These vegan pumpkin scones are the perfect treat to enjoy during the fall season. They’re made flaky and moist with vegan butter and coconut yogurt and perfectly spiced with pumpkin pie spice and pumpkin puree. All you need is 11 ingredients. Serve for an easy breakfast or dessert!
I spent a long time being intimidated by making vegan scones. I always thought it would be time consuming, complicated and not worth the hassle. Then I perfected my base scone recipe with my Blueberry Lemon Poppy Seed Scones and I realized making scones is so much easier than many baked goods!
I even prefer it to making breads like 1 Bowl Vegan Chocolate Chip Banana Bread or Healthy Vegan Blackberry Muffins because making scones requires less steps and a shorter bake.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- These scones don’t taste vegan – If you’re moving into your first holiday season eating a vegan and plant-based diet, don’t worry! There are tons of sweets to eat that taste just like the real thing – including these vegan pumpkin scones. You may also like my Pumpkin Chia Seed Pudding and Vegan Pumpkin Banana Bread with Cream Cheese Filling!
- Just 11 ingredients. Making scones at home is much simpler than it seems. Chances are, many of the ingredients needed for these scones are likely already in your pantry right now.
- Can be served for breakfast or dessert – I love eating vegan pumpkin scones with a cup of coffee in the morning or for dessert at night!
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- flour – I recommend using a combination of all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour for a boost of nutrition and a tender crumb. If you prefer, swap the whole wheat flour for an additional cup of all-purpose flour.
- pumpkin puree – I have only tested these vegan pumpkin scones using canned pumpkin puree. However, if you cannot find canned pumpkin puree or prefer to make your own, learn how to make homemade pumpkin puree. When shopping for pumpkin puree, make sure to buy pumpkin puree as opposed to pumpkin pie filling. The only ingredients should be pumpkin.
- vegan butter – I used cubed vegan butter. I developed this recipe using Earth Balance butter sticks, but these scones also work using Miyoko’s Creamery Cultured Vegan Butter that is made with a coconut oil base. I have not attempted to make these vegan pumpkin scones using coconut oil or another liquid oil and cannot recommend it.
- sugar – These pumpkin scones are made with organic cane sugar and powdered sugar for the glaze. I have not tested these scones with another sugar, but I suspect light brown sugar or coconut sugar would also work and would make these scones even richer and bolder in flavor. To ensure your vegan pumpkin scones are vegan friendly, use organic sugars. Conventional sugars are sometimes made with a non-vegan refining process.
- vegan yogurt – My favorite vegan yogurt to use is Kite Hill plain yogurt. It is coconut based and rich and creamy without being overpowering in flavor.
See recipe card for specific measurements.
Step by Step Instructions
- Combine the dry ingredients. In a large cup food processor, pulse together the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, organic cane sugar, baking powder, and pumpkin pie spice.
- Add the wet ingredients. Once the dry ingredients are fully combined, add in the pumpkin puree, COLD vegan butter, vegan yogurt, and vanilla extract.
- Pulse until just combined. It is important to do this will the “pulse” feature as opposed to turning the food processor “on.” Do so until the ingredients just combine and a dough forms.
- Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Gently work the scone dough into an 8″ round. I prefer to do this using a rolling pin to prevent my hands’ warmth from melting the butter. If needed, you can do this with your hands, but work quickly.
- Cut the dough into 8 wedges. I find this easiest to do with a pizza cutter or pastry bench cutter, but a simple kitchen knife will work well too!
- Transfer the pumpkin scones to a parchment lined baking sheet. Space the pumpkin scones out to prevent touching. Stick the baking sheet into the freezer to keep the butter cold while you preheat the oven.
- Brush the scones with vegan yogurt. This will add flavor, moisture, and color to the scones. It is easiest to do this using a pastry brush, but you could also do with a butter knife or even the back of a spoon.
- Bake. Bake the pumpkin scones for 20-22 minutes or until golden around the edges. Transfer the scones to a cooling rack and allow to cool to room temperature.
- Prepare the pumpkin maple glaze. To a small mixing bowl, add the powdered sugar, pumpkin pie spice, melted vegan butter, and maple syrup.
- Whisk together to form a smooth glaze. If you’d prefer a thicker consistency, add an additional ⅓ cup of powdered sugar.
- Drizzle the scones. Enjoy immediately while fresh!
Recipe FAQs
Starbucks’ pumpkin scones are vegetarian friendly, but they are not vegan. The online ingredients list shows that the pumpkin scones at the popular chair contain dairy butter, cream powder, and eggs.
In order to prevent your scones from being dry, it is important to add enough fat and moisture to the scone dough. In these vegan scones, we use both vegan butter and vegan coconut yogurt to add that moisture and fat content and keep these scones moist and fluffy.
American scones are typically cut into wedges or squares, whereas British scones are typically round and tall. British scones are typically simple and plain, whereas American scones can be made with a lot of flavors and icings.
