Fresh Cranberry Orange Sourdough Scones

The flavor of fresh cranberries and orange in these scones makes them so special. Such a fresh pop added to my master sourdough scone recipe perfect for the holidays. Make these cranberry orange sourdough scones to eat fresh or pop in the freezer for a quick morning treat.

These scones can be made any time of the year, but anytime between October and January will give you fresh cranberries, which is part of what makes them so good. Along with the fresh citrus flavor from orange juice and orange zest, these scones are flavorful and anything but dry.

Equipment Needed

I prefer to use my food processor to make scones. But they are also very easy to make by hand. If you do that, you will need a large bowl and a pastry cutter.

I also use a 1/2 sheet pan lined with a silat or parchment paper. It is helpful to have a bench scraper or large knife to cut the scones before baking.

Ingredients for Cranberry Orange Sourdough Scones

SOURDOUGH SCONES

• All purpose flour
• Sugar
• Baking soda
• Baking powder
• Salt
• Butter
• Sourdough starter discard
• Sour cream
• Egg
• Vanilla extract
• Chopped fresh cranberries
• Orange zest

GLAZE

• Powdered sugar
• Cream (milk or half and half will work too)
• Orange juice
• Orange zest

Step By Step Instructions for Sourdough Scones

Mix the Scone Dough

First, add in all the dry ingredients to the food processor. Pulse to mix. 

Next, add the cold cubed butter to the food processor. Pulse to incorporate.

Now add in the chopped cranberries (I use my small food processor/chopper to get them nice and small). Then add the orange zest and pulse a time or two.

Finally, you will mix the rest of the ingredients (sourdough starter discard, sour cream, egg, vanilla extract) in a separate bowl to incorporate. When mixed together, add to the food processor and blend together by pulsing. You do not want to mix more than necessary, so stop just as it comes together. It should form a nice ball similar to a sugar cookie recipe. It should not be too sticky or too dry. Add more flour if too sticky or a touch of milk/water if too dry. 

Remove the dough from the food processor and place on a baking sheet lined with a silpat or parchment paper. Split it into two balls and flatten into circles. Try not to handle the dough too much.

Shape the Cranberry Orange Sourdough Scones

Divide the dough into half. Working with one half, form into a circle. You want to handle the dough the least amount possible, so I do not roll it out, but gently pat it into a circle.

Then you will cut the circle into 6 or 8 scones depending on what size you want. Next, separate them and lay them out onto the baking sheet lined with parchment or a silpat. They will expand some so make sure they are not touching and there is some room in between.

Bake up the Scones

Bake the scones in a 400 degree oven for 15 minutes or until the edges are turning golden brown. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool or leave them on the baking sheet.

Then, while the scones are baking, you can make up the glaze.

To make the glaze, mix up the powered sugar, cream, and orange juice and zest until it is a good consistency to drizzle over the scones with a fork. Add a bit more liquid if it is too thick or sugar if it gets too thin. 

Drizzle the glaze over the scones after they have cooled down a bit. The glaze will harden as it cools down. If the scones are too hot when you apply the glaze, it will soak in.

The Orange Glaze

These cranberry orange sourdough scones would be good without the glaze, but I would not consider skipping it. It is what makes them in my opinion. The is a nice fresh pop of orange that really livens them up.

I like to make a bit thicker so that it stays on top of the scones nicely when I drizzle it over the top.

Yield: 12-16 scones

Sourdough Cranberry Orange Scones

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The flavor of fresh cranberries and orange in these scones makes them so special. Such a fresh pop added to my master sourdough scone recipe perfect for the holidays. Make these cranberry orange sourdough scones to eat fresh or pop in the freezer for a quick morning treat.

Ingredients

• SCONE BASE RECIPE
• 3 cups organic unbleached all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cane sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 sticks cold butter
• 1/2 cup sourdough starter discard
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1 cup finely chopped cranberries
• Zest of 1 orange
• GLAZE
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1-2 tablespoons cream
• 1-2 tablespoons orange juice
• Zest of 1 orange

Instructions

This is one of those recipes that really benefits from using a food processor. It comes together so quick that way. You can also mix by hand with a pastry cutter, which is what I use for my pie crust. But my preferred method for these scones is to use the food processor.



Mix the Scones:
1. First, add in all the dry ingredients to the food processor. Pulse to mix.
2. Next, add the cold cubed butter to the food processor. Pulse to incorporate.

3. Then, add in the chopped cranberries and orange zest and pulse a time or two.
4. Finally, you will mix the rest of the ingredients in a bowl to incorporate. When mixed together, add to the food processor and blend together. You do not want to mix more than necessary, so stop just as it comes together. It should form a nice ball similar to a sugar cookie recipe. It should not be too sticky or too dry. Add more flour if too sticky or a touch of milk/water if too dry.
5. Remove the dough from the food processor and place on a baking sheet lined with a silpat or parchment paper. Split it into two balls and flatten into circles. Try not to handle the dough too much.



Shape the Sourdough Scones:
1. Once you have the two circles, cut into six or 8 triangles. I like to use my bench scraper for this, but a nice sharp knife does the job too.
2. Then move the pieces around so that they are not touching on the baking sheet. Do not leave in the circle or they will not bake well.



Bake up the Scones
1. Bake the scones in a 400 degree oven for 15 minutes or until the edges are turning golden brown. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool or leave on the baking sheet.
2. To make the glaze, mix up the powered sugar, cream, orange juice and zest until it is a good consistency to drizzle over the scones with a fork. Add a bit more liquid if it is too thick or sugar if it gets too thin.
3. Drizzle the glaze over the scones after they have cooled down a bit. The glaze will harden as it cools down. If the scones are too hot when you apply the glaze, it will soak in.

4. Leave out to cool and harden before storing.

How To Store the Cranberry Orange Sourdough Scones

I think these scones are really best fresh the first day, but they will hold for a couple days in an airtight container and still be really great.

A lot of times I will take half of the baked scones and freeze them right away after they cool down. That way they stay fresh since we cannot usually eat them all right away. 

When I want to eat them, I take them out of the freezer to defrost or put them in a 200 degree oven to warm up slowly so the glaze won’t melt.

Speaking of freezing the scones, they do freeze beautifully. You can bake them first and then freeze, or you can lay out the dough on the baking sheet and flash freeze before they are baked. Then, put in a zip top bag once frozen. Then you can take them out of the freezer and bake as normal from frozen.