Homemade and healthier version of the beloved Starbucks cranberry orange scone.
These scones are flaky and tender with a pronounced orange flavor, making them a perfect breakfast pairing to your Starbucks coffee.
INGREDIENTS TO MAKE ORANGE CRANBERRY SCONES:
Flour: Regular all-purpose flour.
Butter: I can’t stress enough how important it is to use good-quality butter. This recipe has only a handful of ingredients, and the butter is definetely one you don’t want to go cheap about it. You can find high-quality brands easily at local grocery stores like Lurpak and Plugra.
Cranberries: I’m using dried cranberries I have leftover from my biscotti recipe, but frozen or fresh cranberries will work, also.
Sugar: Granulated sugar for the dough and powdered sugar for the glaze.
Orange: Freshly grated orange zest helps brighten up and balance out the rich scones dough. Use the orange juice to make a glaze so nothing is wasted. I use my secret ingredient, a few drops of natural orange extract, to bring this recipe to the next level.
Milk: Whole milk adds richness to the dough, making the scones nice and moist
Sour cream: Sour cream is one of the fattiest dairies we can use in baking and will make richer and tender scones while adding a subtle tangy flavor. It can be substituted for heavy cream.
Baking powder & Baking soda: Every baking recipe that contains any acidic ingredients, like cranberries and sour cream in this case, needs a combination of baking powder and baking soda to guarantee the perfect leavening and a proper ph balance. To know more about the science behind it, I’ll leave you the link for an article from bon appetit. https://www.bonappetit.com/story/baking-powder-vs-baking-soda-difference
THE SECRETS TO MAKING THE BEST FLAKIEST SCONES:
Today I will show you the secrets to going from a sad and dense Starbucks scone to a flaky, moist, and super-rich high-end bakery scone.
I didn’t grow up eating scones in Italy; in fact, I had never even seen or heard about them before moving to NYC to work as a chef. I was lucky, though, to work in many well-known restaurants and bakeries during the last few years. I tried and experimented with various recipes, analyzing what differentiates a mediocre scone from a great one.
In the following steps, we’ll break down the scone recipe I came up with after many trials and errors, and I hope it clarifies your doubts and help you make the perfect scone!
Cold ingredients:
The first trick is to use cold ingredients to avoid melting the butter while mixing. I usually weigh the wet and dry ingredients in two separate containers and place them in the fridge for at least an hour before baking. I also use frozen butter.
Quickly mix the dough without using your hands:
After adding the grated butter to the dry ingredients, I mix them with a bench scraper. Avoid using your hands as much as possible not to melt the butter.
Don’t overmix:
When the butter is incorporated, add cold and wet ingredients and mix the dough enough until it comes together. Overmixing the dough leads to excess gluten development and gives a dense scone.
Folding the dough to create layers:
To make flakey scones, we have to roll the dough on a floured surface, add the cranberries and fold the dough into thirds like a letter. This extra step avoids a cookie-like consistency and gives a light, flakey scone.
Chill the dough before baking:
Place scone wedges into the fridge for at least 1 hour before baking. This simple tricks prevent the butter from melting too quickly in the oven and guarantee that the scones are nice and tall.
Bake them fresh before serving:
You might plan to serve scones for the family Sunday brunch and make them the night before to avoid a headache. This idea initially sounds like a good pastry chef move, but it will result in a disaster the following day. If you do this and when you try the scones, they will be dry as hell! Scones are amazing, but unfortunately, they don’t keep so well after baked and are better served RIGHT out of the oven. Instead, you can make the dough, shape it, and keep it in the fridge or freezer until needed.
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS:
STEP 1:
Grate a frozen stick of butter into a small bowl using the large grater surface of a box grater and put it back in the freezer.
STEP 2: Mixing the dry ingredients
Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, kosher salt, sugar, and orange zest in a large mixing bowl, and whisk to combine.
STEP 3:
Grab the cold butter from the freezer and add it to the flour mixture. Mix it using a pastry cutter until the butter is well coated in flour and resembles coarse crumbs.
STEP 4:
Add whole milk, sour cream, and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Move the dough into a floured surface and roll it into a 12-inch square. Fold the dough into thirds like a letter; if sticking, use the bench scraper to release it from the table. Cover with plastic wrap and place it in the freezer for 10 minutes.
STEP 5:
Transfer the scones batter to a lightly floured surface and roll it out again into a 12-inch square using a rolling pin. Sprinkle the cranberries on top and press down to make them adhere to the dough.
STEP 6:
Roll the dough into an 8-inch circle. Cut the circle into eight equal wedges using a sharp knife or pizza cutter.
Move the triangles into a baking tray lined with parchment paper, cover them with plastic, and place them in the fridge for an hour.
STEP 7:
Take the scones from the fridge, brush them with melted butter, and sprinkle them with granulated sugar. Bake at 425° in a preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until the top and bottom are golden browns.
STEP 8:
Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for five minutes before serving.
STEP 9:
Make a sweet orange glaze by mixing orange juice, powdered sugar, and orange zest. Whisk until well combined and drizzle on top of the scones. Enjoy with your favorite cup of coffee or chai tea.
FLAVOR VARIATIONS:
This recipe can be used as a base for various flavor combinations like chocolate chip scones, blueberry lemon, or even savory cheddar and chives.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:
Cranberry & orange scones( Starbucks copycat )
Equipment
- weigh scale
- stand mixer
- bench scraper
- oven
- Rolling Pin
- baking tray
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 250 g all-purpose flour
- 140 g unsalted butter
- 115 g whole milk
- 120 g sour cream
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 125 g dried or frozen cranberries
- 1 orange zest
- 1/2 tsp orange extract (optional)
- pinch of salt
For the glaze:
- 120 g powdered sugar
- 30 g orange juice
- 1 orange zest
Instructions
- Grate a frozen stick of butter into a small bowl using the large grater surface of a box grater and put it back in the freezer.
- Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, kosher salt, sugar, and orange zest in a large mixing bowl, and whisk to combine.
- Grab the cold butter from the freezer and add it to the flour mixture. Mix it using a pastry cutter until the butter is well coated in flour and resembles coarse crumbs.
- Add whole milk, sour cream, and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Move the dough into a floured surface and roll it into a 12-inch square. Fold the dough into thirds like a letter; if sticking, use the bench scraper to release it from the table. Cover with plastic wrap and place it in the freezer for 10 minutes.
- Transfer the scones batter to a lightly floured surface and roll it out again into a 12-inch square using a rolling pin. Sprinkle the cranberries on top and press down to make them adhere to the dough.
- Roll the dough into an 8-inch circle. Cut the circle into eight equal wedges using a sharp knife or pizza cutter.
- Move the triangles into a baking tray lined with parchment paper, cover them with plastic, and place them in the fridge for an hour.
- Take the scones from the fridge, brush them with melted butter, sprinkle them with granulated sugar, and bake at 425° in a preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until the top and bottom are golden brown.
- Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for five minutes before serving.
- Make a sweet orange glaze by mixing orange juice, powdered sugar, and orange zest. Whisk until well combined and drizzle on top of the scones. Enjoy with your favorite cup of coffee or chai tea.
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