Cranberry Sourdough Scones

Cranberry Sourdough Scones Recipe By: Cece Kirkwood This post may contain affiliate links.>

Jump to recipe. | Jump to the tips.

What flavors come to mind when you think of Christmas? For me, Cranberry is top of mind. The bright, tart flavor welcomes you into the holiday season at Thanksgiving and then flies you straight into the most magical time of year. 

And better yet, use that Orange at the bottom of your stocking and put the finishing touches on these Cranberry Sourdough Scones with a deliciously zesty Orange Glaze. 

So cozy up next to the fire, turn the Christmas tunes on and let’s get to baking. 

As with my other scone recipes, while I like to use sourdough to give the scones a subtle tang flavor, you can easily substitute buttermilk for the sourdough in a 1:1 ratio. But if you do want to bake with sourdough and not sure how to get started – I’ve got you covered with my Beginner’s Guide to Sourdough. 

The Process 

*A quick note: the photos below were taken when I baked a double batch of these scones. So the ingredients will look like a bit more than what you really need for one batch. 

Prepare the ingredients

There are a couple steps you’ll want to complete before getting to the scone dough. I find its best to do the prep work upfront, that way you can just focus on creating the dough and not worrying about if you forgot to measure out an ingredient. 

1. First up, cube the cold butter into small pieces and place in the fridge.
2. While the butter stays chilled, pre-measure your ingredients and place them into small bowls.
3. Finally, grab all the equipment needed today: rubber spatula, pastry cutter, fork, whisk, baking tray and parchment paper. 

Prepare, Chill & Bake the Cranberry Sourdough Scones 

Okay, now that everything is prepared, let’s get to the baking! 

Dry Ingredients first…

4. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. 

5. Cut in the cold butter using a pastry cutter or your hands to rub the butter into pea sized pieces in the flour mixture. Place the mixture in the fridge to chill.

Now onto the Wet Ingredients… 

6. Preheat the oven to 350degrees F

7. In a separate bowl, whisk together 100g of sourdough, egg, vanilla extract, cranberries and 2 tbsp of heavy cream. 

Then, combine everything together. 

8. Remove flour mixture from the fridge and create a well in the center of the mixture to add in the sourdough cranberry mixture. 

9. Combine with a fork and your hands, adding more flour or the extra tbsp of heavy cream as needed until you create a soft, rather smooth dough. 

10. Turn onto a floured surface and form the dough together into a circular mound.

11. Using a bench scraper, divide the dough into 8 equal parts. 

12. Don’t skip this step either! Place the cranberry sourdough scones on a parchment lined baking sheet and place sheet in the freezer for 15 – 20 minutes. 

And bake! 

13. Remove scones from the freezer, sprinkle with sugar and place directly into the oven for 20-22 minutes.

14. Remove cranberry sourdough scones from the oven and cool on a rack. Make sure they fully cool to room temperature before placing any glaze on them! 

Glaze & Devour 

15. While the scones cool, whisk the glaze ingredients in a separate bowl. You may need to add a bit more powdered sugar until you reach a nice thick, but still “runny” glaze consistency. 

16. Once cooled, spoon the glaze over each scone and allow 5 minutes for the glaze to set. Then finally, enjoy! 

The Tips 

Can I make these scones without sourdough?

Absolutely, simply swap out the sourdough in a 1:1 ratio with buttermilk. This may make your dough a bit stickier given that buttermilk is a bit more liquidy than sourdough, so just add a bit more flour as you are combining the dough, if needed. 

Do I have to chill the dough before baking?

Yes! Don’t skip this step. The important piece to scones is cold butter! That gives them their flaky, yet moist texture. So you want to make sure the butter and all the other ingredients are nice and chilly before hitting the hot oven. If you skip this step, the scones won’t hold their shape and the texture will be off. So make sure you keep things nice and chilly! 

How active should the sourdough be for this recipe?

For the Cranberry Sourdough Scones, it is important to note that the Sourdough Discard in this recipe is a “fresh” discard, meaning that it is not a discard that has been stored in the fridge and solidified over time – I use a discard that was recently fed.

Can I prep these scones ahead of time?

Definitely! Assemble the dough the night before and shape into the scones and then place into the freezer overnight! The next morning, pop the scones straight from the freezer into the oven and voila! Breakfast is ready.

You can also bake these a few days in advance. They will stay well in an airtight container for 2-3 days or you can tightly wrap the scones, once they are cooled, and store in the freezer for up to a week. The best way to defrost the scones is to leave them on the counter to defrost at room temperature. 

Why is this recipe in grams? 

Baking is a science and in science you want things to be exact and precise. The best way to do this is by weighing out your ingredients using a simple scale. Ever baked a cookie using the same recipe, yet somehow it turns out slightly different each time? That is because when measuring by volume, you can’t be as precise. It is vital that your ingredient ratios are accurate for a reliable bake every time.

The Cranberry Sourdough Scones Recipe

Print