Orange Cranberry Scones have a delicate orange-vanilla flavor, with dried cranberries adding a sweet-tart contrast. Top with an orange glaze to complete the citrus notes for an over-the-top treat!
Why this recipe works
- These scones have a delicate orange and vanilla flavor that's complemented by sweet-tart dried cranberries
- The orange glaze adds more bright citrus notes
- Crunchy coarse sugar adds a contrasting texture to these flaky and tender scones
I enjoy playing with my food. By that I mean, taking a basic recipe and making different flavor combinations, and scones are a perfect place to start.
The beauty of a good recipe for cream scones is its adaptability. Like with Chocolate Chip Cream Scones, we can create a new scone by altering the flavorings and mix-ins. Glazed Orange Cranberry Scones are just a variation of my favorite homemade cream scones recipe.
While Fall is the perfect time to bake with fresh cranberries providing their pop of bright tartness, scones with dried cranberries can be made any time of year.
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Making cream scones is easy with a recipe ratio
Biscuits fall under a 3-1-2 recipe ratio, that is 3 parts flour, 1 part fat, and 2 parts liquid, by weight. Using a kitchen scale to measure the ingredients is helpful.
A cream scone is just an enriched biscuit, meaning eggs are included and the liquid is heavy cream, both adding richness and flavor. The egg is included in the weight measurement of the heavy cream (one egg is about 2 ounces). Scone recipes are easy to remember with this handy ratio.
What you need
The base ingredients for scones don't vary a whole lot: flour, a liquid (heavy cream, in this case), butter, sugar, baking powder, an egg, and salt.
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For this orange cranberry scones recipe, Fiori di Sicilia lends its delicate orange-vanilla flavor, dried cranberries add a sweet-tart contrast, and a bit of coarse sugar sprinkled on before baking adds a little crunch. The scones are topped off with an orange glaze drizzled on top for more citrus goodness. It's just a mixture of orange juice and powdered sugar.
Some scone recipes use more butter than the 3-1-2 ratio. For this recipe, you can add another 2 tablespoons of butter for more richness if you'd like. For even more orange flavor, consider adding ½ teaspoon of grated orange peel to the dough and/or the glaze. You can't go wrong with more flavor!
How to make orange cranberry scones
Step 1: Make the scone dough
Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar (photo 1).
Grate the frozen butter using a box grater and toss it into the flour mixture a little at a time. Once all the butter is grated, use a pastry blender or two forks to work the butter into the flour until coarse, pea-sized crumbs appear (photo 2).
Mix the heavy cream, egg, and Fiori di Sicilia together in a small bowl. Slowly add the cream mixture to the flour mixture and mix until the dough just holds together (photo 3). Using a bowl scraper helps to keep your hands from warming the butter as the dough is mixed.
Squeeze a small amount of dough between your fingers, and add more of the cream mixture or flour, 1 tablespoon at a time (2 tablespoons maximum), if it's too crumbly or too wet. Remember, do not over mix the dough - you want to keep that butter cold and separate from the flour (photo 4).
Step 2: Fold in the dried cranberries
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and push together into a rough ball. Sprinkle some of the dried cranberries on the dough, then fold it in half to seal them in (reserve some cranberries to press into the dough later). Repeat a couple more times, so the cranberries are evenly distributed in the dough (photo 5). This process is similar to how mix-ins are kneaded into bread dough.
Gather the dough, and flatten into a disk about 1-inch high. Use a bench scraper to release the dough from the mat. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate the dough at least 20 minutes or up to overnight.
Step 3: Bake the scones
Once the dough is chilled, cut the disk into wedges using the bench scraper. If you prefer round scones, press out the disk to a height of about ¾ inches, use a 3-inch round cookie cutter to cut out rounds (gather, press, and cut the leftover dough again as needed, but hopefully not more than 2 times).
Place the scones about 2-inches apart on a half baking sheet pan covered in a Silpat silicone mat or parchment paper. Press in the reserved dried cranberries on the tops of the scones. Brush the tops of each scone with heavy cream and sprinkle on some coarse sugar.
Bake the scones at 425°F for about 18 to 23 minutes or until golden brown (photo 6). Cool on pan for 2 minutes, then move to a cooling rack. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes.
Step 4: Glaze the scones
While the scones are cooling, whisk together the powdered sugar and the orange juice in a bowl until smooth. Adjust the consistency by adding 1 teaspoon of orange juice or more sifted powdered sugar as needed.
Place the cooling rack back on the baking pan to catch the drips. Drizzle the glaze on the still-warm scones and allow to set before serving.
Questions asked and answered
Here are some questions you might have...
This is an orange-vanilla extract with floral undertones. Used sparingly, it lends a subtle citrus and vanilla flavor and perfume to baked goods. In this cranberry orange scone recipe, you can substitute 2 teaspoons of grated orange peel (the amount from 1 orange) and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract for the Fiori di Sicilia.
