Cranberry Orange Scones

Last updated on January 12th, 2025

Scones are one of my favourite things to bake and these Cranberry Orange Scones are packed with loads of orange zest and flavoured with warming cinnamon and cardamon. The crunchy turbinado sugar topping helps to temper the tartness of the cranberries, resulting in a still-punchy snack or breakfast option with fresh, robust flavours.

This recipe is great way to use up any leftover cranberries from the holidays and one of the most delicious reasons I can think of to take advantage of citrus season.

Here’s everything you’ll need to make them

• 2 cups (260 g) all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup (60 g) granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon (5 g) baking powder
• ¾ teaspoon (2 g) cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon (1 g) cardamom
• 1 tablespoon (6 g) freshly grated orange zest
• 1 teaspoon (3 g) kosher salt
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup (120 g) buttermilk (or your milk of choice) plus 2 tablespoons (30 ml) for brushing
• 1 teaspoon (5 g) vanilla
• 1/2 cup (115 g) cold butter (one stick) grated on a box grater just before mixing
• 2/3 cup (90 g) fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped
• Turbinado sugar for topping

This recipe started out as a way to use up the last of my cranberries from holiday baking. Using My Favourite Blueberry Scones recipe as a starting point, I’ve replaced the blueberries with a reduced amount of frozen cranberries (they’re both larger and stronger in flavour) and orange zest for the lemon. I’ve also reduced the amount of cinnamon slightly and added cardamom because I really love the way acidic citrus elevates its flavours. If you don’t have cardamom, you can use nutmeg or simply increase the quantity of cinnamon to a full teaspoon.  And if you don’t have turbinado or coarse sugar, these scones would also be delicious glazed or dusted with confectioners’ sugar.

How to make these cranberry orange scones in 5 steps

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF (200ºC) and prepared a parchment-lined baking sheet.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. In a small bowl, whisk together egg, buttermilk and vanilla.
3. Grate the cold butter into the flour mixture and toss everything together with your hands until evenly distributed. Pour the wet ingredients over the flour mixture and stir everything together just until integrated. Fold in cranberries. The dough will still be crumbly but beginning to get sticky.
4. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and use your hands to fold and shape it into a cohesive piece. Cut the dough into wedges then lift each scone with a spatula and transfer them to the baking sheet. Brush them with the remaining buttermilk and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
5. Bake for 28-30 minutes or until the tops are golden and the edges are browned. Let cool and serve warm!

My best tips for baking scones

• Cold butter is key (see note below) and if you have the time, chilling the dough for 30 minutes (or even overnight) before shaping and cutting will give you an even better result.
• I always suggest cutting scones into squares or triangles to avoid having to re-shape and cut again. It’s quicker, the dough is only handled once and there are no leftover bits at the end.
• When you cut them, slice with one straight cut each time. Do not move the blade back and forth or use the blade to separate the scones. The additional pressure risks sealing the edges, which will prevent them from rising well to produce those flaky layers.
• Brushing them with a little more buttermilk before baking will promote browning.

Can these scones be made dairy free?

I haven’t tested this recipe, but because I have made my blueberry scones with both vegan butter and dairy free milk successfully, I am confident they will work here as well. Just keep in mind that DF baking sticks have a higher water content, which makes them more difficult to grate. You won’t quite achieve comparable layers nor the same level of browning, but they will still be delicious!

More reasons to love these cranberry orange scones

1. This scone recipe relies on less sugar than most sweet scone recipes.
2. You can use either fresh or frozen cranberries, which is a great way to use up that stash in your freezer during the off season.
3. They can be prepped ahead of time. Mix and cut them the day before, cover and let sit on a baking sheet in the fridge overnight to have them ready to bake first thing in the morning.
4. They freeze like a dream. There’s nothing like a warm and toasty scone for breakfast without having to leave the house!
5. They bake up in just 30 minutes!

These cranberry orange scones are a delicious seasonal blend of tangy cranberry and citrus flavours. Serve them warm with more butter!

6 more delicious breakfast bakes to try

Cranberry Orange Walnut Bread

Cranberry Walnut Artisan Bread

Overnight Orange Cinnamon Brioche Rolls

Savoury Rosemary Parmesan Scones

Muffin Tin Popovers

Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake

If you make these blueberry scones, please tag me onPinterest or Instagram so I can see! 

And of course, feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews. This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you!

Cranberry Orange Scones

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Prep Time:25 minutes mins

Cook Time:30 minutes mins

Total Time:55 minutes mins

Course: Breakfast, Snack

Keyword: baking, cranberry orange, scones

Servings: 6 large scones

Equipment

• 4 Qt mixing bowl
• Box grater
• Bench scraper
• Baking sheet
• Wire cooling rack

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ¾ teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon cardamom
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (or your milk of choice) plus 2 tablespoons (30 ml) for brushing
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup cold butter (one stick) grated on a box grater just before mixing
• 2/3 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped
• Turbinado sugar for topping

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Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400ºF (200ºC) and prepared parchment-lined baking sheet.
• In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, orange zest and salt. In a small bowl, whisk together buttermilk, egg and vanilla.
• Using a box grater (or similar), grate the cold butter into the flour mixture and toss everything together with your hands until evenly distributed. Pour wet ingredients over flour mixture and stir everything together just until integrated. Fold in chopped cranberries. The dough should be crumbly but beginning to get sticky.
• Turn dough onto a floured surface. Using your hands, gently press the crumbs together. Fold the dough over, press and shape again, then rotate 90 degrees and repeat the process as needed. The dough will still be a little crumbly, but it will start to form together. As soon as it holds into a cohesive piece, work with your hands to gently pat it into a 1½-inch (3 cm) thick circle about 7 inches (18 cm) in width and cut it into 6 wedges. Lift each scone with a spatula and transfer them to the baking sheet, placing them about 1 inch apart. Brush scones with remaining buttermilk and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
• Bake for 28-30 minutes or until the tops are golden and the edges are browned. Remove from oven and let sit on baking sheet for 5-10 minutes. Transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool for another 5-10 minutes. Serve warm!

Notes

Cold butter: This is key to creating the light, flaky texture so it’s best to work quickly. Grating the butter on a box grater creates larger, uniform pieces that result in a lovely fluffy texture. Chilling the dough for 30 minutes before rolling and cutting will give you an even better result.

Make them dairy free: I haven’t tested this recipe, but because I have made my blueberry scones with both vegan butter and dairy free milk successfully, I am confident they will work here as well. Just keep in mind that DF baking sticks have a higher water content, which makes them more difficult to grate. You won’t quite achieve comparable layers nor the same level of browning, but they will still be delicious!

Berries: Either fresh or frozen cranberries may be used. If using frozen berries do not thaw, simply measure then quickly chop and add them straight from the freezer to prevent the juices from seeping into the dough.

Make ahead: Mix and cut them the day before, cover and let sit on a baking sheet in the fridge overnight to have them ready to bake first thing in the morning. To freeze before baking, place cut scones on a baking sheet in the freezer for 1 to 2 hours then transfer to an airtight container or freezer bag. To bake from frozen, place directly on baking sheet and add 5-7 minutes to the bake time. Alternatively, separate scones and let thaw on a baking sheet in the fridge overnight, then bake as directed above.

Storage: Leftover scones will keep well on the counter in an airtight container for up to 2 days, in the fridge for 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months. To reheat, let thaw overnight then return to baking sheet and warm in a 350ºF (177ºC) oven for ~5 minutes.