The Best Sourdough Chocolate Chip Scones Ever!

These sourdough chocolate chip scones are the best scones you'll ever eat - and the best thing is they are so easy to mix and bake! You'll have warm chocolate chip sourdough discard scones in less than hour. They are perfect to serve with coffee when you're catching up with friends - or as a breakfast treat on a cool autumn morning. However you enjoy these sourdough scones, they are bound to become one of your favorite recipes!

Adding discard sourdough starter to these chocolate chip sourdough scones gives them a more complex flavor with a more tender crumb. They have a lovely flaky texture and can be served with a sugar glaze, chocolate ganache or just spread with homemade butter and jam. I've added a list of alternative mix-ins down the page (in case your want to try something other than chocolate chips).

If you're looking for more sourdough discard recipes to use your chocolate chips in, you might also enjoy these sourdough chocolate chunk muffins, sourdough banana bread, sourdough waffles or pancakes. You could even try this chocolate chip sourdough bread!

How To Make Chocolate Chip Sourdough Scones

Sourdough scones are really easy to pull together with a few basic ingredients. The most important thing to remember is to use really cold butter.

Here's how to make sourdough discard scones with chocolate chips.

1. Line a baking tray with baking paper and set aside (one with no lip is best).
   
2. Add the all purpose flour and very cold butter to a large mixing bowl. Use your finger tips to rub the flour into the butter. You can use a curved dough scraper or pastry cutter if you prefer.
   
3. Once the butter is fully coated in flour, add the baking powder, salt, brown sugar, white sugar and chocolate chips to the bowl with the flour mixture. Gently combine all of the dry ingredients so that they are well mixed through and the chocolate chips are well distributed.
   
4. In a small mixing jug, combine the egg, sourdough starter, heavy whipping cream and vanilla extract. Whisk together until well combined. Now pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients. Use a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to bring the mixture together to a very shaggy, dry dough. It's ok if it's lumpy and has spots of flour through it - the main thing here is not to overwork the dough!
   
5. Grab your prepared baking sheet lined with parchment paper and tip the shaggy dough out onto it. Use your hands to gently press the dough into a round disk.
   
6. Use your bench scraper or a sharp knife to cut the scone dough disc into quarters and then each quarter in half, so you end up with 8 equal wedges. Gently move them apart, so they have room to bake.
   
7. Place the baking tray in the fridge (it should stay there for around 30 minutes to make sure the butter is super cold).
   
8. Preheat the oven to 400F/200C.
   
9. After 30 minutes, remove the dough from the fridge and gently brush the tops of the scones with the heavy whipping cream (pastry brush is best for this). Sprinkle the top of the scones with sugar if you want to.
   
10. Place the scones into a 400F/200C oven for around 15 to 20 minutes - or until the scones are golden brown.
    
11. When they're cooked, remove the tray from oven and allow the scones to cool on the tray for around 10 minutes before you enjoy them!

Best Tips for Tender Sourdough Scones

The last thing you want are chewy scones, so here are some helpful hints to ensure that you end up with tender scones every time.

1. Using cold is absolute key! If your kitchen is warm, pop the butter in the freezer to chill down. If you don't want to cube the butter, you can grate the frozen butter with a cheese grater (just like when you make sourdough pie crust).
   
2. Don't overwork the dough! Overworking the dough can cause the gluten to develop too much, resulting in tough and chewy scones. Mix the dough just until it comes together, and avoid kneading it. It will be a bit sticky as you pull it together but they don't have to be perfect.
   
3. Handle the dough gently! Handle the dough as little as possible to avoid packing it down, which can also result in tough scones. Use a light touch when shaping the dough. This is the reason we cut the dough into wedges, rather than shaping them with our hands.
   
4. Chill the dough. Chilling the dough for at least 30 minutes before baking will help the butter solidify and prevent it from melting too quickly, resulting in a tender crumb.
   
5. Use a lower oven temperature. Baking scones at a lower temperature, around 400F (200°C), will help create a more tender texture by allowing the scones to bake more slowly and evenly. You can increase the temperature in the last five minutes if they aren't browned to your liking.
   
6. Use a low-protein flour such as all purpose flour to make scones. Save the bread flour for making this simple sourdough bread recipe.

Sourdough Scones Flavor Variations

If you don't want to use chocolate chips in your sourdough scones, there's a list a mile long of scone flavors and mix-ins you could choose. Here are a few of my favorite flavors for sourdough scones:

• Lemon & Poppy Seed Sourdough Scones - add 1 - 2 tbsp of lemon zest and 2 tbsp of poppy seeds.
  
• Cranberry & Orange Scones - add 1 - 2 tbsp of orange zest and 100g of dried cranberries.
  
• White Chocolate & Pecan Scones - add 100g each of white chocolate chips and chopped pecans.
  
• Blueberry Sourdough Scones - Add 150g of fresh or frozen blueberries. You could also add 1 - 2 tablespoons of lemon zest to these for lemon blueberry sourdough scones.
  
• Raisin Cinnamon Sourdough Scones - 150g of raisins and 1 - 2 tsp of ground cinnamon.
  
• Chocolate Espresso Scones - add 2 tsp of espresso powder and swap the chips for semi-sweet chocolate chips.

When adding any of these flavor combinations, leave out the chocolate chips and add the above ingredients to the other dry ingredients before adding the liquid.

Sourdough scones are also lovely when finished with a simple glaze or ganache.

Using A Stand Mixer or Food Processor

You can use a stand mixer or food processor for this recipe. A Thermomix works really well too. It's really easy to rub the flour into the butter using kitchen machinery. If you are using one of these appliances, just be careful not to over work the dough when you add the liquid ingredients.

Freezing and Storing Sourdough Scones

These sourdough scones are best eaten within 12 hours of making (and I would say best eat warm out of the oven). But they will keep in an airtight container for around 3 to 4 days. I find warming them gently in the oven before serving is best.

If you want to freeze them, wait til they are cool and then wrap in plastic and freeze for up to 3 months.

You can also freeze the uncooked dough. I find it's best to form them into wedges and then freeze. Allow them to thaw a little before brushing with cream and baking as per instructions.

Frequently Asked Questions