Cinnamon rolls are delicious and all but they are very time consuming to make and are often way too sweet for me to eat first thing in the morning! These scones mimic those cinnamon roll flavors but come together much faster. If you’ve never made scones before, you’ll learn how easy they are to make! They have a layer of cinnamon sugar in the middle for that cinnamon roll flavor and, if you choose, get topped with an easy cream cheese frosting. I think I’m going to make these a new Christmas morning tradition!
Servings 8 small scones
Prep Time 20 minutes 
Cook Time 15 minutes Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons (85g) butter, chilled
- 1 ¼ cups (186g) whole-wheat flour
- ½ cup (70g) all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons (22g) coconut sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (128g)whole milk
- 2 tbsp (30g) plain whole milk Greek yogurt
- ½ cup (70g) raisins*
For the filling:
- ¼ cup (44g) coconut sugar
- 2 tbsp (28g) butter, melted
- 1 tsp cinnamon
For the frosting (optional):
- 4 oz (½ cup) plain cream cheese
- 1 tsp whole milk (or other milk)
- 1 tbsp cane sugar, powdered sugar, or coconut sugar
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- *To plump up your raisins, soak them in hot or boiling water for at least 10 minutes, then drain and let cool. I prefer them this way but adding them dry works too.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
- Grate your cold butter on the large holes of a box grater into a small bowl. Place in the freezer to chill for at least 10 minutes. We want the butter to be frozen so that it does not melt when mixed in with everything. The butter flakes are what give the scones their light, crumb texture.
- For the filling, in a small bowl, mix together the coconut sugar, butter, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together the flours, coconut sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk and yogurt.
- Add the chilled grated butter into the flour mix and use a rubber spatula (or your hands) to mix it in with the flour. If any large chunks remain, break them up with your fingers. You want little chunks of butter to remain!
- Pour the yogurt mixture into the dry ingredients along with the raisins and use a rubber spatula to gently mix just until combined (try not to over mix). Use your hands to gather the dough together into a ball.If the dough is not coming together add milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until it does. Shape into a ball, incorporating any bits at the bottom of the bowl.
- Transfer to a floured counter or cutting board and use your hands or a rolling pin to flatten into a ½-inch thick rectangle (if hands/pin are sticking, dust with flour). It doesn’t have to be perfect!
- Spread the cinnamon sugar mixture on top of half of the dough, then fold the dough onto itself to form a square. Cut into 8 small squares and transfer to the baking sheet. The size/amount of scones will depend on how thin/thick you rolled it. These are very free form so don’t worry if they aren’t all the same size or shape!
- Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool, then top with frosting, if using (see how-to make frosting in recipe note).
To make the frosting:
- Add cream cheese to a medium bowl and use an electric beater to beat on high until smooth. Add the milk, vanilla, and salt and beat again until combined and smooth. You can just smear the frosting on the scones or transfer it to a plastic resealable bag, cut just the very tip off of one of the corners, and pipe it on top of the scones.
Items you can prep ahead (optional)
- Grate 6 tbsp butter
- Mix together cinnamon sugar mixture
- Make the scone dough and store it in the fridge
- Make the glaze (if using)
- (These are best eaten fresh out of the oven, so I wouldn’t recommend baking them ahead, but you can make the dough ahead!)
Substitutions:
- To make gluten-free, substitute with a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend. You could also try a combo of 1 ¼ cup gluten-free all-purpose flour and ½ cup oat flour or buckwheat flour.
- To make dairy-free, use a dairy-free plain yogurt and coconut milk or other nut milk in place of the milk/cream. Butter is usually tolerable for those who are sensitive to dairy, but if you want to substitute, I would just try using a vegan butter alternative.
- Not into raisins? Skip them or substitute with dried cranberries.
- If you want an even less sweet scone, you can skip the cinnamon sugar and/or glaze.
