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Cranberry Orange Poppyseed Scones

Source: Taste of Home

Ingredients

  • 2 c. all-purpose unbleached white flour
  • 1/2 c. white sugar
  • 1/2 c. quick-cooking oats
  • 1 Tbls. poppy seeds
  • 2 t. baking powder
  • 1/2 t. salt
  • 1/4 t. baking soda
  • 1/3 c. cold butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 c. fresh orange juice (zest first and set aside) - see note below
  • 3 Tbls. low-fat buttermilk
  • 1/2 c. dried cranberries
  • zest from an orange (about 1 tablespoon)

Instructions

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, oats, poppy seeds, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

In a small bowl, whisk the egg, orange juice and buttermilk; add to crumb mixture and stir just until moistened. Stir in cranberries and orange peel.

If dough is too sticky, add a little more flour. Cover bowl and refrigerate a few hours or over night until dough is firm. It is easier to work with the dough to shape scones. See note below.

Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; gently knead 6-8 times. Pat the dough into a 9-inch circle. Cut into eight wedges; separate wedges. Carefully place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Or, if you have a scones pan, spray each section lightly with nonstick cooking spray and place each wedge in a section; pat dough to fill accordingly. Brush each wedge with a little milk (use a pastry brush) before baking.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes in or on pan; then remove each wedge and place on wire rack to cool.

Glaze with a powdered sugar glaze if desired.

Powdered Sugar Glaze: 2/3 to 3/4 c. powdered sugar, 1/4 t. vanilla (only if using water) OR use fresh orange juice instead of water (do not need vanilla), and mix to desired consistency. Drizzle glaze over each scones after they have cooled a bit.

NOTE: This recipe was highly rated on the Taste of Home website. The dough is quite sticky, so I added a little more flour and refrigerating dough for several hours or over night made it easy to shape the scones.

You can use purchased orange juice instead of fresh, but you will need the orange zest to bring out the orange flavor.