Starbucks Pumpkin Scones Copycat Recipe
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These pumpkin scones is a Starbucks copycat recipe! They’re budget-friendly and easy to make right at home (and even better when homemade!).
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why you’ll love Starbucks Pumpkin Scones
- Starbucks copycat recipe. This is a complete copycat of the most beloved Starbucks bakery item that has since been discontinued! Except you can easily whip this up right at home with better taste and better texture without breaking the bank.
- An irresistible fall treat. These pumpkin scones pair so well with your morning cup of coffee or pumpkin spice latte, giving you your fall dose in every single bite. Not to mention, these make for a hot selling ticket item at your next bake sale.
- The signature double glaze. The dual-layer icing is pure gold, featuring a sweet white glaze which is then topped with a warm-spiced drizzle.
- No mixer needed. Believe it or not, this is an incredibly easy, no-fuss recipe. There is no mixer required, and you can even make these ahead of time and freeze as needed (without the glaze).
What are starbucks pumpkin scones?
This was their iconic fan-favorite seasonal item that has since been discontinued in 2023 featuring a moist, cake-like scone flavored with pumpkin puree and a strong blend of warm, autumn spices, topped with a white glaze first, then finished with a pumpkin-spiced glaze.
How to make Starbucks Pumpkin Scones
- Mix the dry ingredients. Combine the all-purpose flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt.
- Cut in the butter. Add the cold, cubed butter, using a pastry cutter or your fingers to work the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse, pea-sized crumbs.
- Mix the wet ingredients. Whisk together the pumpkin puree, milk, egg, and vanilla.
- Form the dough. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture, stirring gently with a rubber spatula just until the dough comes together. Do not overmix.
- Shape and cut. Knead the dough 3-4 times onto a lightly floured surface, rolling the dough into an 8-inch circle, about 1-inch thick. Cut the dough into 8 equal triangles.
- Bake. Place the triangles onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Bake at 400°F for 12-15 minutes until lightly golden and the centers feel set and firm to the touch. Let the scones cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack.
- Make the glazes.
- For the first glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar and milk, whisking until smooth.
- For the second glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, and milk, whisking until smooth.
- Glaze and serve. Once the scones are slightly cooled, spoon the first glaze on top of each scone and let it set. Then drizzle or pipe the second glaze in a zigzag pattern over top and let it set.
freezing and storage
Make-ahead
Place the assembled unbaked scones in the fridge overnight, then bake as directed.
Storage
Leftover baked scones can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days.
Freeze before baking
Place the scones on a baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper, freezing for 1 hour until solid. Transfer the scones to an airtight, resealable freezer bag. Label, date and freeze up to 2 months. To bake, thaw overnight in the fridge and bake as directed.
Freeze after baking (without the glazes)
Let the scones cool completely. Transfer the scones to an airtight, resealable freezer bag. Label, date, and freeze up to 2 months. To reheat, thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat in the oven at 350°F, covered in aluminum foil until warmed through, about 5-10 minutes. Drizzle with glazes when serving.
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Tools For This Recipe
Starbucks Pumpkin Scones Copycat Recipe: Frequently Asked Questions
Starbucks officially discontinued their pumpkin scones in 2023.
The signature double glaze, of course!
Unfortunately, no. Pumpkin puree contains 100% unsweetened cooked pumpkin whereas pumpkin pie filling contains pumpkin and various additives such as sugar, water, and spices
Cold, cubed butter will create tiny pockets of fat, yielding tender, flaky scones.
Yes! Pumpkin scones will hold up very well in the freezer both before and after baking (without the glazes), keeping in the freezer for at least 2 months.
Starbucks Pumpkin Scones Copycat Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- 3 tablespoons milk
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the glaze
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 2 tablespoons milk
For the spiced glaze
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat; set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, baking soda and salt. Add cold butter, using your fingers to work the butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles coarse crumbs.
- In a large glass measuring cup or another bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree, milk, egg and vanilla. Pour mixture over dry ingredients and stir using a rubber spatula until a soft dough forms.
- Working on a lightly floured surface, knead the dough 3-4 times until it comes together. Using a rolling pill, roll the dough into an 8″ circle, about 1-inch thick, and cut into 8 wedges.
- Place scones onto the prepared baking sheet. Place into oven and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
- When the scones are done, cool for 10 minutes and spoon the glaze on each scone before drizzling with spiced glaze.
- Allow glazes to set before serving.
For the glaze
- In a small bowl, combine confectioners’ sugar and milk. Whisk until smooth. If the glaze is too thick, add more milk as needed.
