Chocolate Chunks: Depending on which recipe you are using, add in some frozen or fresh blueberries or easy homemade chocolate chunks for a healthy way to make scones extra tasty to little taste buds.

Instructions

Step 1

Cut butter into 1/2 inch pieces and place in the freezer while you prepare other ingredients.

Step 2

Generously flour a large flat surface and line a medium-large baking sheet with parchment paper for later.

Step 3

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 4

In a medium-size bowl, combine all dry ingredients.

Step 5

In a separate medium-size bowl, combine all liquid ingredients and whisk together.

Step 6

Add cold butter to the dry ingredients and give it a quick mix to ensure all butter pieces are coated in flour. Then dump the flour and butter into a chopper (the Ninja Express Chop is perfect for this) and pulse roughly 20-30 times until the mixture has crumbs of butter no larger than a pea.

Alternatively, cut the butter into the flour with a pastry cutter or fork.

Step 7

Pour dry ingredients back into bowl and add wet ingredients. Mix lightly just until loosely combined. Don’t worry about trying to get every little bit of the dough mixed or you will overmix it. Work the dough as little as possible.

Step 8

Add in the blueberries or chocolate chunks and gently fold them into the batter just a couple of times.

Step 9

Dump the batter out onto the previously prepared floured surface and gently press into an 8-inch circle.

*See note in recipe cards.

Step 10

Use a large, sharp knife to cut the circle into 8 triangles like you would with a pizza. Then use the knife or a spatula to slide under each piece and gently transfer to the baking sheet.

Make sure your scones are spread out and not touching each other.

Step 11

Bake blueberry scones for 20 minutes or chocolate chunk scones for 15 minutes. They are done when the bottoms of the scones are just starting to slightly darken.

Step 12

Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes. Once completely cooled, store in an airtight container or sealable bag on the counter for four days or in the fridge for one week.

Step 13

If you want to use the optional glaze, prepare the ingredients as instructed in the recipe card and drizzle over cooled scones.

Substitutions & Tips

• If you are making the blueberry version, you can optionally add in the zest from one lemon along with the rest of your wet ingredients. Along with the lemon extract, this makes for a tasty lemon blueberry scone recipe. But if your kids don’t like tart flavors, you can make plain blueberry scones with vanilla extract.

• If you want to make the chocolate chip scones recipe but don’t want to make your own chocolate chunks, you can alternatively use a healthier store-bought chocolate. Hu organic dark chocolate gems are a good option that are sweetened with unrefined coconut sugar.

• These healthy scones can be made with either yogurt or milk. Making them with Greek yogurt boosts the protein to an impressive 7 grams per scone. The batter will feel more dry and crumbly if you make it with yogurt, but it will still bake up deliciously moist. If you make it with milk, the batter will be much more wet and may need a slightly longer bake time, but it will also bake up very nicely.

• The best piece of advice for how to make scones the easy way is to not overwork the dough – both when mixing the dry and liquid ingredients and when shaping it into a circle. Don’t worry about getting every little speck of dry ingredient moistened. Just get it loosely mixed together and then gently press it into a circle on a generously floured surface.

• It helps to use gloves for shaping the dough. This helps prevent the dough from sticking to your hands. This is especially the case if you are making this scones recipe with milk.

• There is an option in each recipe to make a glaze to go on top of the scones after they are baked. You can use it or skip it. Honestly, they are really good even without the glaze, so it’s just a matter of personal preference.