Cranberry Orange Scones

When I traveled to London earlier this year, I participated in a high tea. Of course scones were on the menu with clotted cream. A few weeks ago, I invited some lovely women to my river house for a tea party. It was a time to pause and enjoy friends before the busy holiday season begins. The London experience was so wonderful, I wanted to try to duplicate it for my guests. This is one type of scone I served. In the original recipe, it called for white flour and sugar, but I made some adjustments to make it a bit more nutritive. A nice substitute for those who are trying to minimize their gluten exposure is spelt flour. While not gluten free, it has less of the wheat protein and is easier on the digestive system. I have used both coconut flour and almond flour to make these, but the end product is not as dense. Instead of using white sugar, I used coconut sugar, but xylitol could be used as well. I’m planning to have these on hand for my guests this Thanksgiving and perhaps even Christmas. Fresh cranberries are available, so why not incorporate them into this season of cooking?

Cranberry Orange Scones

Ingredients:

• 2 cups spelt flour

• 2 1/2 tsp. baking powder

• 1/2 tsp. pink salt

• zest from 1 orange

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, frozen

• 1/2 cup heavy cream

• 1 large egg

• 1/2 cup coconut sugar

• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

• 1 heaping cup of fresh cranberries

Directions:

1. Whisk flour baking powder, salt and orange zest together in a large bowl. Grate the frozen butter using a box grater or food processor. Add it to the flour mixture and combine with a pastry blender or two forks, until mixture comes together in crumbs the size of peas. Place the mixture in the refrigerator as you mix the wet ingredients.

2. Whisk 1/2 cup heavy cream, the egg, coconut sugar, and vanilla extract together in a small bowl. Drizzle over the flour mixture, add cranberries, combine until moistened.

3. Pour onto a floured surface working with hands to make a soft dough. Dough should be slightly sticky. Press into a, 8-inch disc and using a sharp knife, cut into 8 wedges.

4. Place scones on a parchment paper or silicone baking mat and place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

5. Arrange the cold scones with parchment paper on a baking sheet. Arrange scones 2-3 inches apart.

6. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown around the edges and lightly brown on top.

My high tea at the Goring, in London. Notice the scones on my plate! Oh my!