For the spiced glaze
- In a small bowl, combine confectioners’ sugar, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg and milk. Whisk until smooth.
Equipment
Notes
- Avoid pumpkin pie filling. Canned pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie filling are not the same, and are not interchangeable. Be sure to use 100% pure pumpkin as pumpkin pie filling comes pre-mixed with sweeteners and spices.
- Use cold butter. The cold butter will create pockets of steam that will lift the dough, yielding light, airy scones.
- Do not overmix. Overmixing the dough will result in tough, dense, rubbery scones. Handle the dough as gently and as little as possible until it just comes together.
- Sift the confectioners’ sugar. Sift the sugar before mixing the glazes to prevent any unwanted lumps in the smooth, glossy icings.
- Adjust the consistency. If the glaze is too thick, add a splash of milk. If the glaze is too runny, add more confectioners’ sugar.
- Freeze without the glazes. When planning for leftovers to freeze, hold off on glazing or they will turn sticky and grainy upon thawing.
Did you make this recipe?
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I thought these were good – alittle hard to work with kneading. But was wondering when you are supposed to add the brown sugar. It might have have made them thicken to knead
your list of ingredients asks for br sugar but i see no mention of it in the recipe. am i missing something? mine too were very soft and hard to knead. but they taste good. let me know
sue
You are right about these scones, they are delicious and better than starbucks…
Thank you for the recipe.
I followed the recipe exactly and even went over it multiple times. The dough came out way too wet to work with. I ended up adding another 1/2 cup of flour to get it manageable. Baked for appropriate amount of time. Scones came out more cupcake/muffin texture. The tasted fine but were not scone texture. I am baffled as to what went wrong.
Able to convert for Keto?
I have made these for years and people always ask for more. I do not use the glaze but sometimes add chocolate chips to the scones. Thank you for the amazing recipe!
I can’t vouch for Starbucks flavor, but this recipe is a winner! Made twice this week! I didn’t have the patience to mess with glaze, so I added mini semisweet chocolate chips to the dough. Just sweet enough and very easy.
Is brown sugar light or dark?
Yummy! Easy! You definitely taste the cloves! I would increase the cinnamon and decrease the cloves next time, or even try pumpkin pie spice! I love the idea of adding white choc or what about butterscotch chips?
Sooo good!!! They came out perfect, and so darn delicious! I added some white chips into dough before I rolled it out, chefs kiss! Thank you for such an amazing recipe!
Def going to try these! What camera and lens do you use?
The scones themselves turned out really good, the big issue was the glaze(s). First off, the consistency is very runny and not pipeable at all (I tried to be as precise as possible with my measurements). The plain, white glaze also looked pretty translucent instead of matte. I’d try it again but use a royal icing as the base glaze. For the spiced glaze, I added some of my leftover pumpkin puree to give it better consistency, color, and a taste that wasn’t too sweet (base recipe is just two really sweet glazes stacked on top of each other). It’s not mandatory, but if you’re gunning for as close to Starbucks as possible, it could use some tweaking.
The spices need to be increased. They were bland, but I added some pumpkin pie spice on top of the frosting, which made a huge difference. With the added spices, the scones are excellent.
I made these last night using cup-for-cup GF flour. They did not get to a “kneadable consistence”, so we just did a ¼ cup “drop biscuit” style and smoothed them. Baked for 13 min. OH my goodness! So great! We call them Scruffins… a scone/muffin mix * I also had some crumble mixture from a previous recipe, that we sprinkled over the top… THAT was perfect! Next time I will add more ginger and the crumble over top!
I followed the recipe to the tee but the batter was very wet kinda like a muffin mix. I added more flour which just made them tough. Suggestions?
Your recipe didn’t have brown sugar added to wet ingredients. May want to correct that!
So good and love the double glazes! Quick question. Is baking soda needed in this recipe? I know it needs something acidic to work with, and I don’t see any acidity in here.
These are excellent! Easy recipe and turn out great!
These are so good!
Can they be frozen?
Yes! They can. I made them ahead of time for my husband’s 50th birthday and froze them unglazed. I’m sure you could freeze them glazed as well and they would defrost just as good.
I am wanting to make these a couple days ahead for my baby shower, do you know how long they keep if stored in an airtight container? I won’t be able to make them the day of, and likely not the day before either, but I don’t want them to be stale. What had been your experience with leftovers??
I love this recipe. It tastes exactly like the ones at Starbucks, only better because you get them straight out of the oven! I make them every fall and also pairs well with the Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte recipe. Great for penny pinchers like me.