These hummingbird scones are a brunchy take on the classic Southern cake. Made with banana, pineapples and pecans, these scones are fresh and fruity and pair perfectly with a tart cream cheese glaze.
Turning classic desserts into scones means I can eat cake for brunch and no one can judge me! Like these banana bread scones or carrot cake scones, these hummingbird scones showcase all the flavors of the 70s cake!
So what is hummingbird cake anyway? This cake started as a more simple Jamaican dessert before getting a Southern revision. A more in-depth history can be found in Southern Living’s article, but the brief history began as an unfrosted bundt cake from Jamaica before being submitted to Southern Living magazine as a layer cake with cream cheese icing.
Ingredients
What exactly is in a hummingbird scone? Below you can find the list of ingredients and the full amounts listed in the recipe card below.
- All-purpose flour.
- Baking powder. Traditional in scones to provide a lift!
- Brown sugar. Granulated sugar can be substituted, but the brown sugar is great with the hummingbird ingredients.
- Unsalted butter. Cold butter provides the flakiness and richness in the scone.
- Egg. This provides our tenderness and structure to the scones.
- Buttermilk. A little buttermilk brings the scone dough together. Whole milk can be substituted.
- Spices. Ground cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice create the classically spiced base.
- Ripe banana. Using very ripe, or overly ripe, bananas will mash easily into the dough.
- Crushed pineapples. Using canned, crushed pineapples in their juices will replace some of the buttermilk in our traditional scone recipe.
- Chopped pecans. Toasted pecans are the flourish on top of this classic cake!
- Vanilla extract. Rounds out the flavor.
How to Make Tender & Flaky Scones
Using my traditional buttermilk scone recipe we can make a perfect scone. What is a perfect scone you ask? In my opinion, a scone should have a golden crust and a tender crumble in a soft interior.
Let’s talk about how we get that perfect texture!
Use cold ingredients. Using cold butter especially is key to a tender and flaky scone. When cold chunks of butter go into a hot oven, it will release steam that will translate into flakes in our final scone.
Get the right dough consistency. This recipe calls for a range of buttermilk amounts because we want to get the dough texture just right. The goal is a “shaggy” dough, which means the dough should be sticky and scruffy, but not wet and soggy. And make sure there are no pockets of dry flour left.
If your dough turns out to be a bit too wet to work with, you can add a little extra flour on top as you pat the dough into discs.
Proper hummingbird ingredients. In order to get the true flavor of the hummingbird cake, we need to make sure the ingredients are dead on! The bananas need to be overly ripe to mash properly – think what you use for banana bread.
Canned crushed pineapple is also key. The juices add to the dough texture and the pineapple almost melts into the dough leaving a tangy sweetness behind.
Chopped pecans must be toasted! That brings out all the flavor of the nuts.
Egg wash before baking. Making a quick egg wash of one egg beaten with 1 tablespoon of water will give us that shiny, golden crust on top.
Cream cheese brings it all together. In my opinion, cream cheese icing is the key for bringing all these tropical flavors together. In our case, we are substituting a glaze for our scones.
Making a Cream Cheese Glaze
To make a smooth cream cheese glaze without clumps, there are two key things to remember:
- The cream cheese must be ultra soft and whipped well before adding the sugar.
- The confectioners’ sugar must be sifted prior to adding to the cream cheese.
With this in mind, we can avoid the chunks of cream cheese we want to avoid. Add just enough milk to drizzle the glaze on top.
Frequently Asked Questions
Mostly ripe bananas can be placed in a closed paper bag overnight to speed up ripening. Or bananas in peels can be baked in a 300°F oven on an aluminum lined tray for 30-45 minutes until blackened and juices are flowing.
Super ripe bananas can also be peeled and frozen for a future date!
It’s better to use the canned pineapple with juices to create the traditional hummingbird flavor.
These scones are best served the day of baking.
Scone dough can be frozen for up to 3 months and baked the day needed.
Hummingbird Scones
Ingredients
Hummingbird Scones
- 40 g chopped pecans
- 375 g all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 53 g brown sugar packed
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Pinch allspice
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 150 g unsalted butter cold and cubed
- 220 g mashed bananas
- 105 g crushed canned pineapple with juices
- 1 large egg beaten
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 to 4 tablespoon buttermilk cold
- egg wash (1 egg + 1 tablespoon water)
Cream Cheese Glaze
- 56 g cream cheese very soft
- 56 g confectioners' sugar sifted
- 1 to 2 tablespoons whole milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat pecans in a single layer over medium-high heat until fragrant, about 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.40 g chopped pecans
- In a large bowl whisk together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, spices and salt.375 g all-purpose flour, 53 g brown sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, Pinch allspice, 1 teaspoon salt
- Using fingers, rub in cubes of cold butter until texture is slightly sandy and some large pieces of butter remain.150 g unsalted butter
- In a second bowl, whisk together bananas, pineapple, egg and vanilla extract. Pour into dry ingredients and stir using Danish whisk or rubber spatula. Add enough buttermilk to create a shaggy dough that is slightly sticky, but not wet.220 g mashed bananas, 105 g crushed canned pineapple, 1 large egg, 1 tablespoon vanilla extract, 2 to 4 tablespoon buttermilk
- Tip dough onto a lightly floured surface and shape into a ball. Divide in half. Shape each half into a 1” tall disc, about 7” wide, and slice into 6 wedges. Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet and freeze for at least 20 minutes, or overnight.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 425°F (220°C). Brush the tops of the scones with the egg wash and bake for 20-22 minutes. Rotate pan halfway through for even browning.egg wash
- Cream cheese glaze. Whip cream cheese in a bowl with hand-mixer until light and creamy. Gradually add confectioners’ sugar. Add vanilla, salt and whole milk to thickness preference. Drizzle over warmed scones and serve immediately.375 g all-purpose flour, 56 g cream cheese, 56 g confectioners' sugar, 1 to 2 tablespoons whole milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, Pinch salt
Notes
- Scones are best the day of baking. Leftover, unglazed scones can be refreshed in a 350°F oven for 5-10 minutes.
- Unbaked scone dough can be stored in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months.
Disclaimer: We test all recipes using the metric weights shown, we cannot guarantee outcomes when switching to US measurements.
