Apple Cider Country Scones are the perfect way to bring the flavors of Fall into a tender, flaky scone perfect for tea time!

Apple Cider Country Scones are absolutely intoxicating!

The smell of these biscuits wafting through your house while baking is reason alone to make them…

I love apple season. While a simple cut-up apple is the perfect snack any time of the day, I love baking with them.

Yep! I said, “I love baking (with them)!” << Apple desserts I love to bake are super precise. While this recipe measures, it’s the same measuring I do when I’m making biscuits… You don’t need to understand my logic!

What is a scone?

A scone is the basic component of an English cream tea. It’s just like our biscuits here in America, but with egg.

What’s the difference between a biscuit and a scone?

Biscuits use the same flour, leavening agent, and fat. But, a scone adds an egg. It’s slightly more dense than a biscuit, but still meant to be light, tender, and flaky!

How to Make Apple Cider Country Scones

Start by gathering your ingredients and equipment:

Batter:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour 

• 1 ½ tsp baking powder 

• ¼ cup sugar  

• 1 tsp cinnamon 

• ½ tsp nutmeg 

• ¼ cup firm butter 

• 1/3 cup chopped apple 

• 1 egg 

• 1/3 cup apple cider 

Topping: 

• 2 tbsp sugar 

• 2 tbsp butter 

• 1 tsp cinnamon

• ½ cup chopped pecans 

Kitchen Equipment Needed:

Pastry Cutter

Biscuit Cutter — preferably a 2″ cutter

Baking Sheet

Measuring Cups

Wooden Spoon

Mixing Bowl

Rolling Pin

Knife

Wire Cooling Rack

Start by preheating your oven to 400˚.

Next, in a mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Give these a good whisk with a balloon whisk like this one. It helps lighten the flour, without using a sifter!

Now, use your pastry cutter to blend in the butter. You want to “chop” the butter over and over until it resembles sand, but there are still chinks of butter left.

See those chunks of butter? But, it all looks slightly like wet sand??

Then, add in your whole egg and apple cider. If you’re worried about over-mixing your scones, you can beat the egg into the cider before pouring in!

Give them a good stir with your wooden spoon.

Add in your chopped apples, and give it a few good folds. Don’t mix too aggressively!

Dump your dough into a floured surface. Be sure you’ve added plenty of extra flour to your board! Scones are on the sticky side, so you want a lot of flour on the bottom to keep it from sticking!

Using a well-floured rolling pin, roll the dough out into a 1/2″ circle. If you don’t have a rolling pin, just use well-floured hands!

Now, using your biscuit cutter, cut out as many scones as. you can.

Yes! You can definitely roll up the scraps, roll out, and cut again. The first cuts will be the most tender—just a heads up!

Line your scones up on a baking sheet, making sure each one touches another. Just like we need others to rise up in life, so do scones and biscuits! They lift each other up as they bake, so use the edge of the pan plus the other scones.

Brush these with melted butter.

In a small bowl, mix up your cinnamon and sugar. Sprinkle over top of each scone.

Sprinkle the pecans on top too!

Bake at 400˚for 10-12 minutes, depending on your oven! After you’re removed them from the oven, cool on a wire rack.

Serve these apple cider country scones with tea, coffee, or hot cider! Yum!

These stay fresh in a closed container for 3-4 days, and yes! You can freeze them!