These vegan pumpkin chai scones will get you into that fall mood. They're soft, flakey, deliciously spiced, and topped with a perfect vanilla glaze! Get your best fall sweater and get cozy with coffee and a slice of these pumpkin chai scones. You'll have everything you need for the season.
Why Chai Masala?
Yes, chai masala is an Indian spice mix, and it’s honestly quite delicious in lattes. However, chai puts me in the fall mood more than pumpkin spice. I find it so cozy and comforting, and it just tastes great! Which makes for a great flavor in these vegan pumpkin chai scones!
If you’re looking for pumpkin spice desserts, check out some of my favorite recipes, such as pumpkin cheesecake bars, pumpkin cinnamon rolls, or pumpkin cheesecake bread!
✨ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- These pumpkin scones have a soft, flakey center, crisp on the top and crumbly on the corners.
- Packed with pumpkin flavor and perfectly spiced.
- Perfect to make for a quick breakfast or snack!
✏️ Ingredient Notes
- Vegan butter - I like to use vegan butter sticks in a recipe like this that requires flakey buttery layers. The butter you find in the tubs is formulated to be soft and spreadable, not for baking.
- Pumpkin puree - Be sure to use 100% pure pumpkin puree instead of pumpkin pie filling, as pumpkin pie filling already contains spices and sweeteners.
- Baking powder - Baking powder gives scones a rise and a light and fluffy texture.
- Spices - I make my chai masala spice mix, which you can find at almost all grocery stores. You can also use pumpkin pie spice if you wish!
- Powdered sugar - We’ll use powdered sugar to make a quick and simple icing to drizzle over the scones.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
📝 Substitutions & Variations
- Feel free to swap the chai masala spice for any spices you prefer, such as cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice!
This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you replace or add any ingredients, please let us know how it turned out in the comments below!
🍴 How to Make Vegan Pumpkin Chai Scones
Top Tip: Use a food scale to weigh out the ingredients. That way, you'll only need one or two bowls, and you won't have to wash a bunch of measuring cups!
Step 1: Combine pumpkin puree, full-fat coconut milk, granulated sugar, and vanilla extract in a bowl and mix well.
Step 2: Next, combine all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, and chai masala spice in a food processor bowl. Pulse a few times to combine. Add cold cubed butter to the dry ingredients and pulse in the food processor until you get pea-sized pieces of butter.
Step 3: Transfer the butter-flour mixture to a large bowl and add the wet ingredients. Use a silicone spatula to stir everything together until it forms a shaggy dough. Once it comes together, use your hands to fold the dough over itself and lightly press it into itself. Knead until it comes together.
Step 4: Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and gently pat or roll it into a rough 9-inch long rectangle.
Step 5: Fold it into thirds, rotate it 90°, and press it out again into a 9-inch rectangle. Fold it into thirds again, rotate it 90 degrees, and press out one more time.
Step 6: Form the dough back into a circular disc, ¾-inch thick. Then, cut into 8 equal triangles.
Step 7: Arrange the pieces on a parchment-lined baking sheet and place them in the freezer for 30 minutes while you preheat the oven to 375° F.
Step 8: Bake the scones for 18-20 minutes, or until the centers are set and the bottoms are slightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow the scones to cool on the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool further.
Step 9: To make the icing, combine powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and dairy-free milk in a bowl. Whisk until smooth.
Step 10: Drizzle over the cooled vegan pumpkin chai scones. Allow the icing to harden before serving.
⭐ Expert Tips
- Work with cold vegan butter. Cold butter will help create the soft and flakey layers. I like to keep my butter in the freezer for 15-20 minutes before starting.
- “Fold” the dough to create flakey layers. First, your dough should be clumpy. With a bench scraper, “fold” half of the dough over the other. Continue to do this until it combines into one mass with no pockets of dry flour left.
- Let the scones cool completely before adding the glaze. I know — glazing them right when they come out of the oven is tempting! Be patient; hot scones can melt the glaze right off. Wait until the scones are completely cool!
- Working with scone dough can be a sticky mess. If you feel like the dough is getting extremely sticky, dust some flour over the bottom and surface of the dough. Try not to add too much flour.
💭 Common Questions
I haven’t tried it, but some good-quality gluten-free flour mixes might work. I recommend finding a 1:1 All-purpose gluten-free flour.
🥗 How to Serve
Serve these vegan pumpkin chai scones slightly warmed. You can enjoy them by themselves or add a bit of vegan whipping cream and some jam!
