Cranberry Orange Scones Recipe

6 wedges of cranberry scones on baking paper on a wooden board.

5 from 1 vote

These bakery-style Cranberry and Orange Scones are citrusy, buttery flakey with pops of juice cranberries. Perfect for the Festive season.

Prep Time15

Cook Time25

Total Time40

Course: Snack

Cuisine: British

Servings: scones

Calories: 219kcal

Author: Emma Duckworth

Equipment

Large mixing bowl
Baking Tray

Ingredients

Cranberry Orange Scones

1 zest of an orange
12 g caster sugar or granulated sugar
375 g self raising flour plus 1 tablespoon extra to toss with cranberries
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
210 g buttermilk cold
1 large egg cold
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
90 g unsalted butter cold
125 g cranberries frozen or fresh
15 g demerara sugar

Orange Glaze (optional)

65 g powdered icing sugar (confectioners’ sugar)
1 tablespoon orange juice

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Rub sugar and orange zest together. Add the sugar and orange zest into a large mixing bowl, then use your fingertips to rub the zest into the sugar to release the oils.
Sift in dry ingredients. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Into the large mixing bowl, sift in your dry ingredients; flour, baking powder and salt. Stir together.
Whisk wet ingredients together. In a bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg and vanilla extract. Once whisked, set aside one tablespoon of the egg mixture- this will be your egg wash to be used later.
Add butter to flour. Add the chopped butter to the mixing bowl and using your fingertips, toss the pieces until they are separated and coated with flour. Using your fingertips, rub the flour and butter together, leaving some larger butter bits.
Combine wet with the dry ingredients. Make a well in the dry mix and pour in the whisked egg and milk mixture into the centre. Use a fork to stir until the mixture starts forming a shaggy dough.
Coat the cranberries in flour. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of flour into the bowl and toss to coat the cranberries. Add to the dough and gently mix in with your fingertips. Then start to press the dough together.
Bring the dough together. Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, and continue to press together with floured hands. Fold it in half and then press flat. Try not to knead the dough. Gently flatten it out into a disc.
Cut the dough in half and shape it into two discs. Using a bench scraper or a sharp knife, cut the dough in two. Shape each half into a round disc. Flatten the disc until it's 2 cm (1-inch) thick.
Prepare scone rounds and refrigerate. Add the two discs onto the prepared baking tray. Refrigerate the tray for 30 minutes or freeze them for 15 minutes. Whilst the scones are chilling, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F)
Brush each disc with the remaining egg mixture. Sprinkle the tops with demerara sugar. Cut each disc into 6 wedges using a sharp knife. Re-position wedges on the tray so that they sit one inch apart.
Bake. Bake for 25-35 minutes until the scones are risen and the tops are golden brown. Once baked, remove from the oven.
Make glaze. Add powdered sugar and orange juice to a bowl and whisk until smooth. Drizzle glaze over scones. Serve immediately. Best eaten the day they are made.

Notes

Step-by-Step Photos: My blog post includes helpful step-by-step photos to help guide you through making this recipe.

To store: Scones are best served fresh and slightly warm. To store them, wrap them in plastic wrap or place them in a ziplock bag to prevent them from drying out and retaining their moisture. Leave at room temperature. They should last 1 to 2 days.

To freeze: Once baked scones are cooled, wrap them immediately in plastic wrap or place them in a freezer-safe container and freeze them for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature and reheat in the oven or microwave.

TIP 1: Use cold ingredients and cold hands. The aim is to keep the butter as cold as possible when making the dough so that it melts when it hits the high heat, not before, and creates that uber-flakey interior we're after.

TIP 2: Don't overwork the dough. Gently press the dough together with your hands rather instead of kneading it so you don't over mix it.

TIP 3: Refrigerate the dough before baking. This allows the flour to hydrate, the gluten to relax, butter to re-chill and harden and baking powder to get to work.

If you don’t have self-raising flour: Add 3 teaspoons of baking powder to 375g/3 cups plain (all-purpose) flour and stir together. Continue as per the recipe instructions and the other ingredients, including adding the stated baking powder.

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