Carrot Cake Scones with Cream Cheese Glaze
Find a recipe for everybunny's favorite Carrot Cake Scones with a tangy Cream Cheese Glaze! Enjoy these tender scones fresh the oven; make ahead and reheat, then glaze them; or freeze them unbaked. They can go directly from the freezer to the oven with just a few extra minutes of baking time to enjoy for a spring or Easter tea or brunch.
Servings: 8 scones
Ingredients
Scones
- 2/3 cup pecans *toasted, in notes below
- 2 medium carrots
- 2 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter cold; cut into pieces
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup heavy cream cold; plus more for brushing on top
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- coarse sparkling sugar, optional for sprinkling on top of scones before baking
Cream Cheese Glaze
- 4 oz. cream cheese softened
- ½ cup confectioners’ sugar sifted
- 2 - 4 tablespoons cream (or milk or half and half)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
To make scones:
- Peel the carrots and grate them on the large holes of a box grater or use shredding disc on food processor (you should have about 1 1/4 cups of grated carrot).
- In bowl of food processor, pulse together the flour, baking powder, salt, and pumpkin pie spice briefly to mix.
- Add cubed cold butter to processor and pulse until mixture resemble pea-sized crumbs. (If you don’t have or want to use a food processor, cut butter into flour mixture with a pastry cutter or two knives.)
- Transfer flour/butter mixture to medium bowl; add the toasted pecans and carrots to the bowl. Stir until incorporated.
- In a medium bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together the egg, cream, vanilla, and sugar until well-combined. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the egg mixture; stir to incorporate the wet ingredients just until combined.
- On a work surface or in the bowl, fold the dough over onto itself using floured hands or spatula to incorporate any dry floury patches.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; sprinkle a bit of flour on parchment paper.
- Transfer the dough to the parchment. Use floured hands to pat into an 8 to 9-inch disc, about 1" thick. Place in the freezer for 30 minutes (this helps firm up the dough for cleaner cuts).
- Using a bench scraper or knife, slice each circle into 8 wedges. Separate the pieces so that there is at least 1" between them. Brush the top of the scones with cream and sprinkle with coarse sparkling sugar.
- Place the pan into oven preheated to 375°F. Bake, rotating the pan once halfway through, for 25 to 30 minutes, until the scones are golden brown.
- Remove from the oven. Transfer scones to wire rack to cool. While the scones are cooling, prepare the glaze.
To make glaze:
- Combine softened cream cheese with powdered sugar and vanilla, mixing until smooth. Add 2 - 4 tablespoons of cream, milk or half and half, thinning to desired consistency. Drizzle over scones.
Notes
- To toast pecans: Toasting the nuts releases their oils and boosts the flavor. You can toast nuts in the oven or in a dry skillet on the cooktop. I find myself less likely to forget them and burn them if I'm using the cooktop. Add your nuts to a 10 – 12 inch dry skillet over medium heat, stirring often for even toasting, until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Alternatively spread nuts out in an even layer on a sheet pan in a 350° oven for 6-8 minutes or until fragrant. Transfer nuts from pan to a bowl to cool before adding them to your recipe.
- Carrot cake is usually made with cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger, the same spice blend that pumpkin spice is made of. Use the combination of individual spices of your choice if you prefer to make 1 ¼ teaspoons.
- When measuring flour, use the ‘spoon & sweep’ method: Use a spoon to fill measuring cup with flour to overflowing, then sweep with knife edge to level. Scooping flour directly from the bag or canister will yield a heavier cup and larger amount that can negatively affect your recipes.
- You can freeze scones unbaked and pull out one or two at a time to bake as needed, up to 2 months. Flash freeze unbaked scones, then wrap well in plastic wrap and place in freezer bag. When ready to bake, brush tops with cream and sprinkle with sparkling sugar. Bake from frozen as directed, adding a few minutes extra to your baking time, until scones are golden.
- To make these scones gluten free, substitute King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten-Free Flour for all purpose flour. If you’re on a strict gluten-free diet, you’ll need to consider your other ingredients beyond your flour as ingredients that are naturally gluten-free, may come in contact with gluten during processing or packaging
- Store any leftover scones with cream cheese glaze in an airtight container in the refrigerator; unglazed scones can be kept at room temperature.