Like my basic sweet scones recipe, these ham & cheese scones are flaky and soft with crisp-crumbly edges. But instead of sugary extras, we’re loading them with savory and satisfying flavors including cheddar cheese, ham, garlic powder, black pepper, and fresh chives. Cutting cold butter into the dry ingredients promises a flaky, layered texture like homemade biscuits.
One reader, Courtney, commented: “I have made these pretty much every weekend since I found the recipe. I’ve tried both ham and bacon, as well as white cheddar and sharp (yellow) cheddar. The first two times I made the regular size, but they were such a hit that I had to start making the minis to ensure everyone who wanted one got one. Thank you, Sally! ★★★★★“
Finally, Some Savory Scones!
Berries, banana, cinnamon, and chocolate are flavors that, undoubtedly, taste delicious in scones. And I have recipes for each—meet my blueberry scones, banana scones, apple cinnamon scones, and chocolate scones. (Note that these are sweeter than traditional British scones!) Instead of staying put in the sweet scones category, I’m venturing into savory territory.
I have a dozen scone recipes published on my website, but none of them include salty, savory flavors. Today you’re meeting the first. (And maybe the best!)
You’ll start with my basic scones, reduce the sugar, add a little more liquid, skip the egg white and save it for brushing on the scones, and add savory flavors. Let’s call them flaky cheddar cheese pastries:
Why You’ll Love These Ham & Cheese Scones
- Perfect for breakfast, snack, or side dish—and an absolute must when selecting your menu of Easter brunch recipes
- Delicious alongside scrambled eggs or even pumpkin chili (a fall favorite!)
- Flaky, buttery, not dry
- A little softer than biscuits (use less flour and add an egg yolk)
- Cheesy and garlicky
- Crisp-crumbly edges right out of the oven
Key Ingredients You Need & Why
You need some pantry staples like all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, & pepper. Here are other ingredients you need and why they’re integral to the recipe:
- Sugar: It sounds odd to include sugar in a savory scone recipe, right? Well, without it, the scone’s flavor falls flat. 1 Tablespoon of sugar balances the strong savory flavors.
- Garlic Powder: Flavor.
- Cold Butter: Besides flour and cheese, cold butter is the main ingredient in these cheddar scones. It adds flakiness, flavor, crisp edges, and rise. The colder, the better.
- Cheddar Cheese: Use your favorite cheddar cheese. Basically, if you enjoy how it tastes, use it here. For best results, freshly grate it yourself like we do for cheddar biscuits instead of buying a bag of shredded cheddar.
- Chives: A few Tablespoons of fresh chopped chives adds flavor. Feel free to use another herb or chopped scallions instead.
- Buttermilk: The dough needs liquid and buttermilk is best. There’s no baking soda in this recipe, so you don’t have to worry about adding an acidic liquid. If you don’t have buttermilk, you can use heavy cream. Avoid thinner liquids like milk or almond milk—your scones won’t be nearly as tasty.
- Egg: An egg is what sets these scones apart from biscuits. Biscuits are flaky and buttery, period. The ham and cheese scones are, too, but they’re richer, softer, and cakier.
- Ham: Chop cooked ham into little bite-size cubes and mix into the dough as your add-in. Use a ham steak, or you can chop some deli slices instead. (The kind you would use in these ham & cheese pockets.)
Success Tip: Grate the Butter & Cheese
Frozen grated butter is the key to scone success.
Like with pie crust, cut the cold butter into the dry ingredients. The butter coats the flour. When the butter/flour crumbs melt as the scones bake, they release steam, which creates pockets of air. These pockets add a flaky center, while keeping the edges crumbly and crisp. Refrigerated butter might melt in the dough as you work with it, but frozen butter will hold out until the oven. And the finer the pieces of cold butter, the less the scones spread and the quicker the butter mixes into the dry ingredients. You don’t want to over-work scone dough.
I recommend grating the frozen butter with a box grater. And since you need a box grater for the butter, you might as well grate your cheddar cheese too. Just as I recommend freshly grated carrots for carrot cake, I recommend freshly grated cheese in scones. It will mix easier, melt easier, and taste better.
These Step Photos Will Help:
Mix the shredded cold butter and cheese into the dry ingredients using a pastry cutter or a food processor. This is pretty much the same way we mix biscuits dough & pie dough.
Whisk the cold buttermilk and 1 egg yolk together, and then pour into the dry ingredients. Lightly mix until the dough clumps together:
Pour the messy dough out onto a floured work surface and, using floured hands, bring the dough together into a ball. Flatten into an 8-inch disc and then cut into triangles (like a pizza):
Brush with an egg white & buttermilk mixture, and then sprinkle with flaky sea salt before baking.
Another Success Tip: Chill the Shaped Scones
I recommend chilling the scones in the refrigerator for 15 minutes as you preheat the oven. By doing this, the cheese scones hold their shape better and rise taller (more flakes!).
Can I Leave Out the Ham? Use Another Cheese?
