A copycat recipe of my favorite cruise ship afternoon tea scones, these buttery Currant Tea Scones are delicious served with berry jam and clotted cream!
Who else agrees that the best part about going on a cruise is afternoon tea time? 🙋🏻♀️ I think it's such a special way to spend part of your afternoon on board before getting ready for dinner!
When we cruise as a family, my mom, my 2 brothers, and I try to make it to high tea on every sea day and even sometimes when we get back to the ship early on port days. The afternoon tea on Princess cruise ships is such a treat, the little tea sandwiches, cakes, cookies, and of course, the scones with cream and jam make for such a nice snack! It's always a little hard to get home after a cruise and not have afternoon tea available every day!
For other afternoon tea party foods, might I suggest my Macadamia Nut Shortbread Cookies or Mini Pumpkin Cupcakes?
Jump to:
⭐️ Why You Need to Make This Recipe
- Flavor - Cozy flavors of butter and brown sugar shine through in these simple scones complimenting the fruity currants well.
- Texture - Soft and tender, these homemade scones are just as delicious as the fanciest high tea scones.
- Method - Making delicious homemade scones is simpler than you may think!
🧈 Ingredients
Here are the ingredients needed to make these black currant scones.
Ingredient Notes
- Butter - I use salted butter in most of my recipes but you could make these scones with unsalted butter instead. Add an additional ¼ teaspoon of salt to the dry ingredients if using unsalted butter.
- Brown Sugar - Light brown sugar or yellow sugar is best for this recipe for a light flavor.
- Dried Currants - You could add raisins or even dried cranberries instead but I love currants for their flavor and small size.
See the recipe card for the full list of ingredients with measurements.
📃 Instructions
Step 1: Whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the cubes of cold butter.
Step 2: Work the butter in using a pastry cutter until the pieces of butter are the size of peas.
Step 3: Mix the currants into the flour and butter mixture.
Step 4: Whisk together the cream, egg, and vanilla extract until smooth.
Step 5: Add the combined wet ingredients to the bowl and stir until combined.
Step 6: Gently knead and press the dough until it comes together. Roll out into a ¾-inch thickness and cut out into using a 2-inch cookie cutter. Brush with a little bit of whipping cream and sprinkle with white sugar.
Step 7: Bake in a preheated oven for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve hot with fruit jam and clotted cream, Devonshire cream, or just lightly sweetened whipped cream.
💡 Top Tip
These scones are best served fresh and hot out of the oven! Serve with jam and cream and a cup of tea for an afternoon tea experience! Or serve while still hot with a generous amount of butter on top.
❓ Recipe FAQs
Yes! You could definitely add raisins instead of currants if you prefer.
Yes. Simply add an additional ¼ teaspoon of salt to the recipe if using unsalted butter.
You can serve tea scones with lightly sweetened whipped cream or a substitute made with cream cheese, whipping cream, and sugar.
Scones are best served fresh after baking but you can store any leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Warm in the oven before eating.
🧈 More Scone Recipes
Looking for other recipes for easy and yummy homemade scones? Try these:
If you tried these Tea Scones with Currants or any other recipe on my website, please leave a ⭐️ star rating and write a little note telling me how it went in the comments below. Thank you!!
📖 Recipe
Currant Tea Scones
Equipment
- baking sheet(s)
- parchment paper
- mixing bowls
- measuring cups & spoons
- pastry cutter
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ cup cold salted butter, cubed *
- ½ cup dried currants *
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- cream to brush before baking
- granulated sugar to sprinkle on top
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400℉. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and brown sugar. Add the cold butter and use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour mixture until the pieces are about the size of peas. Stir in the currants.
- Whisk the whipping cream, egg, and vanilla in a separate bowl. Add to the flour/butter mixture and stir until mostly combined. Turn the dough out onto a clean counter and knead a few times until a loose ball of dough is formed. Be careful not to over-knead.
- Roll the dough out to about ¾-inch thickness. Cut the scones using a 2-inch cookie cutter or a glass about the same size. Place the scones on the prepared baking sheet, leaving space between each scone to rise.
- Brush each scone with cream and sprinkle with granulated sugar before baking for 14-16 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm with jam and lightly sweetened whipped cream or clotted cream. Enjoy!
Notes
- Add an additional ¼ teaspoon of salt to the recipe if using unsalted butter.
- You could definitely add raisins instead of currants if you prefer.
Taryn
I was feeling in need of something warm and slightly sweet this afternoon, and these scones hit. the. spot. I whipped them up in no time, and when they were fresh out of the oven, I could barely stop eating them. So, so good. I was out of both whipping cream and currants/raisins, but half-and-half and dried cranberries worked with no problem!
Naomi
Such a good idea, I'm happy you loved this scone recipe, Taryn! Great substitutions, thank you for sharing!
Naomi
Luana J Wheeler
I made these today....big disappointment! I followed the recipe and the only thing I did different was I froze the butter and grated it into the dry ingredients and then used my pastry cutter to mix it in. They spread out and look like cookies! They taste delicious but are not thick like the ones in your picture. I want to make them again but I need to know what I did wrong.
Naomi
Hi Luana, I'm sorry to hear you had trouble with this recipe. Perhaps the pieces of butter got a bit too small in the dough with that method and caused them to spread? Try cutting the butter cubes into the dry ingredients next time and making sure the mixture doesn't warm up too much, as this may be part of the problem. The butter pieces should be about the size of peas in the dough. And be careful not to overmix!
Hope this helps! Please let me know how the next batch turns out!
Naomi
Mrs. J
I just printed the recipe and am going to make your scones tomorrow to serve to a friend who is dropping by in the afternoon. Hmmm, currants or raisins??? Currants mean a trip to the store. . . but it looks like that's what you used, and I like the look of the smaller fruit. Do you sweeten the cream you whip up for on top or serve it unsweetened?
Naomi
Hi Mrs. J, just saw your comment, I hope this isn't too late! I use currants in mine, but raisin would be great as well! I used sweetened whipped cream, but the scones are quite sweet themselves, so you could get away with using unsweetened.
Thanks, Naomi
Mrs. J
I ran out and got currents. The scones are delicious--I love the sweetness, and I totally forgot about the cream after eating the first one right out of the oven! 🙂
Naomi
Thank you, Mrs. J! I'm so glad you all enjoyed them!
P.s. I updated the recipe. 😅
Naomi
Loreen Johnson
Looks so yummy! Wish I was having a cup of tea and a scone with you right now!
Naomi
Thank you, Mrs. Johnson! That would be so lovely! ♡