Sooooo…I’m not gonna lie. Gluten-free scones have a reputation for coming out of the oven as either sand or hockey pucks, so my expectations going in were low. Like, bottom of the barrel low. But, as a determined stubborn person willing her way through getting better at gluten free bakes, I persisted through the challenge ahead. This is not my first attempt, but what they are is my best one! These came out soft in the middle with actual flaky layers and toasty bottoms. It took some finagling, and I’m still as surprised as you are.
Roasted sweet potato goes right into the dough, which I swear made the difference. It keeps everything tender and gives them that slightly warm orange tone you see. Roast the potato, don’t boil it! Boiled sweet potato holds onto water and turns the dough gluey, which we absolutely do not need when binders like xanthan gum are present in gluten free flour. My sweet potato came out a little stringy, so I’ll note too that if you can see fibers running through yours, push the purée through a fine-mesh sieve or give it a quick blend before measuring. That way those strands don’t show up in the scones.
For the flour I used Cup4Cup, which worked the best of what I tried for this recipe and really made a difference. They were a little too dense when using King Arthur’s Measure for Measure and Bob Red Mill’s 1 to 1. Cup4Cup already has xanthan gum in it, so there’s nothing extra to add. One heads-up: Cup4Cup’s multipurpose blend contains milk powder, so this isn’t the flour for a dairy-free version if you are planning to make dairy free swaps as well. I used regular butter and milk here, and the butter is where your layers come from. Cut it in until the biggest pieces are about the size of a pea, and resist the urge to keep going- this dough does not need to be overworked!
The other trick I find in helping the airation on these scones is a hot pan. The baking sheet heats up in the oven while you shape the dough, then the cold, freezer-firm wedges go straight onto it. That hit of heat sets the bottoms fast and gives you some extra lift. Move quickly when you transfer them so the butter is still cold when they hit the oven. Depending on how long your oven has been preheating, they might need a few minutes less than the recipe says, so check the bottoms around 13 minutes.
These are sweetened with just two tablespoons of monkfruit sweetener and topped with a plain milk wash, no sugar, so they’re lightly sweet and technically sugar free. That makes them more of a breakfast scone than a pastry one, with the sweet potato and warm spices doing most of the work. If you want something sweeter, the notes have a coconut sugar version with a crackly top that would work perfectly as a alternative! Let them cool on the pan for the full 10 minutes also, since gluten-free scones are fragile while they’re warm. You’ll see that the gluten free flour and biscuit cutter help give them very clean straight edges, which looks aesthetically pleasing (a win!).
If you make them, tag me @herbyeater on TikTok or Instagram!
Gluten Free Sweet Potato Scones
Equipment
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Large mixing bowl
- Small bowl
- Pastry cutter or box grater
- Bench scraper or sharp knife
- Plate or cutting board
- Pastry brush
- Thin spatula
- Biscuit cutter
Ingredients
- 2 cups Cup4Cup Multipurpose gluten-free flour 280g
- 2 tbsp granulated monkfruit sweetener ~24g
- 2½ tsp baking powder 10g
- ¾ tsp fine sea salt 4g
- 1½ tsp ground cinnamon 4g
- ½ tsp ground ginger 1g
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg 0.5g
- ½ cup cold unsalted butter, cubed 113g
- ¾ cup roasted sweet potato purée, cooled 185g, about 1 medium sweet potato
- ¼ cup cold milk 60g, plus 1 tbsp (15g) for brushing
- 1 tsp vanilla extract 4g
Instructions
- Place a baking sheet in the oven and heat to 400°F (200°C).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, monkfruit sweetener, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.
- Add the cold butter and cut it in with a pastry cutter (or grate it in frozen on a box grater) until the biggest pieces are about pea-sized. Those butter pieces are your flaky layers, so don’t chase them down to crumbs.
- In a small bowl, stir together the sweet potato purée, ¼ cup milk, and vanilla until smooth.
- Pour the wet mixture into the dry and fold with a spatula just until a shaggy dough forms. A few dry streaks are fine.
- Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, press it together, and pat it to 1 inch thick. Pressing straight down and lifting straight up, press your circle cutter into the dough. You can also turn it into an 8 inch round 1 inch thick circle and cut into 8 wedges alternatively!
- Arrange the rounds (or wedges) on a parchment-lined plate or cutting board and freeze for 15 to 20 minutes.
- Brush the tops with 1 tbsp milk. Carefully remove the hot baking sheet from the oven, line it with parchment, and quickly transfer the scones with a thin spatula, spacing them about 2 inches apart.
- Bake for 16 to 22 minutes, checking the bottoms at 15 minutes, until the tops are golden and the bottoms are deep golden and toasty.
- Cool on the pan for 10 minutes before moving or eating. Gluten-free scones are fragile while warm and set as they cool.
Notes
Sweetener: ¼ cup (38g) coconut sugar can replace the monkfruit for a sweeter scone. Add 1 tbsp (9g) coconut sugar over the milk wash for a crackly top. This keeps them refined sugar free but they’re no longer sugar free.
Flour: Cup4Cup Multipurpose worked best in testing. Other 1:1 gluten-free blends with xanthan gum can work if you swap by weight, but the texture may change.
Dairy: Cup4Cup Multipurpose contains milk powder, so swapping in vegan butter and plant milk makes these dairy-light, not dairy-free or vegan.
Canned purée: Plain canned sweet potato purée works, same weight. Make sure it’s unsweetened with no added spices. Canned pumpkin also works. Optional Add-ins
½ cup (55g) chopped toasted pecans, folded in at step 5
A pinch of black pepper or cardamom with the other spices Practical Tips
Roast, don’t boil, the sweet potato. Boiled sweet potato holds a lot of water and will make the dough gluey. Roast it whole at 400°F for 45–60 minutes until soft, then scoop and mash.
If your sweet potato is stringy, push the purée through a fine-mesh sieve or blend it before measuring. If it looks wet, blot it with a paper towel.
Keep everything cold. If the dough gets sticky or the butter starts to soften while you’re shaping it, put the whole thing in the fridge for 10 minutes and try again.
The preheated pan gives you toasty bottoms fast. If your oven has been preheating a long time, the pan will be extra hot, so start checking at 15 minutes.
Some monkfruit blends contain allulose, which browns faster than sugar. Keep an eye on the tops if so!! Storage
Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Rewarm at 350°F (175°C) for 5 minutes.
To freeze, freeze the cut, unbaked pieces on a sheet pan, then move them to a bag for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen, adding 3–5 minutes.