Moist and tender Banana Walnut Scones with Browned Butter Icing might just be the most comforting breakfast on the planet!
Banana Walnut Scones are almost too decadent to be called breakfast…but don’t let that stop you.
I know, you don’t have to tell me, I posted two scone recipes this week. But it makes total sense because when you make one great thing, you naturally want more of it. And of course I wasn’t going to make another batch of my Strawberry Shortcake Scones, not when I had a couple of perfectly blackened bananas on the counter. Anyway, what better time to overdose on scone recipes than Mother’s Day week?
This is a great recipe, if I do say so myself. The oat flour makes the pastry extra tender, the banana gives it that famously warm and comforting flavor, and the walnuts add more flavor and great texture. The browned butter icing was just a natural. The whole thing works beautifully. Highly recommended for a luxurious breakfast in bed, or a regular old workday morning.
How to make oat flour ~
- Use rolled oats (regular or quick cooking.) You can also use steel cut oats for a coarser flour.
- Put them in a food processor or high speed blender and process until they become finely ground.
- For details check out my How to Make Oat Flour post.
More scones to try ~
Banana Walnut Scones with Browned Butter Icing
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup oat flour (I like Bob's Red Mill, or you can make your own, directions below), I like Bob's Red Mill, or you can make your own, directions below
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 12 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut in pieces
- heaping half cup finely chopped walnuts
- 1/2 cup well mashed ripe bananas, about 2 medium
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
browned butter icing
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 cups confectioner's sugar
- heavy cream or half and half, or milk, to thin
Instructions
- Set oven to 400F
- Put the flours, baking powder, soda, salt and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. Pulse to combine.
- Add the butter pieces and pulse about 20 or more times to completely incorporate the butter. The mixture will have a coarse crumb.
- Put the mashed banana in a glass liquid measuring cup and add enough cream to make 1 cup. Stir in the vanilla.
- Add the walnuts and the liquid ingredients to the processor and pulse again until the dough comes together. I pulse several times and then run the machine briefly to get the dough to form. Don't over-process.
- Turn the dough, it will be sticky, out onto a floured surface and bring together with your hands. Form it into a 7 to 8 inch flat round disk. Again, don't over-work the dough or you will get tough scones. The dough will be shaggy and rough, and you want it that way.
- Cut the disk in half, and then into 8 triangles. Arrange the scones on a lined baking sheet, 2 inches apart. At this point I like to refrigerate the dough while I clean up the mess.
- Bake the scones for about 15-18 minutes until golden. Cool on a rack before icing.
- To make the icing, put the butter in a small saucepan or skillet and melt it over medium heat. Watch it carefully, the butter will start to sizzle, and then slowly start to turn brown. Swirl or stir often. Take the pan off the heat when the butter is a dark nutty brown, but before it burns. This only takes a couple of minutes. Note: it helps to use a pan with a light colored lining so you can see the color transformation better.
- Pour the butter into the sugar and stir. Add just enough milk or cream to make a thick glaze.
- Turn each scone headfirst down into the glaze and invert back onto a rack.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Hello! Great scone recipe! I’ve made these several times before. These are some great stones! One time I forgot to add the walnuts into the batter. They were still good. But they’re even better with the walnuts. I tried to mash them in afterwards lol. I have also used a chocolate glaze on top at the recommendation of a friend who loves chocolate. They were absolutely phenomenal. I did the brown butter glaze on first, and drizzle the chocolate. On top of that. The combination was out of this world! You should try it. Also, this time I’m making him again this morning, but I’m wondering if anyone has tried to substitute a banana with a different pureed fruit like sweet potato or pumpkin? Also, has anyone added cinnamon to their banana recipe? Just some variations I am thinking of trying! Let me know! Know! And thank you again for a great recipe. It is lovely as is and I will continue making it for years to come because my coworkers also love it and gobble them down whenever I bring them.
Hi Sue, I’m crazy about all your recipes and have recommended you to my friends. Can I make these scones the night before, refrigerate and bake off the next morning?
Yes, that will work well with scones, Kate, and thanks 🙂
Sue, nobody appreciates a good scone more than I do; and *this* is a good scone (I can just tell)! I normally wouldn’t ice a scone, but this would be an exception!
I made these, but only had 1 banana & used gluten free flour + the oats – they were still delicious! Thank you for the great recipe!
I have heard that my scone recipes do well with gluten flour, thanks for the feedback Jean! What brand flour did you use?
These look absolutely heavenly! Brown butter glaze on a scone? The best. Brown butter anything really. I like the way you think! ; )
i never craved a scone until you started posting about them. this is another delicious batch!
🙂
Hey Lady, you can post as many scones as you want! You are right in that you can’t have too many of them. Plus you make one heck of scone! We are lucky that you were tasked with finding use for two blacken bananas. The frosting is perfecto!
How lovely Sue! You are the scone queen and that icing sounds perfect. Bananas in scones is brilliant! Hope you had a wonderful mother’s day!
You had me at brown butter icing, I adore these scones!
Haha – it was so hard to capture the little brown specks on film, but they are there, adding such a fabulous flavor!