Cranberry Orange Scones
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
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.