Yes and yes! Feel free to use another favorite cheese such as feta, gouda, or pepper jack, and you can skip the ham entirely, or replace with the same amount of cooked, chopped bacon or sausage.
Savory Ham & Cheese Scones
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 8 large scones
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These savory ham & cheese scones are packed with flavor and have a delightfully flaky, soft interior. You can freeze the scones before or after baking. You can also skip the ham or replace with cooked bacon or sausage. Review recipe Notes before beginning.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), plus more for hands and work surface
- 1 Tablespoon (12g) granulated sugar
- 2 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 Tablespoons chopped fresh chives
- 1 cup (about 100g or 3.5 oz) shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, frozen (see note)
- 2/3 cup (160ml) cold buttermilk, plus 1 Tablespoon for brushing
- 1 large egg, separated
- 3/4 cup (about 110g or 3 oz) finely chopped ham
- optional for topping: flaky sea salt
Instructions
- Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper together in a large bowl. Stir in the chives and shredded cheese.
- Grate the frozen butter using a box grater. Add it to the flour mixture and combine with a pastry cutter, two forks, or your fingers until the mixture comes together in pea-sized crumbs. Place in the refrigerator or freezer as you mix the wet ingredients together.
- Whisk 2/3 cup buttermilk and the egg yolk together. (Save egg white for step 5.) Pour over the flour/cheese mixture, add the ham, and then mix until the dough clumps together.
- To make triangle scones: Pour dough onto a lightly floured work surface and, with floured hands, work dough into a ball as best you can. Dough will be sticky. If it’s too sticky, add a little more flour. If it seems too dry, add 1–2 more Tablespoons cold buttermilk. Press into an 8-inch disc and, with a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut into 8 wedges. See recipe Note for smaller scones. To make 10–12 drop scones: Keep mixing dough in the bowl until it comes together. Drop dough, about 1/4 cup of dough per scone, 3 inches apart on a lined baking sheet.
- Whisk 1 Tablespoon buttermilk with reserved egg white. Brush lightly onto scones and, if desired, sprinkle with flaky sea salt. (You can do this before or after refrigerating in the next step.)
- Place scones on a plate or lined baking sheet (if your refrigerator has space!) and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400°F (204°C).
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat(s). If making mini or drop scones, use 2 baking sheets. After refrigerating, arrange scones 2–3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet(s).
- Bake for 22–25 minutes or until golden brown around the edges and lightly browned on top. Remove from the oven and cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets before serving.
- Leftover scones keep well at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Scones become softer by day 2.
Notes
- Freeze Before Baking: Freeze scone dough wedges on a plate or baking sheet for 1 hour. Once relatively frozen, you can layer them in a freezer-friendly bag or container and freeze for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen, adding a few minutes to the bake time. Or thaw overnight in the refrigerator, and then bake as directed.
- Freeze After Baking: Freeze the baked and cooled scones for up to 3 months. To thaw, leave out on the counter for a few hours or overnight in the refrigerator. Warm in the microwave for 30 seconds or on a baking sheet in a 300°F (149°C) oven for 10 minutes.
- Overnight Instructions: Prepare scones through step 4. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Continue with the recipe the following day.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Box Grater | Pastry Cutter | Bench Scraper | Pastry Brush | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Flaky Sea Salt
- Butter: Use frozen butter if you have a box grater. If you don’t have a box grater (highly recommended for this recipe), cut very cold butter into very fine cubes and use that in step 2 instead.
- Can I leave out or substitute the chives? Yes. Replace with the same amount of another fresh herb such as parsley or use chopped scallion/green onion.
- Can I use another type of cheese? Yes. Feel free to use another favorite cheese such as feta, gouda, or pepper jack.
- Can I leave out the ham? Yes. Skip the ham for cheese scones or replace with the same amount of cooked, chopped bacon or sausage.
- Over-spreading: Start with very cold ingredients and very cold scone dough. Expect some spread, but if the scones are over-spreading as they bake, remove from the oven and press back into shape with a rubber spatula.
- Mini/Petite Cheese Scones: To make smaller scones, press dough into two 5-inch discs and cut each into 8 equal wedges. Make sure the ham is cut very small. Bake scones for 18–20 minutes or until lightly browned.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Can these be made substituting some of my sourdough starter for part of the flour and liquid?
Hi Debbie, we haven’t made these with sourdough starter, so are unsure of the results; but if you try it, please report back!
I don’t have any chives right now. Would it be fine if I made it without them?
They’ll still be delicious!
Sally,
If I wanted to make these gluten free, can I use another kind of flour? Thank you.
Hi Holly, we haven’t tested this recipe using a 1:1 gluten free flour blend, so we’re unsure of the results. Although some readers report using an all-purpose 1:1 gluten-free flour in many of our recipes with success, you should expect slightly different results anytime you substitute ingredients. Let us know if you give it a try!