That's a big yes! It's important to have the cold butter coated with flour, but not overly mixed in. Then, as the scones are baked, the water in the butter evaporates, giving the scones a flaky, crumbly texture. Keeping the dough cold ensures that the butter won't melt too quickly, leading to a dense scones.
Over-working the dough can develop the gluten in the flour too much, leading to a dry, tough scone. While we want strong gluten in bread, you'll want to mix scone dough only enough to bring the dough together.
Pro Tip: Grate frozen butter for scones and biscuits
How you cut up your butter isn't as important as keeping it cold. Generally I'll grate frozen butter on a box grater, mostly because I won't have defrosted the butter ahead of time. If you'd rather, you can cut chilled butter into small ½-inch cubes before blending it into the flour mixture.
A flavor and texture treat
Golden brown with a crunchy exterior and flaky interior, this recipe for Orange Cranberry Scones is a winner. The Fiori di Sicilia adds a hint of orange-vanilla flavor, but it's the dried cranberries that steal the show. I love their sweet-tart goodness!
The yield is generally about 8 scones (that's what I get from a circle cut into wedges or with a 3-inch round cookie cutter), but yours may vary. Scones, whether glazed or not, can be kept at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for 5 days.
The flavors of orange and cranberry feature in classic cranberry sauce made with fresh cranberries and cinnamon, and dried cranberries star in Cranberry Wine Babka. If you want more Fiori di Sicilia in your life, there's Orange Vanilla Pound Cake. Yum!
Orange Cranberry Scones are perfect for breakfast, brunch, or for an afternoon tea. You can't go wrong serving them with clotted cream and some lemon curd or jam.
It's fun to play with your food!
Slainté! L’chaim! Cheers!
Tammy
Related Recipes
Homemade biscuit & scone recipes are easy to create once you remember the 3-1-2 recipe ratio.
But the real beauty of biscuits and scones are their endless variations. They can be savory or sweet, and customized with different flours, liquids, and mix-ins, and can even incorporate sourdough starter discard.
The variety comes in when you play with the flavorings. Here are a few ideas to try...
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Recipe
Glazed Orange Cranberry Scones
Equipment
- pastry brush
Ingredients
For the scones
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, frozen and grated, see Recipe Notes
- ½ cup heavy cream, plus extra for brushing on top
- 1 large egg, beaten
- ¼ teaspoon Fiori di Sicilia, see Recipe Notes
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- coarse sugar, for sprinkling
For the glaze
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon orange juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 °F.
- For the scones: In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
- Grate the butter using a box grater and toss it into the flour mixture a little at a time. Once all the butter is grated, use a pastry blender, two forks, or your hands to work the butter into the flour until coarse, pea-sized crumbs appear.
- Mix the heavy cream, egg, and Fiori di Sicilia together in a small bowl. Slowly add the cream mixture to the flour mixture and mix until the dough just holds together. Using a bowl scraper helps to keep your hands from warming the butter as the dough is mixed.
- The amount of cream mixture to add depends on the humidity of the day. Squeeze a small amount of dough between your fingers, and add more of the cream mixture or flour, 1 tablespoon at a time (2 tablespoons maximum), if it's too crumbly or too wet. Remember, do not over mix the dough - you want to keep that butter cold and separate from the flour.
- Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and push together into a rough ball. Sprinkle some of the dried cranberries on the dough, then fold it in half to seal them in (reserve some cranberries to press into the dough later). Repeat a couple more times, so the cranberries are evenly distributed in the dough.
- Gather the dough, and flatten into a disk. Use a bench scraper to release the dough from the mat. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate the dough at least 20 minutes or up to overnight.
- Once the dough is chilled, cut the disk into wedges using the bench scraper. If you prefer round scones, press out the disk to a height of about ¾ inches, use a 3-inch round cookie cutter to cut out rounds (gather, press, and cut the leftover dough again as needed, but hopefully not more than 2 times).
- Place the scones about 2-inches apart on a half baking sheet pan covered in a Silpat silicone mat or parchment paper. Press in the reserved dried cranberries on the tops of the scones. Brush the tops of each scone with heavy cream and sprinkle on some coarse sugar.
- Bake for about 18 to 23 minutes or until golden brown.
- Cool on pan for 2 minutes, then move to a cooling rack. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes.
- Place the cooling rack back on the baking pan to catch the drips. Drizzle the glaze on the still-warm scones and allow to set.
- Serve the scones warm or at room temperature and enjoy!
- The yield is generally about 8 scones (that's what I get from a circle cut into wedges or with a 3-inch round cookie cutter), but yours may vary.
- Scones, whether glazed or not, can be kept at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for 5 days.
