Whole grain maple oat scones are lightly sweetened and topped with maple frosting, just like the ones in our favorite coffee house. This recipe makes scones that are moist and delicious – with or without the coffee! Find more tasty sweet and savory breads like this on ourย Best Bread Recipes page.
I’ve been making these moist and delicious maple oat scones for years, ever since tasting the classic Starbucks scone. I like to think of my recipe as like a healthier version of a maple bar – not fried, less sugar, and all whole grains, but with all that maple flavor goodness.
Other maple-sweetened breads:
I’m calling these maple oat scones ‘inspired’ though, because I don’t add nuts like the Starbucks version – I prefer them plain and simple to let the all that maple flavor shine through. Of course, if you wanted to add nuts to be more like the original, no one is going to stop you – in fact I have a couple times…I just like them better without.
Which is weird, now that I think about it, because I’m usually the one wanting nuts in cookies, brownies, and other goodies. Oh, well, now is not the time to try and figure out the odd way taste buds work, instead let’s talk about these scones!
Frosted Maple Oat Scones
I’m pretty sure most of you would agree with me that moist scones are the best scones – no dry, crumbly scones, thank you very much. Of course we’re not looking for cake, though, so I’m happy to tell you that these maple oat scones strike the perfect balance between moist and scone-like, even though they are made with 100% whole wheat pastry flour as well as the oats.
Both the scone and the frosting contain pure maple syrup, but the scone itself is not all that sweet. In fact there’s only one tablespoon of sugar and 1/4 cup of maple syrup in the scones themselves. It’s really the maple-bar-like frosting that adds most of the rich sweetness that makes me think of that maple bar.
You can, of course skip the frosting, and go with either a dusting of sugar before baking or brush on pure maple syrup while the scones are still warm from the oven. I’ve done the maple-wash and it’s a different experience, obviously, but still good!
As with most scone recipes, they should be eaten shortly after baking for the best texture and flavor.
If you do have any left over you can freeze them with pretty good success – they won’t be just like fresh, but they’re much better than simply leaving them at room temperature or refrigerating them. (Tip: freezing shortly after baking, whether it’s scones, muffins, cookies, or breads, is how to keep most baked goods the best.)
So, do you feel like scones yet?
Starbucks Inspired Frosted Maple Oat Scones
Ingredients
- 2 ยผ cups whole wheat pastry flour or white whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup whole rolled oats
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1ย tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup cold butter cut into small pieces
- 1/4 cup buttermilk milk + 1 teaspoon vinegar works
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup divided
- 1 to 1 ยผ cups powdered sugar*
Instructions
- Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment or silicone liner.
- Add the first 5 ingredients to the bowl of a mixer and stir. Cut in the butter pieces until small pea-sized pieces form.
- In a 1 cup measuring glass, pour the buttermilk and 1/4 cup of the maple syrup and then whisk in the eggs with a fork until beaten. Add this to the flour mixture and stir just until blended (the dough will be sticky still).
- Turn out onto a floured surface and gently pat into a circle with floured hands (be careful not to overwork the dough - just pat it all into a circle shape, about 1 ยฝ inches thick).
- At this point decide between 8 large scones or 12 smaller scones (the smaller scones are pictured here): for 8 scones, divide large circle into 8 triangles, separate them and place a couple inches apart on prepared baking sheet; for 12 scones, cut large circle in half and gently form each into smaller circles - cut each of these into 6 triangles and place on prepared sheet.
- Bake about 15 minutes, or until lightly browned. Transfer to a wire rack with wax paper underneath to catch any frosting drips.
- Make frosting by combining the remaining 1/4 cup maple syrup with the powdered sugar in a small bowl and whisk until smooth (you may need to adjust the amount of powdered sugar to get the consistency you desire - I like more of a frosting than a glaze, but it's your choice).
- Divide the frosting evenly among the warm scones, spreading to cover the tops and serve as soon as possible (any leftovers are best frozen to stay freshest).
Notes
Nutrition
This recipe has been updated – it was originally published in April 2014.
