Curious Parents Family Health Resources

food bites

A Recipe for CRANBERRY SCONES
It’s as Easy as Pie!
By Angela Capelli

The holiday season is quickly approaching, and I can’t think of a  better recipe to share with you than this versatile and comforting cranberry scone recipe. I have tried many recipes for scones over the years and this one is the best because it is tender, flaky and not too sweet. My family loves these scones, and there is nothing better than waking up to the smell of warm scones on a chilly fall morning. I make these all year long, since cranberries freeze very well and because it’s easy to substitute other ingredients for the cranberries. 

Cranberries have long since been a favorite of mine beginning with all of the cranberry juice my college roomate and I would keep stocked in our dorm room fridge. Cranberry juice and chocolate chip cookies were often a substitute for breakfast on busy college mornings. Our mutual love of food is what brought us together and 25 years later food continues to be the center of many of our conversations. I promise to share that chocolate chip cookie recipe with you in a future issue, but for today it’s all about the cranberries. Adding some dried cranberries to your favorite cookie recipe isn’t a bad idea either.

Cranberries are full of antioxidants, can cut bad cholesterol and fight infections.

CRANBERRY SCONES

Scones can be frozen unbaked. Make the dough, cut in wedges, wrap airtight and freeze up to one month. Then bake without thawing–just add an extra minute or two to the baking time. I like to add some orange zest to the dough as I add in the buttermilk and then drizzle baked scones with glaze made with powdered sugar and orange juice. Mini chocolate chips, raisins, currants or dried cranberries can all be substituted for the fresh cranberries.

1. 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2. 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

3. 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

4. 3/4 cup cold butter, cut in small pieces

5. 1 cup coarsely chopped cranberries

6. 2/3 cup granulated sugar

7. 3/4 cup buttermilk

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Have an ungreased large cookie sheet ready. Mix flour, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl. Cut in cold butter with pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs, food processor well also. Stir in cranberries and sugar, then buttermilk just, until blended. Cut dough in half. On lightly floured surface with lightly floured fingertips press dough into an 8-inch circle about 1/2 inch thick. Cut into eight wedges. Place wedges 1/2 inch apart on cookie sheet. Sprinkle with granulated sugar and bake 12 to 15 minutes until puffed and lightly brown. Remove to rack. Repeat with remaining dough.

E-mail Angela Capelli at foodbites@curiousparents.com  with any questions, comments, suggestions or baking tips that you may have.