Cranberry Scones

Well, here goes. My first blog post. I thought I would start with my cranberry scones. Is there anything better than waking up in the morning to the smell of hot coffee and freshly baked scones? I love all things bread-y and doughy and these scones fit the bill. They’re warm, comforting, easy to make, and my kids love them.

This is a very forgiving recipe. You can substitute plain yogurt, sour cream, whipping cream, half-and-half, or buttermilk for the liquid (milk) in the recipe. It all works. If you want to, you could also switch the dried cranberries for raisins, dried blueberries, or some other dried fruit.

The secret to making nice, tender scones is to work quickly and handle the dough as little as possible. The more you knead the dough, the tougher your scones will turn out, so don’t over work it and your scones will be just fine.

CRANBERRY SCONES

• 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp. orange zest (optional)
• 2-1/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup cold margarine or butter
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Combine flour, sugar, orange zest (if using), baking powder, baking soda and salt.
2. Cut in margarine with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse crumbs; then stir in dried cranberries.
3. Combine milk and vanilla and stir into flour mixture.
4. Gather dough together and turn out onto floured work surface.
5. Cut in half and form into two balls.
6. Pat each ball into a flat disk, at least half an inch thick.
7. Cut each disk into 6 wedges.
8. Place each wedge on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
9. Bake at 400° for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned.

NOTE:  I usually omit the orange zest because I’m too lazy to zest an orange. This recipe turns out fine without it. Otherwise, Trader Joe’s sells orange-flavored cranberries that work great in this recipe. You can omit the orange zest and use the Trader Joe’s cranberries instead, if you prefer.

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