Bourbon Peach Scones
Peach and bourbon are both staple southern flavors that taste amazing together. I utilized that great flavor combination in these sweet, summer scones. Light and sweet peaches are complemented by the rich bourbon flavor and buttery scone base. A bourbon vanilla glaze adds a layer of decadence and added sweetness. Bring these scones to your next boozy brunch or summer picnic!
Cold Butter for Flaky Scones
I view these American style sweet scones as a cross between a cake and a biscuit. They have a soft interior and a flaky and crumbly exterior. The key to achieving this texture is using cold butter.
To begin, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Next, cut in cold, cubed butter using a pastry cutter, fork, or your hands. You can use a food processor for this step, but I find it is too easy to overmix the dough if you do. You want to mix the butter in until you get pea-sized crumbs as shown in the picture below. A couple of bigger chunks of butter is okay, too. If the butter starts to melt during this step, put the bowl in the refrigerator for a few minutes to firm it back up.
These butter and flour crumbs melt when baking, resulting in the characteristic flaky texture.
Mix Sugar and Wet Ingredients
Next, whisk together brown sugar, heavy cream, egg, bourbon, and vanilla in a medium bowl until smooth. If you don’t want to use alcohol, simply omit the bourbon and reduce the amount of flour by 2 tablespoons. Drizzle the wet ingredients over the flour and butter mixture.
Add Peaches and Mix
Peel and chop one cup of peaches. Chopped, frozen peaches work well, too - no need to thaw! Add the peaches to the bowl with the other ingredients and mix the dough until it begins to come together into a ball. If your peaches are especially juicy (like mine were), you may need to add another 1-2 tablespoons of flour if the dough is too sticky.
Shaping the Scones
Next you will shape your scones on a floured work surface. I prefer to use a silicone baking mat for this step for easy transfer and cleanup.
For mini scones (pictured) - divide the dough in half and press it into two 5-inch discs and cut each into 8 sections.
For standard sized scones - press all of the dough into one 8-inch disc and cut into 8 sections.
Personally, I don’t care if my scones are perfectly shaped (as you can probably tell from the pictures). Just make sure they are generally the same size and shape so they bake evenly.
Place your dough in the refrigerator to chill for at least 15 minutes. This will help prevent the butter from melting too quickly and causing the scones to over-spread while baking. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 400°F.
Once chilled, remove the scones from the refrigerator and separate onto baking sheets lined with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Brush heavy cream over the scones.
Baking Instructions
Bake the scones at 400°F.
For mini scones - bake for 18-20 minutes until golden brown.
For standard sized scones - bake for 22-25 minutes until golden brown.
Let the scones cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Bourbon Vanilla Glaze
These scones get another punch of bourbon flavor and additional sweetness from a simple bourbon vanilla glaze.
While the scones cool, prepare the glaze by whisking together powdered sugar, milk or cream, bourbon, and vanilla until smooth. If not using bourbon, double the amount of vanilla extract. Drizzle the glaze over the cooled scones, let set, and enjoy!
Bourbon Peach Scones
Ingredients
- 2 cups and 2 tbsp all purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface
- 2 and 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy cream, plus 2 tbsp for brushing over scones
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp bourbon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup peaches, peeled and chopped
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp milk or cream
- 1 tsp bourbon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
- Cut in the cubed butter using a pastry cutter, fork, or your hands until the mixture comes together into pea-sized clumps. Refrigerate until needed.
- Whisk together the brown sugar, heavy cream, bourbon, and vanilla in a medium bowl until there are no lumps.
- Pour the wet ingredients over the flour/butter mixture. Add the chopped peaches and mix until just combined. Do not overwork the dough as it may melt the butter. If you notice your butter is melting too much while mixing, put the bowl in the refrigerator for 5 minutes before continuing.
- Work the dough into a ball using your hands. If the dough is too sticky to work with, add an additional 1-2 tablespoons of flour. Dust your work surface with flour. I recommend using a silicone baking mat for this step for easy transfer and cleanup. If making mini scones (pictured), divide the dough in half and press into two 5-inch discs. If making standard size scones, press all of the dough into one 8-inch disc. Cut each disc into 8 triangular sections and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- Transfer the scones to the baking sheets at least 2 inches apart. Brush with heavy cream. Bake for 18-20 minutes for mini scones or 22-25 minutes for standard size scones until golden brown. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Meanwhile, make the glaze. Whisk together the powdered sugar, milk or cream, bourbon, and vanilla until smooth.
- Drizzle the glaze over the scones and let it set at room temperature.
Notes
- Storage & Freezing Instructions: Store scones covered at room temperature for up to 5 days. You can freeze baked, unglazed scones for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight and warm in a 400°F oven for 2-3 minutes.
- Alcohol Free Variation: If you would like to omit the bourbon from this recipe, decrease the amount of flour in the dough by 2 tablespoons and double the vanilla extract in the glaze.
- Using Other Fruit: You can replace the peaches with apricots or plums for equally delicious and similarly tasting scones. You may also used peeled apples in this recipe. If you use apples I would suggest adding 1 tsp of cinnamon to the dough to amp up the fall flavors.