Storage:
- Store leftover (unfrosted) scones in an airtight container at room temp for 2 days or in the fridge for 1 week. Leftover frosting can be stored in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Leftovers + Repurposing:
- If eating from the fridge, pop them in the microwave for just 10-20 seconds on low power to take the chill off. Top with frosting, if using.
- These are delicious with butter, of course.
Servings 8 small scones Prep Time 20 minutes Cook Time 15 minutes Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons (85g) butter, chilled
- 1 ¼ cups (186g) whole-wheat flour
- ½ cup (70g) all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons (22g) coconut sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (128g)whole milk
- 2 tbsp (30g) plain whole milk Greek yogurt
- ½ cup (70g) raisins*
For the filling:
- ¼ cup (44g) coconut sugar
- 2 tbsp (28g) butter, melted
- 1 tsp cinnamon
For the frosting (optional):
- 4 oz (½ cup) plain cream cheese
- 1 tsp whole milk (or other milk)
- 1 tbsp cane sugar, powdered sugar, or coconut sugar
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- *To plump up your raisins, soak them in hot or boiling water for at least 10 minutes, then drain and let cool. I prefer them this way but adding them dry works too.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
- Grate your cold butter on the large holes of a box grater into a small bowl. Place in the freezer to chill for at least 10 minutes. We want the butter to be frozen so that it does not melt when mixed in with everything. The butter flakes are what give the scones their light, crumb texture.
- For the filling, in a small bowl, mix together the coconut sugar, butter, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together the flours, coconut sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk and yogurt.
- Add the chilled grated butter into the flour mix and use a rubber spatula (or your hands) to mix it in with the flour. If any large chunks remain, break them up with your fingers. You want little chunks of butter to remain!
- Pour the yogurt mixture into the dry ingredients along with the raisins and use a rubber spatula to gently mix just until combined (try not to over mix). Use your hands to gather the dough together into a ball.If the dough is not coming together add milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until it does. Shape into a ball, incorporating any bits at the bottom of the bowl.
- Transfer to a floured counter or cutting board and use your hands or a rolling pin to flatten into a ½-inch thick rectangle (if hands/pin are sticking, dust with flour). It doesn’t have to be perfect!
- Spread the cinnamon sugar mixture on top of half of the dough, then fold the dough onto itself to form a square. Cut into 8 small squares and transfer to the baking sheet. The size/amount of scones will depend on how thin/thick you rolled it. These are very free form so don’t worry if they aren’t all the same size or shape!
- Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool, then top with frosting, if using (see how-to make frosting in recipe note).
To make the frosting:
- Add cream cheese to a medium bowl and use an electric beater to beat on high until smooth. Add the milk, vanilla, and salt and beat again until combined and smooth. You can just smear the frosting on the scones or transfer it to a plastic resealable bag, cut just the very tip off of one of the corners, and pipe it on top of the scones.
Items you can prep ahead (optional)
- Grate 6 tbsp butter
- Mix together cinnamon sugar mixture
- Make the scone dough and store it in the fridge
- Make the glaze (if using)
- (These are best eaten fresh out of the oven, so I wouldn’t recommend baking them ahead, but you can make the dough ahead!)
Substitutions:
- To make gluten-free, substitute with a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend. You could also try a combo of 1 ¼ cup gluten-free all-purpose flour and ½ cup oat flour or buckwheat flour.
- To make dairy-free, use a dairy-free plain yogurt and coconut milk or other nut milk in place of the milk/cream. Butter is usually tolerable for those who are sensitive to dairy, but if you want to substitute, I would just try using a vegan butter alternative.
- Not into raisins? Skip them or substitute with dried cranberries.
- If you want an even less sweet scone, you can skip the cinnamon sugar and/or glaze.
Storage:
- Store leftover (unfrosted) scones in an airtight container at room temp for 2 days or in the fridge for 1 week. Leftover frosting can be stored in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Leftovers + Repurposing:
- If eating from the fridge, pop them in the microwave for just 10-20 seconds on low power to take the chill off. Top with frosting, if using.
- These are delicious with butter, of course.
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