Air Fryer Chocolate British Scones - Double Chocolate Orange
Double chocolate orange version of my popular British scones & made in the air fryer! Includes all the tips for a perfect rise to the scones that are perfect with your afternoon tea
Equipment
- Scales or measuring cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Mixing spoon
- Jug
- Large mixing bowl
- Pastry Cutter/Pastry Blender (optional - or 2 butter knives, or fingers)
- Whisk or fork
- Baking/parchment paper
- Round Cookie Cutter (5-6cm or 2-2⅓″, mine is 5¾cm or 2¼")
- Small bowl/dish
- Pastry brush or clean artist brush
- Cooling rack
- Air Fryer (Any size as mine is small, for regular oven recipe see link below)
Ingredients
- 75 grams Butter, unsalted, cubed & at softened (2½ oz or level 2/3 stick or ⅓ cup)
- 450 grams Self-raising Flour (OR 15 ¾oz , 3⅔ cups All Purpose/Plain Flour PLUS 5½ (level) tsp Baking powder ) * See notes.
- 2 tsp Baking Powder (rounded tsp) (In addition to that above if using Plain/A.P. flour - see notes*)
- 38 grams Cocoa Powder
- 2 tsp Coffee Granules/powder
- 50 grams Light Brown Sugar (1¾ oz or 1 level ¼ cup** – see notes for alternatives)
- 2 Med-Large Eggs (US - Large or Extra Large)
- 240 ml Milk or Butter MiIk (1 cup, 8 fl oz) - approx. See notes*)
- 2½ tsp Orange Extract
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract (Make your own Vanilla Extract)
- 80 grams Baking Chocolate Chips (2¾ oz, ½ cup - I used half dark (bitter) & half milk chocolate (semi-sweet))
Instructions
Prepare Air Fryer
- Cube butter about 1cm or ⅓" size & the butter will soften quicker. If short on time, try this hack I reviewed for softening butter in about 12 minutes.
- Before preparing the scone dough, use the cookie cutter to check how many scones you can bake at one time in your own air fryer on its own rack. Mine is small, but can bake 4 at one time. *Don't bake over 2 levels.
- Prepare the rack with a square of baking/parchment paper big enough for the scones, but not touching the sides of the air fryer, to allow the air still to flow. Cut a few for when doing more than one batch. If using ordinary oven, paper line one large baking tray/sheet.
Prepare The Dough
- Add flour, baking powder, cocoa powder & coffee granules/powder, to a medium-sized mixing bowl. **Remember to add the 2 amounts of baking powder if using Plain/All Purpose flour. Whisk briefly together before adding in the softened cubed butter.
- Mix the dry ingredients with the butter, before you 'Cut the butter' into the flour with a Pastry Cutter (Pastry Blender), until the mixture resembles large breadcrumbs. Alternatively use 2 butter knives, or rub between your fingertips. (For more details, read before this Recipe Card or watch the video below). Pieces don't all need to be the same size or take too long to do. Add in the sugar and mix through.
- Add 240ml (1 cup, 8 fl oz) milk to a measuring jug, before adding in the eggs and whisking together. (**If you want to make similar to buttermilk, add 1 tbsp vinegar or lemon juice to the milk & leave 5 minutes till it looks 'curdled'). Check the level of the mixture now that the eggs have been added and top up with more milk to the 350ml (shy of 1½ cups, 11¾ fl oz) level if required. If you have more it is fine too. Reserve 2 tbsps of the mixture to a small bowl for egg-washing the scones.
- Make a reservoir in the centre of the mixing bowl before adding in a little of the egg/milk mixture and mixing with a large spoon or spatula. Gradually adding in more liquid, being careful to check for dry patches underneath. Once a darker brown colour and starting to come together, use your hands to knead together into a rough dough. Add the Vanilla Extract, Orange extract & half of the chocolate chips, before working them into the dough. Add the second lot of chocolate chips. You want a slightly sticky dough. You might not need all the egg/milk mixture or need a touch more milk. DO NOT USE A FOOD PROCESSOR OR MIXER.
- Dust some baking/parchment paper with cocoa powder to work on, before forming the dough into a disc shape. Place on the dusted paper & use your hands to open out the dough to a thickness of at least 1" (2½cm). Do not use a rolling pin.
- Dip your cookie cutter into a dish of cocoa powder before cutting out the scones. DO NOT TWIST THE COOKIE CUTTER! This is very important for a good rise. Cut as many as you can before pulling away the excess scone dough. Use a palette knife to carefully transfer the scone to the prepared paper in the air fryer basket (don't touch the sides of the scone).
- Once you have enough in the air fryer basket, carefully brush a little of the reserved egg-milk mixture on top of the scone. Tap excess off brush and brush from the centre of the scone outwards, being careful not to let any drip down the sides of the scone.
Bake The Scones
- Bake your prepared scones in the air fryer at 200°c/400°f for about 12 minutes. (Some air fryers might need 220°c/425°f). Preheat the air fryer if your machine recommends this. Regular ovens use temperature of 220°c/200°c Fan Oven/425°f/Gas Mark 6.
- After 8 to 10 minutes in the air fryer, the scones will be set and well risen, but the bottoms will need baked more. So turn them over carefully, (if you have any egg/milk mixture left, brush some on) and continue baking for 2 to 4 more minutes.
- While the first lot of scones are baking, gently bring the scraps of dough together as best you can with minimal handling, and flatten out to at least 1" (2½cm) deep. Cut more scones till all the dough is used up. You should get about 12 scones in total. Transfer these carefully to paper and brush egg-wash on top now, or when in air fryer basket.
- Once first scones are baked, transfer to cooling rack & bake remaining scones.