Other Quick Breads You May Like:
10 Grain Berry-Nut Muffins with Streusel
Orange Rhubarb Muffins with Glaze
Overnight, Real Foodย Monkey Bread
Kat Yorba says
These turned out amazing!! They were a tad dry, but I added a couple drops more if milk and that did the trick!! Now the question is, do I sneak one before dinner which is an hour off? ๐๐๐
Thanks for a great recipe!
Jami says
Um, yes. ๐
Pam P says
For Medical reasons I’ve been placed on a wheat free dairy free sugar free diet, with the advice to look on the internet for ideas which brought me to your IG account and then your blog. My question is this, do you have any suggestions for replacements for the wheat, dairy and sugar? Recipes or swaps? This is pretty much our whole diet, which is the big reason for the restrictions. Thank you in advance for your time and suggestions.
P.S. U just made your granola and love it!
Sincerely,
Pam
Jami says
That’s a tough one, Pam, to get used to for sure! This type of recipe isn’t really adaptable, you’d need to search for one that’s been tested using other grains, etc.
That said, if you’ve looked through the recipe archives, you know I’ve experimented with different grains and try to replace sugar with less, using honey or maple syrup since they are real food. I’ve found that if you can still have grains, just not wheat, that oat flour is a good substitute in things like cookies and muffins. I like it better than almond flour.
As for dairy, there are lots of non-dairy milks out there and can be used in most recipes. I usually choose coconut oil for butter and if I don’t want the flavor, use refined coconut oil.
Hope that helps some!
Lori says
Hi, Jami. Iโve tried these scones a couple of times and both times the dough hasnโt been sticky and the scones have been a bit dry. Iโm in Southern California, which is probably less humid than Oregon, but do you have any suggestions for me?
Jami says
Bummer, Lori! I would try a couple things – decrease the flour by a couple tablespoons or increase the milk by a tablespoon or two. I’d probably start by increasing the milk and see if that takes care of it. Hope that helps!
Christine says
I made these tonight (& a gluten free version as well with oat flour, almond flour, gluten free AP flour & oats) & they came out beautifully, so soft & moist! I can’t wait to try them tomorrow morning with a cup of coffee! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe! ๐
Jami says
I’m glad they worked for you with the GF adaptations, Christine!
Regenia says
I made them today and they are delicious! Do you happen to know the calorie/sodium breakdown?
Thanks.
Jami says
Glad you liked them, Regenia! I’m sorry, I don’t know that nutritional information – here’s a calorie calculator you may be able to use: http://www.caloriecount.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php Hope that helps some!
Barb S. @ FL Mom's Blog says
Jami,
Hi! I love this recipe idea! I went ahead and printed 2 copies, bookmarked it, and pinterest-followed you (Barb S.). I love Maple and oat breakfast type items and I love scones! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Jami says
Thanks so much, Barb – love having you as part of AOC’s community!
Charlotte Moore says
I wish I had one of these right now. These look so good.
Holly W says
Couple of things:
1) When using buttermilk or sour milk, other recipes and my experience say to use a little baking soda as well … for these proportions I might try 2 3/4 (2.75) teaspoons baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda.
2) Whole oats … do you mean the oat groats -that is the whole seed? Or do you mean whole rolled (old-fashioned) oats (not quick cooking oatmeal)?
Jami says
I’ve always make these as I wrote here, Holly, and I don’t have any problem with using just baking powder. You can try any adaptations you would like, though. ๐ As for the oats – yes, I mean rolled oats vs. quick oats. Thanks for clarifying that!
Holly W says
Thanks for the reply, Jami. With such a small amount of buttermilk, I agree that the need for part of the leavening to be soda is probably negligible. And yay, I always have rolled oats on hand! … I can buy whole oat groats on-line but not economical to keep on hand. I’m looking forward to trying scones. I buy them when I can, but live 140 miles from the nearest outlet; plus I like to know what ingredients I’m eating. Thanks again.
Anna says
Looks fabulous Jami. I will definitely make these this weekend. Your recipes seem to work out just great – I officially walk on water now at work thanks to your recipes!! Anna
Jami says
Oh, Anna, I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing that with me – and I hope you enjoy these scones as much as we do. ๐