Cranberry Orange Scone Recipe

If you love cranberries, then you’ll love this delicious cranberry orange scone recipe, that I made over the weekend. This is the best recipe for a moist and fluffy scone, with a delicious hint of tart cranberries and orange sweetness.

Holiday Baking

There’s nothing better than filling your kitchen with the scents of holiday baking. Just the thought of cranberries this time of year, puts me in the best Christmassy mood.

I sure enjoy having scones with my morning coffee or with tea for an afternoon pick-me-up. How about you?

I think you will find this recipe is a quick and easy recipe that you can make in no time at all with minimal mess. Well, unless you’re like me, and I always seem to create a mess out of the simplest tasks. In a way, that’s half of the fun!

The recipe I’m using is a basic recipe that you can change up as you wish. See my posts Strawberry Scone Recipe or Lavender Honey Scone Recipe for different variations.

If you’re thinking my cranberry orange scones don’t look like traditional scones, you’re right. My scones are made like drop cookies with a big spoon.

It’s a little shortcut that I discovered a few years ago. Sometimes I skip the whole part of making a disk with the dough on a floured surface and cutting it into wedges. They may not be quite as pretty as traditional scones, but the delicious taste is just the same.

You’ll notice I’m using dried cranberries instead of fresh. For this recipe, I prefer their sweeter flavor, and therefor I don’t have to add extra sugar to compensate for the tartness of fresh cranberries.

Easy Cranberry Orange Scone Recipe

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter cubed
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 1 teaspoon fresh orange zest (optional)
• 2/3 cup dried cranberries

Orange Glaze Ingredients

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 1 teaspoon fresh orange zest (optional)

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 425ºF.
2. Combine flour, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl.
3. Next add butter to the flour mixture. Use pastry blender or a fork to combine until the flour mixture looks crumbly.
4. Mix in the sugar.
5. Create a little well in the center of the dry ingredients, pour in milk, orange juice and orange zest then combine.
6. To make individual scones. Drop dough from a large spoon on a parchment lined baking pan. Yields 10 to 12 large scones.
7. Bake in a 425ºF oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until lightly brown.
8. Remove from oven. While scones cool for a few minutes make the orange glaze.
9. Combine powdered sugar, orange juice and zest to make the glaze.
10. Drizzle glaze over scones, then move to a cooling rack for glaze to harden.
11. Store in the fridge for about a week, then store leftovers in the freezer.

Recipe tips:

For achieving the best zest of oranges, I suggest using a microplane grater. It’s a very handy utensil to have in your kitchen. You can use it for zesting all types of citrus, and grating hard cheeses.

Looking for dairy free scones? No problem, you can substitute regular milk with almond milk, and use vegan buttery sticks. I’m having good luck so far with the Earth Balance brand.

For gluten free scones use a good quality gluten free 1 to 1 flour.

EASY CRANBERRY ORANGE SCONE RECIPE

A moist and fluffy scone, with a delicious a hint of tart cranberries and orange sweetness.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Course Snack

Servings 10 scones

Ingredients

  

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter cubed
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 1 teaspoon fresh orange zest optional
• 2/3 cup dried cranberries
• ORANGE GLAZE INGREDIENTS
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 1 teaspoon fresh orange zest optional

Instructions

 

• Combine flour, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl.
• Next add butter to the flour mixture. Use pastry blender or a fork to combine until the flour mixture looks crumbly.
• Mix in the sugar.
• Create a little well in the center of the dry ingredients, pour in milk, orange juice and orange zest then combine.
• To make individual scones. Drop dough from a large spoon on a parchment lined baking pan. Yields 10 to 12 large scones.
• Bake in a 425ºF oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until lightly brown.
• Remove from oven. While scones cool for a few minutes make the orange glaze.
• Combine powdered sugar, orange juice and zest to make the glaze.
• Drizzle glaze over scones, then move to a cooling rack for glaze to harden.
• Store in the fridge for about a week, then store leftovers in the freezer.

Notes

For achieving the best zest of oranges, I suggest using a microplane grater. It’s a very handy utensil to have in your kitchen. You can use it for zesting all types of citrus, and grating hard cheeses.

Looking for dairy free scones? No problem, you can substitute regular milk with almond milk, and use vegan buttery sticks. I'm having good luck so far with the Earth Balance brand.

For gluten free scones use a good quality gluten free 1 to 1 flour.

Be sure to follow Thistle Key Lane on Pinterest, where the boards are up to date with recipe ideas that you can use right now!

I hope you’ll find time in your baking schedule for this easy cranberry orange scone recipe. Thanks so much for stopping by today.

Cheers!

©2022 Cranberry Orange Scone Recipe post first appeared on Thistle Key Lane.