In my college town, a combination pizzeria and bakery sat on the very edge of downtown, right next to the railroad tracks in a tiny faded yellow storefront no larger than an airport coffee stand. While tourists and incoming freshmen generally overlooked it due to its quaint size and location, all of the locals considered it one of the best pizza places in town.
With their main bakery production facility on the other side of the city, the owners opted to drive over a fresh batch of pastries every morning and install a few brick ovens in the back of the storefront, which took up much less space than traditional bakery ovens, to prepare just the pizzas on site. They offered all of the classic flavors, like Margherita and meat lovers’, to more interesting ones, like eggplant with feta and roasted bell peppers with goat cheese, all on a thin crispy crust with barely a hint of char from those brick ovens.
Throughout the day, they baked fresh pizzas to cut into jumbo slices (bigger than my face!) and placed those in a glass display case next to the cash register. Rotating between four classic styles — cheese, pepperoni, Hawaiian, and vegetarian — they quickly sold those individual slices because the majority of college patrons loved stopping by for an easy lunch or dinner after class.
While most of my friends stood in line for a slice or two, I occasionally opted for a fresh salad from their refrigerated display along with a leftover pastry. They discounted their breakfast treats to $1 or less after 4 pm, and I always looked forward to those tender muffins or buttery scones! While I loved the flavors of their blueberry scones the most, those treats sometimes turned a little dry and crumbly as they sat, so I swore that when I finally baked my own at home, I’d make them the exact opposite and incredibly tender.
So that’s what I did with these Ultimate Healthy Blueberry Scones! They’re perfectly tender, with just a hint of sweetness, and positively bursting with juicy berries. Unlike those bakery’s scones, these are much made with no cream, refined flour or sugar — and have nearly 5g of protein!
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST BLUEBERRY SCONES
Let’s talk about how to make the best healthy blueberry scones! This recipe is quick and easy to make. You only need one bowl and 30 minutes!
To start, you’ll use white whole wheat flour. White whole wheat flour is made by finely grinding a special type of white wheat, whereas regular whole wheat flour comes from a heartier strain of red wheat. This gives white whole wheat flour a lighter taste and texture, similar to that of all-purpose flour (and perfect for these scones!), but it still has the same health benefits as regular whole wheat flour.
Note: Whole wheat pastry flour would be a great substitute, and I’ve included my recommended gluten-free option in the Notes section as well, if you’d like to make your healthy blueberry scones gluten-free!
Unlike traditional scones that depend on a full stick (or two!) of butter and heavy cream for a tender texture, this healthy blueberry scones recipe requires just 2 tablespoons of butter. Yes, that’s it! It’s extremely important that the butter is cold, straight from the fridge. With very cold butter, it won’t heat up until you put the scones in the extremely hot oven, and it will create little air pockets and a very tender crumb when it melts.
Note: This is why I recommend against using coconut oil, if at all possible, because coconut oil has a much lower melting point than butter. It will quickly turn to liquid once you begin mixing it into the dough, so you’ll miss out on some of that beautifully soft and tender texture. If you can’t have butter, then see the Notes section for my recommendation on what to substitute instead!
With just 2 tablespoons of butter, the rest of these scones’ tender texture comes from my favorite ingredient in healthier baking. Do you know what it is? I’m sure you do… It’s Greek yogurt! Greek yogurt provides the same moisture as extra butter for a fraction of the calories, and it gives your scones a protein boost too!
And now for the best part… Fresh blueberries! Sweet, juicy, fruity pockets of bliss folded into that buttery, tender scone dough. Seriously, does life get any better than biting into one of those purpley gems?? Especially warm and fresh from the oven… Mmmmmmmmmm.
Pure perfection! And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees that I’ll see the notification from you! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your healthy blueberry scones!
The Ultimate Healthy Blueberry Scones
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (180g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp (28g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed (see Notes!)
- ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 3 tbsp (45mL) pure maple syrup
- 3 tbsp + 2 tsp (55mL) nonfat milk, divided
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup (80g) fresh blueberries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F, and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter (highly recommended!) or the back of a fork until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Make a well in the center, and add in the Greek yogurt, maple syrup, 3 tablespoons of milk, and vanilla. Stir until just incorporated. Gently fold in the blueberries.