Serving, Storing & Freezing
- Enjoy the scones cut in half and with topping such as butter, clotted cream, whipped cream, jam & curds. Try my homemade blueberry orange curd, easy Plum & orange jam, lemon curd or even fig curd. All of which can be made from frozen fruits.
- Store left-over scones in air-tight containers - I find cake or cookie tins work best. Store with the paper you used in baking and these will last at least 3 days.
- Scones are easily frozen by wrapping in baking/parchment paper or cling film/plastic wrap when fully cooled and then in a labelled food bag. Are fine frozen for up to 3 months1. Simply defrost at room temperature or in the fridge overnight. Once ready, slice in half and warm slightly in the microwave for 20 - 30 seconds at the most & they are like just baked. You can also place a whole scone in the air fryer for 1-2 minutes @170°c/325°f, being careful not to dry them out. Alternatively, if you have a conventional oven already on, a few minutes till warm to touch.
Video
Notes
Flour - UK self-raising & Plain (All Purpose Flour) have all been used & tested. ***IMPORTANT - If using Plain/A.P. flour, be sure to add the 2 amounts of baking powder.*** Gluten free flour Self-raising, Plain/A.P. flour with Xanthan gum also works well.
Sugar - light brown sugar was used for these scones, but my regular scones also Caster sugar (equivalent being Extra/super fine sugar). These will all work, as does making your own caster sugar from granulated sugar.
Milk - regular milk works for scones, as does lactose-free & goat's milk. Buttermilk works even better with the chocolate scones. To make your own, add 1 tbsp vinegar, or lemon juice to the milk & leave 5 minutes to look 'curdled'.
Coffee - powder, granules or espresso is fine, as is decaffeinated and there purely to enhance the chocolate flavour and not for a coffee taste.
Vanilla Extract - a small amount of vanilla extract enhances the chocolate flavour of the scones. Learn how to make Homemade Vanilla Extract.
Cookie Cutter - try to use a cookie cutter that is straight edged, and with a diameter of 5 to 6cm or 2 to 2⅓″. My cutter is 5¾cm or 2¼".
Air Fryer - my air fryer is small so takes 4 scones at a time. **Read my Cello double air fryer review.
Yield - using the same cutter & thickness, you should get about 12 scones from the recipe.
For all other information & scone tips, please refer to the complete recipe post & my Scone video tutorial that is nearly real-time.
Check out my Original British Scones recipe (above), the Mango Cranberry Air Fryer Scones recipe (below), or my savoury version - Cheese British Scones. Kids can also try my super simple Tear-&-Share Cheese Scones, with no need to cut out the dough. Air Fry Classic scones or new Air Fryer Cheese Scones recipe. New for 2025, lemon blueberry scones. New for 2026, Gluten-free AIr Fryer Scones.
**Total Time to make - based on baking 3 batches of 4 scones, for 12 minutes each. If your air fryer is larger, and can bake more than 4 scones at one time, total time would be reduced by about 12 minutes.
Browse Recipe Index
Reference - 1 Freezing information from website Freeze It.co.uk @ https://freezeit.co.uk/can-you-freeze-scones/
Sugar - light brown sugar was used for these scones, but my regular scones also Caster sugar (equivalent being Extra/super fine sugar). These will all work, as does making your own caster sugar from granulated sugar.
Milk - regular milk works for scones, as does lactose-free & goat's milk. Buttermilk works even better with the chocolate scones. To make your own, add 1 tbsp vinegar, or lemon juice to the milk & leave 5 minutes to look 'curdled'.
Coffee - powder, granules or espresso is fine, as is decaffeinated and there purely to enhance the chocolate flavour and not for a coffee taste.
Vanilla Extract - a small amount of vanilla extract enhances the chocolate flavour of the scones. Learn how to make Homemade Vanilla Extract.
Cookie Cutter - try to use a cookie cutter that is straight edged, and with a diameter of 5 to 6cm or 2 to 2⅓″. My cutter is 5¾cm or 2¼".
Air Fryer - my air fryer is small so takes 4 scones at a time. **Read my Cello double air fryer review.
Yield - using the same cutter & thickness, you should get about 12 scones from the recipe.
For all other information & scone tips, please refer to the complete recipe post & my Scone video tutorial that is nearly real-time.
Check out my Original British Scones recipe (above), the Mango Cranberry Air Fryer Scones recipe (below), or my savoury version - Cheese British Scones. Kids can also try my super simple Tear-&-Share Cheese Scones, with no need to cut out the dough. Air Fry Classic scones or new Air Fryer Cheese Scones recipe. New for 2025, lemon blueberry scones. New for 2026, Gluten-free AIr Fryer Scones.
**Total Time to make - based on baking 3 batches of 4 scones, for 12 minutes each. If your air fryer is larger, and can bake more than 4 scones at one time, total time would be reduced by about 12 minutes.
Browse Recipe Index
Reference - 1 Freezing information from website Freeze It.co.uk @ https://freezeit.co.uk/can-you-freeze-scones/
***I am not a qualified nutritionist, & all nutritional values are based on a serving of 1 scone (from a batch of 12 as per recipe above), with no toppings. Bigger or smaller scones & the nutritional values will change. All values from MyFitnessPal.com.
Nutrition Facts
Air Fryer Chocolate British Scones - Double Chocolate Orange
Serving Size
1 grams
Amount per Serving
Calories
255
% Daily Value*
Fat
9
g
14
%
Saturated Fat
5
g
31
%
Monounsaturated Fat
2
g
Cholesterol
22
mg
7
%
Sodium
593
mg
26
%
Potassium
146
mg
4
%
Carbohydrates
38
g
13
%
Fiber
2
g
8
%
Sugar
9
g
10
%
Protein
7
g
14
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.