🥣 Storage & Reheating
- Room temperature
Once baked and cooled, pumpkin scones should be kept in an airtight container for 2-3 days. They can also be kept in the fridge for about a week. - Freezing Instructions
You can freeze these scones two ways. First, you can freeze them before you bake. Place them on a baking sheet to freeze overnight, then transfer to an airtight container. Alternatively, you can keep the plain pumpkin scones in an airtight container after they are baked and cooled. Bring them to room temperature, and add the icing before serving. - Reheating Instructions
You can reheat scones for a few seconds in the microwave. If coming from frozen, allow it to come to room temperature before placing it in the microwave.
Did you try this recipe? Please leave a 5-star ⭐️ rating and comment below! Tag @flouredframe on Instagram & Facebook!
📖 Recipe
Vegan Pumpkin Chai Scones
Equipment
- Food scale highly recommend
- Measuring spoons
- Whisk
- Large bowl
- Rolling Pin
- Knife
Ingredients
Pumpkin Chai Scones
- 114 grams Vegan butter stick (cold & cubed, see notes)
- 75 grams Pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 2 tablespoons Full-fat coconut milk (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 256 grams All-purpose flour (leveled and sifted, plus more for dusting)
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 2 teaspoon Baking powder
- 100 grams Granulated sugar
Chai Masala Spice Blend (or sub for 1 ½ teaspoon of pumpkin spice)
- ¾ teaspon Ground cardamom
- ½ teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Ground clove
- ¼ teaspoon Black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon Ground ginger
Icing
- 120 grams Powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tablespoon Dairy-free milk (I used soy)
Instructions
Pumpkin Chai Scones
- Before starting, slice the butter into 1-inch cubes and place it in the fridge or freezer while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- In a small bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, full-fat coconut milk, sugar, and vanilla extract. Set aside.
- Next, place the flour, baking powder, salt, and chai spices into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times to combine.
- Add the cold cubed butter to the food processor, and pulse until you get a very coarse meal with pea-size bits of butter.
- Transfer the butter-flour mixture to a large bowl, and add the pumpkin mixture. Using a silicone spatula, carefully mix until it begins to form a dough. Make sure to not over mix.
- Once it starts to come together, use your hands to fold the dough over itself and lightly press it into itself. Continue to do this until you get a fairly cohesive dough. Do not overwork it.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and gently pat or roll the dough into a rough 9-inch rectangle. Using your bench scraper, fold the dough in thirds, rotate it 90 degrees, and with a rolling pin, gently roll it out into a 9-inch rectangle again. When rolling it out, do not roll it completely flat, just enough to form a rectangle. This is how you create flakey layers. Repeat this step one more time. If at any time the dough feels sticky, add a little bit more flour.
- After you shape it into a rectangle, fold it into thirds once more, but this time, gently pat the dough together. Shape the dough into a disc that is 6-inches in diameter, about 1 ½-inches thick.
- Cut the dough into 8 triangles with a sharp knife. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving space about 1-inch apart. Place the dough slices in the freezer for 30 minutes and preheat the oven to 375° Fahrenheit.
- Bake the scones for 18 to 20 minutes, until the centers are set and the bottoms are slightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow the scones to let cool on the tray for 5 mins before transferring to a wire rack to cool further.
Icing
- Take a medium-size bowl and stir in the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and non-dairy milk together until smooth. You are looking for a thick, but runny consistency. When your scones are completely cool, drizzle about a tablespoon of glaze on top of each scone. Allow the glaze to set, then serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Coconut milk: I prefer using full-fat coconut milk for my scones because they give the scones a more rich flavor. And no, it will not taste like coconuts. You can sub for any other non-dairy milk of your choice. Just pay attention to your dough, if it's too sticky or too dry adjust accordingly.
- Vegan butter notes: Some vegan butter have different consistency, so I highly suggest placing the cubed butter in the freezer. This will help keep the butter colder for longer.
- Icing notes: It might not look like it is not incorporating, but it will! Keep mixing until it does! If it is too runny, add more powdered sugar, and if it is too thick and not runny add a little bit of milk at a time.
Almosara Suzanne says
I’m going to make these! They look so delicious and I love your photography!
Suzanne says
Just made these! They turned out so well and I’m so glad I followed the exact measurements. The recipe was so easy to follow and the photos were so helpful. I had to eat one to test them out and they taste sooooo good! Perfect for coffee time!
Floured Frame says
I'm so glad that you enjoyed this recipe and that the photos helped! I agree, scones are perfect paired with coffee.