Incredible recipe–so easy to follow and so remarkably delicious! Used a mix of New York and Vermont Extra Sharp Cheddar (using up what I had), finely chopped breakfast sausage patties (about 3) instead of ham, and spring onion greens (scallions) rather than chives. I saw another site recommend folding the scone dough like one does for biscuits (adds height/layers supposedly), so I added that as an extra step before forming the dough ball to cut in eighths. Otherwise, completely kept to this recipe as written. It took the scones about 35 minutes to bake for me, but it’s really cold here today and I am JUST getting into baking so I don’t know my oven well. I cannot overstate how good these scones are, though, and how I’ll never need to buy a scone again when I know I can make them like this. I’m a true beginning baker AND I have about 1.5 square feet of counter space to work with. Sally’s has been invaluable this last week of self-discovery! Try out the pie crust and quiche recipes as well, they’re just as fool-proof and tasty.
Oh my goodness. These were delicious and so easy to make. Used leftover smoked ham from thanksgiving. Will definitely make again
Hands down, best scone recipe out there. I followed the directions to a tee and they came out golden brown on the outside and nice and fluffy and soft on the inside. A know of butter, cuz, ya know, it’s officially the holidays and it was delish with a cup ‘o tea. Going in the scone rotation.
This looks great. Will try soon. While creating the recipe, did you try using any cornmeal?
Hi Sheila, no, we didn’t test this recipe with cornmeal.
I’m a beginner baker and these turned out delicious! I used green onion tops as an alternative to chives and turned out great. My husband loves them as well. We are definitely regretting not making a double batch
I made these for dinner last night and served them with scrambled eggs and a simple salad. Yummy and delicious! Quick and easy–the perfect thing for a midweek supper. I used my mini-scone pan and had lunch today. Thirty seconds in the microwave and they were perfect.
Too much garlic powder, the garlic powder taste overwhelmed everything else. I’d skip it or else use a smaller amount of (real) garlic next time. Made these for the family to take on the go – not the first thing you want to eat all day as your breath will stink and your mouth will feel gross.
I made this recipe as written. These come together nicely. They baked up so pretty. I will enjoy sharing these delicious scones with family and friends. Thank you for your recipe.
Can I use this recipe for blueberries instead of the ham and cheese?
Hi Sandy, here is our blueberry scone recipe.
Great recepie. Made these scones three times in the last few weeks – absolutely delicious!
This was my first time making anything besides cakes and they were a resounding success. Delicious!
I often laugh with my brother about scones being dry . Not this recipe! It had the right amount of flavor and the right amount of moist. I will definitely remake it.
Just like the glazed lemon blueberry, these savory ham and cheddar scones do not disappoint!
Just got this from daughter in law. Can’t wait to try it
Hello – I have prepared the scones through step 4.
The shaped scones have been refrigerated overnight. I will brush on egg white/buttermilk when I remove from refrigerator the following day. My question, is it still necessary to refrigerate the shaped scones again for 15 minutes while oven is preheating to the 400 degree temperature? Thanks!
Hi Lee, yes, we recommend it if your refrigerator has space!
So yummy! I usually sub the chives with green onions but I didn’t have any, so I used dried chives and it worked well. The flaky sea salt on top gave them a little something extra. Thank you for another fine recipe.
Hello
I saw another scone recipe that followed your recipe but also used cream cheese. Is that something you would recommend?
Hi Lee, we haven’t tested this scone recipe with cream cheese, and it would take some testing to properly incorporate so that the scones still hold their shape. For best results, we recommend sticking to the recipe as written.
A total hit with the construction crew remodeling my house. I’m making them again tonight. I substituted green onion tops for chives.
Delicious! The best scone we have ever had the joy of eating!
I love this recipe! I would like to do caramelized onions, thyme & cheddar. Should I follow the same proportions? Thank you
Delicious!! I omitted the ham and used heavy cream. I couldn’t even wait for it to cool down to make a tea and eat one. Or two. Thank you Sally for another great recipe!
Yum and more yum! I made my own buttermilk and used plant based cheese. I also added some chili flakes for some zip. The scones turned out great!
Best scones I’ve ever had in my life! Your tips are so helpful. I didn’t have buttermilk, used combo of regular milk and yogurt and baked them on my pellet grill. Turned out incredible, they’ll be frequently requested in my house for sure.
Great recipe! I substituted bacon for the ham and also added sun dried tomatoes. Needed to add a couple tablespoons of extra butternilk to the mixture, but turned out delicious! Family loved them.
Can this recipe be made into “mini” scones without sacrificing any texture? Looking for more of a one or two bite scone for a party.
Hi Wendy! We can’t see why not. We’re unsure of the bake time.
I just want to say, that if I’m looking for a recipe, any recipe, i look for Sally’s Baking Addiction. I don’t think I’ve had a bad anything. Thank you!
Thank you so much, Susan!
Excellent and easy. I had to add an extra tablespoon of milk but I live at high altitude.
I love these scones and have made several times. I’m amazed the dough might be “sticky” because each time mine has been very dry and I’ve had to add buttermilk. I’m just curious if this is just me or others have had same experience. In the end it’s delicious and that’s what matters.
Hi Peggy! The dough will be more dry if there is too much flour in the dough. How did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.