Monday, March 1, 2021

MONDAY RECIPE POST - CRANBERRY ORANGE SCONES

An old recipe I wanted to make again recently when our son came over for a visit.  One of those recipes I can't remember where it came from, so there is no link today.


Cranberry Orange Scones

I originally made this recipe as part of an afternoon tea I put together when the weather was warmer.
I put it together when we had company pre-pandemic, and also fixed tea sandwiches (with all the crusts cut off), wheat and white, cutting down the middle diagonally once filled.  

I always do a variety of fillings which include very thin slices of cucumber, thin slices of ham, both lightly spread with butter, and chicken and egg salad spread lightly with mayonnaise.  Shaved smoked salmon with capers are often used but although fresh wild salmon is a favorite of mine, I am not a fan of smoked. I also usually make a couple of cookie recipes but this day I only made the scones to be eaten after the sandwiches.  Spreading clotted cream and strawberry jam between them is the piece de resistance!  There is a website I enjoyed reading about Scone etiquette here as told from an Australian point of view.  What goes on first?  Clotted Cream or Jam?  Where I came from it depended if you lived in Devon or Cornwall, and both counties had their own way of doing things.  

This link will take you to a food blog where they make tea sandwiches.

And we mustn't forget a large pot of tea.  My favorite tea at the moment is Yorkshire Gold served with a splash of milk.  I stopped using sugar for hot drinks in my teens, but remember PG Tips and Typhoo being in my childhood home.  My sister's favorite was Assam tea I remember her telling me once.

In the days when British tea was hard to come by here, every time my parents visited they literally packed a suitcase to overflowing with their favorite brew.  This practice caused a few raised eyebrows among my neighbors, but when they tried their first cup of my parent's tea, they told me they would be packing their suitcase too.  By the time they left several weeks later it was all gone, and that empty suitcase was used for taking back gifts and souvenirs.  Now I can buy British tea just about everywhere, and enjoy a cup or two, or three.

Traditionally I make scones with raisins but I found this delicious recipe for Cranberry Orange Scones, and was eager to try something different. 
Cranberry Orange Scones
Makes 8 scones

1-1/2 sticks of cold butter
1-2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 orange, zested and juiced
2 eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Combine chopped cold butter, flour, sugar, orange zest, baking powder and salt in either a stand or hand-held mixer, until the mixture forms into small, pea-sized clumps.

In a separate bowl, combine eggs, heavy cream and dried cranberries.

Slowly pour the liquids in as the mixer continues to run, and make sure your fingers are clear.  Yes I am overly cautious but you know, I have done silly things in the past and have never forgotten.  Once all ingredients are incorporated, turn the mixer off and scoop the dough onto a floured surface.

Knead the dough just enough to bring it together and create one smooth surface (without seams or folds if possible, it isn't always).


Dust the top lightly with flour and roll the dough out to about 1-1/4 inch thickness.  Cut using a round plain or fluted cutter that has been dipped in flour.  Dipping the cutter into the flour will help between each cut.  Just press down hard and give a slight twist.

Place scones on a parchment-lined sheet pan and bake for 15-18 minutes.  (I did not have any parchment paper so I lined my sheet with non-stick aluminum foil.  This worked out really well.  My scones also baked in the 18 minute range but it will all depend on your own oven.)

While the scones are baking go ahead and prepare the glaze.  For this you will need:

1-1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 cup fresh orange juice (my two oranges produced the 1/2 cup of juice but I suppose it will all depend on how large or how much juice there is in them.  Mine were medium size)

Mix the ingredients until it makes a smooth, pourable glaze.

Leave the scones to cool slightly before drizzling with the glaze.
And there you go, one very delicious scone.  Son really enjoyed his and when I made them originally I was asked for the recipe.  They are pretty rich, especially with the Devon Clotted Cream......
and strawberry jam.  This is the type of cream I have always used, my mother before me.  I can get it at our local supermarket in the section where they also sell imported cheese.  If you can't find clotted cream this website has a recipe.  

I hope you have enjoyed the look of today's recipe.  Thanks for stopping by and have a great week.
Bon Appetit!


42 comments:

  1. Looks so good! I have always wished that we sell as many different kinds of cream as the English did. And I don't know why we don't.

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    1. Thanks Ginny :) I am very happy I can get the clotted cream here now, especially as it is a rare occasion I buy it. It is just way too good :)

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  2. Cranberry and Orange would be delicious. Yum - and thank you.

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  3. I was getting ready for a bath and bed and looked in on your blog. Now you’ve got my mouth watering.

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  4. Scones with oranges ... great.
    Thank you very much, I've copied the recipe and now I'm going to the kitchen and bake the scones for our three o'clock coffee :-))
    Greetings to you from Viola

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    1. Hello Viola, welcome to my blog :) So glad you enjoyed this recipe and I hope you enjoy.

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  5. The scones look delicious. You mentioned PG Tips tea. I buy that tea brand occasionally from Walmart.

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  6. They look amazing! I wish I had one for breakfast this morning - yum!

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    1. Thanks Martha, we just had one now, the last for a while. Really enjoyed them :)

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  7. your scones look marvelous - I want to take a bite!

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    1. Hi Carol, I wish I could give you one :) Thank you!

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  8. I love cranberry/orange muffins, so I KNOW I would love these!

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    1. Those sound good too Anni. I will have to look that recipe up :)

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  9. Sounds like a great recipe. The pictures make me drool.

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  10. I made scones for the first time over the holidays, but these looked so good that I will have to try this recipe Denise. The recipe I used did not call for using a biscuit cutter, but cutting the dough in triangular shapes instead. I will check our local grocery store for clotted creme on our next outing (if I remember).

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    1. Thank you Dorothy, I have made them that way also but this is the way I remember them growing up with the cutter :)

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  11. They do look good. I do not often make scones, maybe this will encourage me. The problem here is buying heavy cream, it does not exist!! Stay safe Diane

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  12. I'd love to sink my teeth into one of those delicious looking scones! Happy Monday and Happy March to you!

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    1. Happy you like the look of these Ellen and I wish you the same :)

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  13. My goodness your scones look wonderful, Denise! Your afternoon tea sounds delightful. I also enjoyed hearing about your parents bringing a suitcase full of British tea--so smart of them. I don't blame them one bit!

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    1. Thank you Martha Ellen, at a time when they were not coffee drinkers. Because I fell in love with coffee when I first moved here :)

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  14. Your scones look amazing, will have to try and thanks for the link to the tea sandwiches!

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    1. Thank you Christine and you are very welcome :)

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  15. These sounds simply delicious....

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  16. Looks soooo good. I would love the whole tea that you served pre-pandemic. I might look to see if I can find clotted cream here, but I am a little afraid to find it, as I would be tempted to eat the whole jar immediately. People laughed at me when I told them clotted cream was one of the top experiences of our visit to London. ....(I wasn’t exaggerating too much.)

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    1. I wish I could offer you one of those Sallie :) I would love to put an afternoon tea together for you. As my dear old mum would say, a little bit of what you fancy does you good and I say, thank goodness those jars of clotted cream are so small, ha!

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    1. Thank you Jan and all the best to you too :)

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  18. Replies
    1. Obrigada! Peço desculpas pela minha resposta muito tardia. A receita do bolinho apareceu na minha barra lateral e li todos os comentários novamente. Fico feliz que tenha gostado da minha receita :)

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