Butter should be very, very cold when making flaky scones. I like to keep my vegan butter in the freezer and typically buy Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks for vegan baking because it is easy to cut into cubes and measure.
You do not want to over knead scone dough for two reasons. First, it would melt the butter and prevent the scones from developing flaky layers. Secondly, overworking the dough can over-activate the gluten and make your scones dense and tough.
Storage Instructions
These pumpkin scones store best at room temperature in an airtight container for 3-5 days. They can also be stored in the refrigerator, but they become a bit more dense.
How to Freeze Vegan Pumpkin Scones
Vegan pumpkin scones can be frozen before or after baking. Both will freeze well for up to 3 months.
To freeze scones before baking: Follow recipe instructions through step 4, then stick the baking sheet in the freezer. Flash freeze the scones until solid, about 4 hours. Once frozen, transfer the scones to a freezer-safe airtight bag or an airtight container. When ready to bake, transfer the scones to the refrigerator and thaw overnight. Then bake as usual.
To freeze scones after baking: Follow recipe instructions through step 8. Once the scones are cooled, transfer them back to the parchment lined baking sheet and flash freeze the scones until solid, about 4 hours. Once frozen, transfer the scones to a freezer-safe airtight bag or an airtight container. Thaw at room temperature until softened again and drizzle with icing right before enjoying.
Tips for Success
- Very, very cold butter is a must. I like to keep my vegan butter in the freezer and always buy Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks for vegan baking. It’s the closest thing I have found to real butter.
- Use a large cup food processor. If you use too small of a food processor, the dough won’t have enough room in the cup to pulse together and over mixing will likely happen. I own a 14 cup Cuisinart Food Processor and swear by it. I have had it for years and it has never given me any problems.
- Not all vegan yogurts are the same. For baking, I always use Kite Hill unsweetened plain yogurt. It’s fairly thick in texture and neutral in taste so it works really well for baking. If you cannot find Kite Hill yogurt, just make sure the yogurt you use is not too thin or runny. The vegan yogurt acts as the egg replacer in this recipe so you want it to be thick enough to act as a binder and hold the dough together.
More Vegan Fall Recipes You May Like
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Vegan Pumpkin Scones
What You'll Need
Ingredients
Scones
- 1 ¼ cup all purpose flour - plus 1-2 tablespoons for rolling
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- ½ cup organic cane sugar
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- ½ cup vegan butter - frozen and cubed
- ⅓ cup vegan yogurt - plain unsweetened
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Pumpkin Maple Glaze
- 1 cup organic powdered sugar
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter - melted
- 1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
Instructions
- To a large cup food processor (I use a 14-cup food processor), add the all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, organic cane sugar, baking powder, and pumpkin pie spice. Pulse to combine.
- Next, add in the pumpkin puree, vegan yogurt, vanilla extract and cubed, frozen vegan butter. Pulse together just enough times until a dough forms - do not over mix.
- Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface (1-2 tablespoons flour) and gently work dough into an 8" round (see photos for reference). I like to use a rolling pin to prevent the butter from getting too warm from the warmth of your hands.
- Once in a round, cut into 8 pieces. Transfer 8 wedges to a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. While oven preheats, stick scones in freezer to make sure butter remains cold.
- Once preheated, remove scones from freezer, brush scones lightly with vegan yogurt, and bake for 20-22 minutes, or until edges are golden brown.
- While baking, prepare the maple pumpkin glaze by whisking together confectioner's sugar, vegan butter, maple syrup and pumpkin pie spice until smooth. Taste and adjust pumpkin pie spice amount to your preference.
- Once golden brown, transfer scones to cooling rack. Once completely cool, drizzle scones with pumpkin maple glaze.
- Storage: Store scones at room temperature in an airtight container for 3-5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Recipe Notes
- You must use frozen or at the very least, VERY cold butter. If it is too warm, it will melt into the dough while you are preparing the scones and they will not be as layered or flaky.
- I only tested recipe with canned pumpkin puree. I cannot confirm that roasted and pureed pumpkin will work. It may be too wet. If you use roasted and pureed pumpkin and have good results, please let me know.
- Organic cane sugar and organic confectioner's sugar is vegan. Nonorganic varieties may not be vegan as they may bleach the color of the sugar with bone char.
Nutrition
Disclaimer: The Nutritional Information provided for this recipe is only an estimate. The accuracy of the facts listed is not and cannot be guaranteed.
Photography by: Baking-Ginger Studios
This recipe was originally published on October 3, 2020 and has been republished on November 2, 2022 to include new photos, step by step images, helpful tips and FAQs answers. The original recipe remains the same.
Best scones! This recipe was so easy to0. I only have a small food processor so I used a bowl to mix the dry ingredients and my small food processor to mix the wet ingredients, then incorporated in the bowl together and it was still the perfect dough consistency. The glaze is the cherry on top to bring the flavors together, perfect for fall!
YAY! I am so glad!! Using a small food processor for the wet is a great idea!