O is for Oranges: Orange Cranberry Scones (Jessica)

Hey there!

When I got oranges as my secret ingredient, I was really excited. There are SO many things to make with oranges. I poked around on the internet for a while, and decided on a scone recipe. I had made scones once before, many years ago, and they were...good ok. So I thought I'd try a new recipe and hope for an improvement! I also decided to add white chocolate chips to the recipe I found. I guess I'm finally getting creative :)


Orange Cranberry Scones
makes 16 mini scones
from spoonforkbacon.com

Ingredients: 
2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into small cubes
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 1/2 tablespoon orange zest
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons fresh squeezed orange juice
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup white chocolate chips (optional, but delicious)


Directions: 
1. Preheat oven to 365 degrees
2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

3. Cut the cold cubes of butter into the flour mixture until the butter is completely incorporated and the mixture has obtained a fine, mealy texture.

4. Add the cranberries and orange zest and gently mix together.

5. Fold in the buttermilk and orange juice and mix together until just combined and the mixture has formed into dough. Add the white chocolate chips.

6. Form the dough into 2 6-inch discs, about 1 inch thick.

7. Cut the discs into 8 wedges and place the scones onto a parchment lined baking sheet.
8. Brush the top of each scone with a small amount of cream and bake for about 20 -25 minutes or until the scones puff up and the tops just start to brown.
9. Serve warm with a side of jam, honey, and butter!

Review:
Well...this recipe got mixed reviews. Some people at my office really liked it a lot. Enough to request it again! But I still think there are better scone recipes out there. I'm not ready to give up my search and settle on this one. I think it was a little odd. Something about the texture and the dryness, I couldn't quite figure it out. The white chocolate chips were definitely the best part. Seems like the scone search continues...!

-Jessica


PS. Jennifer's secret ingredient next week is: PASTA!