Description
Homemade cranberry vanilla bean scones are bursting with cranberry and vanilla flavors, a hint of orange, and are perfectly tender on the inside with a delightfully crunchy exterior! Drizzle with your choice of icing for added sweetness. No mixer required!
Ingredients
Scones
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Large pinch of salt
- Pinch of ground ginger
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, frozen and grated
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon cold heavy cream, buttermilk or coconut milk, divided
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla bean paste (aff link)
- 1 cup Decas Farms Fresh Cranberries, frozen
- 1 /2 cup Decas Farms Cranberry-Orange Baker’s Cut Baking Cranberries
- Coarse sugar, optional
Icing options:
Vanilla icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
- 2–3 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla bean paste (aff link) or pure vanilla extract
Orange icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
- 2–3 Tablespoons orange juice (no pulp)
Instructions
Scones
- In a large bowl, whisk to combine flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
- Add grated butter and combine with a pastry cutter (aff link) until the mixture forms small crumbs. Place bowl in the fridge.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk to combine egg, 1/2 cup heavy cream, and vanilla.
- Remove the bowl from the fridge, pour in the cream mixture, add both frozen and dried cranberries, and stir until everything is just combined.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and gently knead the dough into a ball – it will be sticky, but if you find it to be too sticky to work with, add a little more flour.
- Form the dough into a 7-8″ disc and then cut into 8 equal sized wedges. If you prefer smaller scones, form two 4-5″ discs and cut each into 8 equal sized wedges.
- Place scones on a baking sheet prepared with a nonstick silicon mat (aff link) or parchment paper and place in the fridge or freezer for 15 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 400°F and line a separate baking sheet with a nonstick silicon mat or parchment paper. Transfer chilled scones to this baking sheet, placing them 2″ apart. Brush the remaining 1 tablespoon cream across the tops of each scone, and add a sprinkling of coarse sugar (if desired).
- Bake for 20-25 minutes for large scones (15-20 for small scones) or until scones are golden brown around the edges.
- Let cool on baking sheet for 5-10 minutes, or move to wire rack (aff link).
Icing
- In a small bowl, combine all icing ingredients and whisk until completely combined and smooth. If the mixture is too thick to drizzle, add a little more milk or cream and whisk again to combine until you’ve reached desired consistency.
- Use your whisk to drizzle icing on top of each scone and let it set. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Storage: Keep them in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days, or in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Freezing: I recommend freezing the scones before you’ve baked them. Follow the directions above up to step #7, then place the baking sheet in the freezer for 1 hour. Transfer them to a freezer bag in a single layer and they can be stored for up to 3 months. When ready to bake, follow the rest of the directions above and just add a few minutes to the baking time.
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: cranberry vanilla bean scones, cranberry scones, homemade scones, simple scones
