If you thought you needed a full oven to bake bakery-quality scones, think again. Welcome to your new favorite breakfast hack: Air Fryer Chocolate Chip Scones. There is something magical about a scone. It sits perfectly in the space between a muffin and a biscuit—tender on the inside, with a slightly crumbly, buttery exterior. When studded with semi-sweet chocolate chips and baked to golden perfection in the air fryer, they become irresistible. The best part about this recipe? It uses the magic of convection heat from your air fryer to create an incredible texture in record time. There is no preheating a massive oven, and cleanup is a breeze. These scones are perfect for a lazy weekend morning, a quick brunch, or an elegant afternoon tea. They are best served warm, preferably with a cup of coffee or tea, allowing the chocolate chips to melt just slightly.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, very cold and cubed
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips (semi-sweet, milk chocolate, or mini chips)
- 1/2 cup heavy cream (plus 1 tablespoon extra for brushing the tops)
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Optional: Coarse sanding sugar
- Optional: Powdered sugar glaze (1/2 cup powdered sugar + 1-2 tbsp milk)
Instructions
- Whisk together the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
- Add the cubed, very cold butter to the flour mixture. Use a pastry blender or two knives to cut the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse meal, with some pea-sized chunks of butter remaining.
- Stir the chocolate chips into the flour-butter mixture.
- In a separate small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the 1/2 cup of heavy cream, the egg, and the vanilla extract.
- Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients. Mix with a spatula or your hands just until the dough comes together. Be careful not to overmix.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Gently knead it 2 or 3 times just to bring it into a cohesive disk.
- Pat the dough into a circle that is about 7-8 inches in diameter and about 3/4-inch thick.
- Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut the circle into 8 equal wedges (like a pizza).
- Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit the bottom of your air fryer basket. Do not preheat the air fryer.
- Place the scones in the air fryer basket on the parchment paper. Leave at least 1 inch of space between them. You may need to do this in two batches.
- Brush the tops of the scones with the remaining 1 tablespoon of heavy cream. If desired, sprinkle with coarse sanding sugar.
- Set the temperature to 350°F (175°C). Cook for 12 to 15 minutes. Check for doneness: the scones are done when they have risen, are deep golden brown on top, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (or with melted chocolate, but no wet dough).
- Carefully remove the parchment paper with the scones from the basket and transfer them to a wire rack to cool for at least 5-10 minutes.
- If adding a powdered sugar glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar and milk until smooth. Drizzle over the slightly warm scones.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
Keep Everything Cold: The most important rule of scone making is keeping the butter cold until it hits the heat of the air fryer. When the cold butter melts in the oven/air fryer, it creates steam pockets, resulting in those flaky layers. If the butter melts before baking, you will end up with flat, dense scones. Don’t Overwork the Dough: Handle the dough as little as possible. Mix it just until it comes together. Overmixing develops gluten, which makes baked goods tough instead of tender. Why Parchment Paper? Air fryers have high-powered fans. If you place the scones directly on the metal basket, the fan can blow the parchment paper around before the scone dough weighs it down. To prevent this, put a dab of butter or cooking spray under the parchment paper to stick it to the basket, or use perforated air fryer parchment liners. Small Batch Baking: Since most air fryer baskets are small, you will likely need to bake these in two batches of four scones. The second batch may cook 1-2 minutes faster because the air fryer is already hot. Storage: Store leftover scones in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Freezing: You can freeze unbaked scone wedges. Place them on a baking sheet to freeze solid, then transfer them to a freezer-safe bag. When ready to bake, place the frozen scones directly into the air fryer (add 2-3 minutes to the cook time). Reheating: To bring a leftover scone back to life, pop it in the air fryer at 300°F for 3 minutes.
