Kanku Michelsen, a resident reporter for the magazine, shared this recipe.
Kanku Michelsen's butterscotch scones have become her daughter's favorite and a much-loved staple in their home. A longtime Charlotte resident, Michelsen fondly remembers brunches with her family at The Pewter Rose, and especially its butterscotch scones. "This recipe is a walk down memory lane," she writes.
The dough comes together in a food processor or a mixing bowl, gets shaped into a single disc and is cut into eight triangles before baking. Expect it to be crumbly; that is how it should look.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup cold heavy cream, plus about 1/4 cup more for brushing the tops before baking
- 1 egg
- 2 cups flour
- 1/4 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling on top before baking
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 5 tablespoons cold butter
- 1/2 cup butterscotch chips, plus a few extra to sprinkle on top before baking, if desired
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the cream (3/4 cup) and egg. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a food processor, or in a mixing bowl, pulse or whisk together the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder.
- Cut in the butter using the food processor, two knives or a pastry blender until the mixture looks like coarse meal.
- Stir in the cream and egg mixture with a wooden spoon, or pulse a few times in the food processor.
- Stir in the butterscotch chips by hand.
- Continue to stir just until the dough comes together. It will be crumbly!
- Place the dough on a lightly floured cutting board and shape it into a disc about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick.
- Brush the remaining 1/4 cup of cream on the dough, then sprinkle some sugar on top. If desired, add a few more butterscotch chips on top before baking.
- Cut the disc into 8 triangles and transfer them to a parchment-lined cookie sheet.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 16 to 18 minutes, or until lightly browned on the sides.
This story appears in the November 2026 issue of Stroll Dilworth, which you can read or download in full.