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“These scones were absolutely delicious and I loved the combination of the cranberry and white chocolate.” ~Elena
When it comes to fresh cranberries, we’ve been brainwashed! Somewhere along the way somebody convinced us that fresh raw cranberries are too tart to use in baking, and that we need to sweeten them with tons of sugar and dry them down into shriveled blobs before we use them. Well I’m here to set the record straight ~ fresh cranberries have a bright vibrant flavor and color which is just perfect for waking up winter baking. These fresh cranberry scones are wonderful!
This is a simple and straightforward scone recipe. They’re really one of the easier baking projects to master, and infinitely variable as far as how you want to flavor them ~ you can load them up with chunky bits, enrich them with spices, or just keep them clean and simple.
Scones have been done every which way here on tvfgi, but I do have a few favorites, like my Maple Walnut Scones, which started out as a copycat Starbucks recipe. Ditto my Pumpkin Scones.
Whip us these fresh cranberry scones for overnight guests, or a special brunch. They make a great offering to take to a book club or a pta meeting. But if you’re cooking just for two of you, even better ~ they’ll last a week and make you happy every morning.
These scones turned out even more delicious than I expected, if you like cranberries and you like scones, you should really give them a try. The flavor is lovely and unusual and the texture is perfect.
tips for making fresh cranberry scones
- Keep Ingredients Cold: To achieve a flaky texture, it’s crucial to keep your ingredients cold. This includes cold butter, cold milk or cream, and even cold mixing bowls. You can even chill your flour before starting.
- Don’t Overmix: When combining the wet and dry ingredients, mix just until the dough comes together. Overmixing can make your scones tough. It’s okay if there are a few dry spots in the dough; they’ll get incorporated as you shape it.
- Shape Gently: When shaping the dough into a rectangle, do it gently. Use your hands or a lightly floured surface, and press the dough into place. Don’t knead the dough like you would for bread; just pat it together.
variations
- If you don’t like white chocolate, feel free to leave it out, or substitute an equal amount of chopped nuts…I recommend walnuts (or macadamias!)
- You could leave off the glaze and serve these with a luscious homemade clotted cream.Â
Fresh Cranberry White Chocolate Scones
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 12 Tbsp unsalted cold butter, cut in pieces
- 1/2 cup possibly a little bit more cold buttermilk
- 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
glaze
- 1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
- seeds of 1 vanilla bean, or 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- milk, half and half, or cream for thinning
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Pulse the cranberries and the brown sugar in a food processor to rough chop the berries. Remove to a bowl.
- Add the flour, baking powder, and salt to the processor and pulse to combine.
- Drop in the pieces of cold butter and pulse about 20-25 times until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Remove the mixture to a large mixing bowl and blend in the cranberries, chocolate, and buttermilk until the dough just comes together, it will be crumbly. If it is very dry, drizzle in a little more buttermilk.
- Turn the mixture onto a floured surface and bring together into a rectangular shape and cut into 9 rough squares. Put the scones in the freezer for 1/2 hour.
- Arrange the scones 2 inches apart on the lined baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes, until just starting to turn golden. Don’t over bake.
- Let cool before glazing with the vanilla bean glaze.
- To make the glaze, whisk together the sifted sugar, vanilla bean seeds, and enough milk, half and half , or cream to make a spoonable glaze..
This recipe is perfect for using the rest of my fresh cranberries I don’t use for thanksgiving. My husband and kids love them, and specifically ask for them on special family weekends together. Tender and flavorful! I will never lose this recipe!
So glad to hear it 🙂