- Using a spatula, shape the dough into a ¾” tall circle on the prepared baking sheet. Brush with the remaining milk. Slice the circle into 8 triangular segments with a sharp knife (but don’t separate them!). Bake at 425°F for 18-22 minutes, or until the tops are golden. Cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
Notes
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy Lemon Blueberry Scones
♡ Healthy Chocolate Chip Scones
♡ Healthy Strawberry Chocolate Chip Scones
♡ Healthy Peach Scones
♡ Healthy Lemon Poppy Seed Scones
♡ Healthy Banana Chocolate Chip Scones
♡ Healthy Cinnamon Scones
♡ Healthy Carrot Cake Scones
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy scone recipes!
Hi Amy,
I tried your blueberry scones recipe, the scone came out wonderful.it was slightly burnt on the edges, I think I’ll leave them in the oven for 16 minutes next time, but the taste was great! Plus it won’t ruin my weight loss plan. Thanks for sharing this great recipe.
I want to try your strawberry and chocolate scones recipe tomorrow, but I am thinking of making them into scone shapes, what do you think? Anything I should be aware of?
I’m so glad you enjoyed these scones Sally! That means a lot to me that you want to try another one of my scone recipes so soon after your previous batch. 🙂 I’m not quite sure what you mean by “scone shapes”… Do you mean drop-style scones that are circular, as opposed to wedges?
Hi Amy
Apologies, yes that’s what I meant. Is there anything I should be aware of please?
The baking time may be slightly shorter, but that’s all! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of them Sally!
So glad I found your site! I love to bake and I enjoy the creations I make in my own kitchen, but my diet over the years has shifted from more processed foods to almost entirely whole, clean foods. I find that traditional baked goods have far too much sugar for my palette, and I don’t really feel great eating them. Thus, baking is a challenge! I’m wondering, do these scones freeze well?
Thank you so much for your kind words about my blog Lynn! That really means a lot to me. 🙂 Yes, these scones freeze well! I can’t wait to hear what you think of them!
Hi Amy,
I am wondering if it is possible to incorporate oats into t recipe.
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Kate! I don’t recommend adding oats into this recipe. Oats act like little sponges and soak up moisture from your dough, so your scones would turn out dry. However, you can substitute oat flour for the white whole wheat flour! Your scones may be a little denser and not rise as much, but that would allow you to still incorporate oats. 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you try these scones!
Hi Amy,
Thank you so much for your advice. I will try using oat flour and let you know how they turn out.
My pleasure, Kate! I’m excited to hear what you think of them! 🙂
Is there anything I can substitute for the greek yogurt? Perhaps banana? Something dairy free anyway.. that would work with coconut oil in place of the butter like you suggested.
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Hailey! Non-dairy yogurts (ie soy- or almond-based) are the best substitute for the Greek yogurt. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these scones!
So good. I added some chai seeds along with some lemon zest and juice.
I’m so glad you enjoyed these scones Allison! I love the idea of adding lemon zest — I need to remember that! 🙂
What would happen if you used whole milk instead of skim?
I’ve actually covered this in the Notes section of the recipe, underneath the Instructions. It can be easy to miss! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these scones Julia!
Oh thank you- Can’t believe I missed that!
No worries Julia! It happens all the time. 🙂 I’m excited to hear how your scones turn out!
Delicious. Not too sweet and were the perfect amount of calories to be only a minor indulgence. Thank you for the recipe!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these scones Lauren! That means a lot to me! 🙂
Is there a good substitute for the butter? we’re on a heart healthy diet and trying to avoid fat.
Thanks!
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Pearl! The butter is required to achieve the correct texture. Without it, the scones would turn out tough and gummy. If you look at the Nutrition Facts underneath the recipe, there are only 3.3g of fat per scone — which is much lower than traditional scone recipes! 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you try them!
Thanks for the recipe. I had no Greek yogurt so I used yoplait’s blackberry pomegranate, oatmeal flour, a pizza cutter instead of the sharp knife cuz I can’t seem to keep a good edge, and popped 1/4 cup of unrefined virgin coconut oil into the freezer before I prepped my pan and oven. They were fabulous! Thanks again
I’m so glad you enjoyed these scones, Zetia! Thanks for including your recipe modifications — I always love hearing what tweaks work! 🙂