These oatmeal rosemary scones are healthy with whole wheat flour, rolled oats, and plain yogurt. Rustic and luxurious all in the same bite. With subtle fresh herbal essence, fruity golden raisin flavor, and buttery biscuit-like tenderness these scones are irresistible!
Rosemary in pastry treats? We usually think of rosemary for savory foods like tomato sauce or focaccia, right? Yet the herb’s distinct floral flavor–pungent, lemony, and lightly piney–infused into biscuit-like scones makes taste sense. After all, rosemary belongs to the mint family and we incorporate mint in desserts all the time.
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Fresh rosemary is a must. Dried rosemary has an entirely different flavor so only make these scones when you have fresh rosemary!
Chop your rosemary needles very finely. You want the pieces to be tiny, tiny, tiny minced pieces no bigger than the head of a pin. To get maximum flavor from the fresh rosemary, you’ll stir those tiny rosemary bits into almost-simmering whole milk yogurt. Remove from the heat and then let the rosemary steep as the infused yogurt chills.
For sweet/tart sparkle, mix golden sultana raisins into the dough. Even folks who say they don’t like dark raisins in their oatmeal cookies will be delighted with the brighter fruity golden raisin flavor in these oatmeal rosemary scones. Go for the gold. Find golden raisins in your grocery store alongside dark raisins and other dried fruits.
Bake oatmeal rosemary scones for breakfast, brunch, after school snacks, and even dessert!
In this recipe, I’ve shaped the dough into a rectangle, and then cut into squares. Easy and no fuss.
But you don’t have to make your scones square.
At Deer Valley bakery we formed the dough into a thicker round and before baking, cut the round into triangle-shape wedges. Read more about that in the recipe notes below.
You could also dollop the dough into cookie-like mounds and then bake.
Make your oatmeal rosemary scones ahead of time:
Besides flavor and tenderness, one of the best things about this recipe is that you can prepare the dough, freeze in the shape you want, and when you want scones, all you do is arrange the frozen squares on a baking sheet, let them thaw just a little, then sprinkle with sugar and bake!
*** This recipe for oatmeal rosemary scones is adapted from the one my cookbook, Chocolate Snowball: and Other Fabulous Pastries from Deer Valley Bakery. (Affiliate link.) At Deer Valley, we made scones with half-and-half cream–more decadent than these with whole milk yogurt.
About rosemary–both culinary and medicinal:
- Rosemary’s dark grey-green needles have long been esteemed as both a culinary and medicinal herb. Ancient Greeks and Romans considered it a symbol of fidelity and friendship. Brides to this day wear garlands of rosemary in their hair. Last year in Mexico, walking by a wedding party about to enter the church, I saw rosemary twigs in the men’s boutonnieres!
- Rosemary is brain food. Greek students tucked rosemary sprigs behind their ears during examinations. Rosemary more than symbolizes remembrance–scientists are now testing the woody herb’s potential benefits in the treatment of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
More sweet rosemary ideas to make:
- Steep into rosemary simple syrup and mix into aromatic cocktails.
- Try rosemary simple syrup in lemonade. You might also like my basil lemonade recipe.
- Add minced rosemary to your favorite shortbread, like these buttery rosemary cookies.
- Yup. Chocolate complements fresh rosemary. Healthy rosemary chocolate truffles.
- Nothing sweet about this whole wheat rosemary focaccia— except it’s the easiest yeast bread ever!
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Coconut sugar vs. cane sugar? Your choice. What is coconut sugar?
- You can use either sugar for oatmeal rosemary scones. Cane sugar makes a slightly sweeter scone.
- Coconut palm sugar is a healthier alternative to high fructose sweeteners and processed cane sugars. It is vegan, paleo-friendly, and low on the glycemic index.
- Coconut sugar has a soft caramel flavor, similar to light brown sugar.
- I usually buy coconut sugar in the bulk bins at natural food stores. You can also buy it online. (Affiliate link.)
***This is an update of the rosemary oatmeal scone recipe I originally posted here on the blog in 2016. Updated with new photos in 2019.
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*** Nutrition information is meant to be an estimate only. The numbers will vary based on the quantity consumed, brands used and substitutions that are made.
Healthy Oatmeal Rosemary Scones
Ingredients
- 1 ½ teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 cup whole milk yogurt, plain or vanilla, or plain
kefir - 1 ½ cups (6 ounces) white whole wheat flour, whole wheat or all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup coconut sugar or organic cane sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 ½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut in 1/2-inch pieces
- ¾ cup golden raisins
- 1 tablespoon coconut or organic cane sugar, optional
Instructions
- Heat the rosemary and the yogurt in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until very hot but not boiling. (It will thin out and curdle a bit—no worries.) Refrigerate until the yogurt is cold, about 30 minutes. (see notes)
- Sift the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder into a large bowl, and stir in the rolled oats.
- Cut the butter into the dry ingredients, using your fingers, a pastry blender, or a stand mixer with paddle. Mix until the mixture resembles coarse meal with little pea size pieces of butter. (see notes)
- With a fork, stir in the cold rosemary yogurt and the raisins, and mix with your hands until the dough comes together.
- Preheat oven to 375˚. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, or coat lightly with butter or cooking spray. Pat the dough into a rectangle about 10 x 8-inches and about ½-inch thick. So the dough is easier to cut into squares, chill the rectangle for about 15 minutes before cutting into squares. (See recipe notes to form a round of dough so you can cut into triangle wedges.)
- Cut into 12 (roughly 2 ½ to 3-inch) squares. (You can freeze the squares at this point and bake them another time.) Arrange the squares about ¾ inch apart on the baking sheet. Sprinkle with sugar, or not.
- Bake 15 to 20 minutes. or until the bottoms are light golden brown and your finger doesn’t leave an indentation when you touch the tops. Let cool before removing from pan.
Notes
- To chill the infused yogurt quickly, nestle the pan in a large bowl of ice water and stir until cold.
- A heavy-duty mixer with paddle cuts the butter into the flour and oat mixture. Easy and efficient.
- For higher altitudes: Remove 1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar and reduce baking powder to 2 teaspoons.
- To form the soft dough into a round instead of squares, line a 9-inch round cake pan with plastic wrap. Pat the dough into the pan and fold the plastic wrap over to completely cover the dough. Press the dough into an even round disk, about 1/2-inch thick, by pushing the dough around under the plastic wrap. Refrigerate or freeze about 1 hour, or until cold enough to cut. Before baking, cut the dough round into pie-shaped wedges, 8 or 10 or 12, depending on the size desired.
Almost bought one today at Deer Valley, Snow Park Lodge but was distracted by the Hot Cross Buns and got that instead.
Syd. · 21 March, 2016
Thanks Syd. Good idea–Hot Cross Bun today, Rosemary Oatmeal Scone tomorrow. Or next week. · 21 March, 2016
Wow, I am a big herb user but I never thought of rosemary for scones, which are one of my favorite foods. Pinning and making these! · 25 March, 2016
Thanks Lynne! You will love the flavor of these flaky scones! · 26 March, 2016
Sounds great thanks for the recipe I’m going to try this one with dates. · 2 April, 2016
Thanks Sine! Great idea–dates. You might also like these scones made with bits of diced apricot. · 2 April, 2016