Remember the movie, "Romancing the Stone"? Well, I've been on a mission of "perfecting the scone" - kinda corny, but seriously yummy. Scones add a fun change to Sunday brunch, but they're also great any day of the week for breakfast on the go. After trying many different recipes, this one is by far my favorite!
This recipe is for cranberry orange scones, however, fresh cranberries are not always in season, so you can change it up. I recently used fresh blueberries and lemon zest, which was a wonderful variation! You could also try blackberries, raspberries, and strawberries.
Cranberry Orange Scones
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
6 tbsp. sugar
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter
1/3 cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
zest of 1 orange (or lemon)
1 cup fresh cranberries halved (or other berries)
Glaze:
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp. orange juice (or lemon if using lemon zest)
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt
3. Grate the frozen butter into the bowl and use a pastry blender or fork to combine the flour and butter until it resembles a coarse meal. Place the flour mixture in the refrigerator.
4. In a small bowl combine the sour cream, heavy cream, egg, vanilla extract, and zest. Then pour it over the cold flour mixture and stir just until everything is moistened.
5. Add the berries but be careful not to smash them in the process. Flour or grease your hands and gently work the dough together and place it onto a floured surface. Press the dough or use a rolling pin to gently roll it into a circle about 1 inch thick.
6. Cut the dough into eight equal wedges and place them on the baking sheet. Brush the tops with just a little heavy cream. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until golden brown.
7. Allow them to cool on a rack for at least 10 minutes before drizzling the glaze on top.
8. To make the glaze, combine the powdered sugar and orange (or lemon) juice until smooth.
Note: For a healthier scone, use low-fat milk instead of heavy cream, and low-fat sour cream or non-fat Greek yogurt instead of the regular stuff, and omit the glaze.
Enjoy!