Our buttery, cheesy pumpkin scone recipe is the perfect treat for a Halloween party

Name: Our buttery, cheesy pumpkin scone recipe is the perfect treat for a Halloween party
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 8 serving(s)
Ingredients: 150 g pumpkin, peeled and chopped; 1 tsp. olive oil; 250 g self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting; 1 tsp. baking powder; 1/2 tsp. mustard powder; 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika; 1/2 tbsp. light brown sugar; 60 g butter, grated and frozen; 50 g Cheddar cheese, finely grated; 50 g Gruyère, finely grated; 60 mL buttermilk, plus extra for brushing

You need to make this melt-in-the-mouth bake.

By Nadine BrownPublished: 27 October 2026

Jump to recipe

pumpkin shaped scones with pretzel stems on a white surface.

These cheesy scones are all treat and no trick. Flavoured with Cheddar and Gruyère, spices and roast pumpkin, they’re the perfect autumnal bake, even better enjoyed with a thick spread of butter.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

Yields:

8 serving(s)

Prep Time:

30 mins

Cook Time:

45 mins

Total Time:

1 hr 15 mins

Ingredients

150 g pumpkin, peeled and chopped
1 tsp. olive oil
250 g self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. mustard powder
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
1/2 Tbsp. light brown sugar
60 g butter, grated and frozen
50 g Cheddar cheese, finely grated
50 g Gruyère, finely grated
60 ml buttermilk, plus extra for brushing

Directions

1 Preheat the oven to 220C (fan 200C) gas 7. Toss the pumpkin with the oil and a pinch of salt on a lined baking tray. Roast for 30min or until cooked through. Remove from the oven and leave to cool. Blitz until smooth. Transfer a lined baking tray on to an oven shelf and leave to heat up.

2 Add the flour, baking powder, mustard powder and paprika to a food processor and pulse to combine. Pulse in the sugar and 1tsp fine sea salt. Add the butter and briefly pulse until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Pulse in the cheeses. Combine the pumpkin purée and buttermilk and add to the processor. Very briefly pulse until just coming together.

3 Turn out on to a lightly floured surface and bring the mixture together, shaping into a rough rectangle, flattening the dough slightly. Fold the top third of the dough toward the centre, then fold the bottom third over the top, like an envelope. Rotate the dough, flattening gently, and repeat the folding and rotating twice more. Transfer to the fridge and leave to chill for 15min.

4 Using your hands or a rolling pin, gently press out the mixture to roughly 2cm thickness. Using a 6cm cutter, cut out as many scones as possible. Gently press the offcuts together and cut out more – those ones will be a little wonky, but just as delicious. Brush the tops of the scones with some buttermilk. Transfer the scones to the hot baking tray in the oven, making sure they are spaced out, and bake for 15min or until golden and cooked through. Remove from the oven and leave to cool slightly before eating warm.

GH TIP

To make them look like mini pumpkins, insert halved pecans and small sprigs of thyme into the centre of each scone.

You can make the dough by hand but make sure your hands aren’t too warm. You don’t want the butter to melt, so transfer the dough to the fridge while making it, if needed.

Upgrade your afternoon tea with our best scone recipes

scones with fruit preserve and whipped cream on a slate surface

Nadine Brown

Kitchen Editor

Nadine is the Kitchen Editor, creating delicious, exciting recipes for GH. Her background is eclectic – time spent as a teen mag website editor interviewing the likes of Lady Gaga before becoming a standby contestant for GBBO - and it shows in her style cooking. Full of flavour, interesting stories and fun!

Watch Next