Buttery, fluffy and delicious bakery-style cranberry orange scones with a simple orange glaze. These are the most delicious scones, perfect with a cup of coffee or tea anytime of the day! They’re dotted with fresh and dried cranberries, lots of orange zest, and they’re not too sweet.

Plus, you can make the dough the night before and bake in the cranberry scones in the morning. Nothing beats fresh and warm pastries in the morning!

Watch my Cranberry Scones Video Tutorial

Watch my YouTube cranberry scones video tutorial for step-by-step instructions and see how I make these scones. Plus, more tips for recipe success! Want to stay up to date on the latest recipes? Make sure to subscribe to my website email list and my YouTube channel and turn on notifications.

Ingredients for Cranberry Orange Scones

Here are my tips for the main ingredients  you’ll need to make these delicious cranberry orange scones. Find the full list of ingredients in the printable recipe card below.

• Butter: use very cold unsalted butter for this recipe. I cube the butter first, then drop into the freezer for 15 minutes prior to blending it with the flour.
• Cranberries: this recipe uses both fresh and dried cranberries. When the berries are out of season, frozen and thawed ones will also work well.
• Oranges: I love to add lots of orange zest into the scones and into the glaze.
• All-Purpose Flour: regular flour works best for these scones, and you’ll get a fluffy texture.
• Sour Cream: this is what makes the scones extra fluffy! The baking soda will react with the acid in the cream, making the scones light and fluffy. You can also use Greek yogurt.
• Confectioner’s Sugar: for making the simple orange glaze.

Supplies & Tools for the Recipe

Need some supplies or tools to make these delicious scones at home? Shop my Amazon Affiliate links for the items I use in my kitchen. Using these links won’t cost you extra and I’ll earn a small commission.

• CusiniArt Food Processer: super simple and super powerful! This food processor is a fantastic tool to have!
• Pastry Blender: use this simple tool instead of a food processor for cutting the flour and butter together.
• Aluminum Baking Sheets: great for baking scones, cookies, or for roasting vegetables.
• Silicon Baking Mat: a great alternative to parchment paper.
• Flat Bench Scraper/Spatula: I use this for cutting the scones. This tool is also great for cleaning your work surface after working with dough.
• Glass Mixing Bowls: these nesting bowls store easily and they’re great for prep work.

Different Methods for Mixing Flour & Butter

The thing that sets apart scones from cookies it their texture. Scones are buttery, slightly crumbly and fluffy. To achieve this, the butter and the flour are ‘cut’ together – the butter is crumbled into small pieces and coated in flour. There are a few different ways you can do this step.

• Food Processor: this is my go-to method since it’s the quickest and easiest. You’ll simple pulse the cold butter with the dry ingredients for about 1 minute, until a crumbly texture forms.
• Pastry Blender: a pastry blender is another option but will require a little bit of manual work. Make sure to cube the butter first; this will make it easier to work with.
• Cheese Grater: use a medium coarse cheese grater and grate frozen butter into a bowl with the dry ingredients. This method is also very easy!

How to Make Cranberry Orange Scones

Here’s how to make these cranberry orange scones at home!

1. Cube the butter into small pieces, then place into a bowl and into the freezer for 15 minutes while you measure out the rest of the ingredients.
2. Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a food processor. Add the cold butter, then pulse for about 30 seconds to a minute, until a crumbly mixture forms. For alternative methods, check out my post above.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the sour cream, heavy cream, eggs, vanilla extract and orange extract. Whisk everything together for a minute, until the eggs are well beaten. Zest the 2 large oranges, adding the zest into the wet ingredients, then whisk it in.
4. Add approximately half of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, whisk it in. Switch over a spatula and add the remaining flour. Stir and fold just until a thick and stick dough forms. Add in the cranberries and fold them in gently.
5. Line your work surface with several sheets of plastic food wrap and transfer the scone dough onto the plastic. Shape the dough into a flatten disk, then wrap tightly with plastic.

Chilling & Baking Instructions for Scones

The cranberry scone dough needs to be chilled before baking! Chill the dough for at least 1 hour, or overnight if you plan to bake them in the morning.

1. When ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon mat.
2. Remove the scone dough from the refrigerator and unwrap it onto a well-floured work surface. Using a large knife or a bench scraper, split the disk into 8 triangles, cutting it like you would a pie.
3. Transfer the scones onto the prepared baking sheet, spreading them a few inches apart. Bake at 350F for 30 to 35 minutes, until the scones are a rich, golden-brown color. Lift them gently off the baking sheet and onto a wire rack to cool.

Easy Orange Glaze for Topping

While the scones are baking, it’s the perfect time to make some simple orange glaze! For the orange juice, just squeeze the same oranges you used for the orange zest.

For the glaze, combine the powdered sugar, orange juice and orange zest in a mixing bowl. Whisk everything together until a thin glaze forms. Add more orange juice as needed to reach the desired consistency.

Drizzle the glaze over warm scones, then let it set at room temperature. The scones can be enjoyed right away with a cup of coffee or tea.

More Recipes!

Enjoyed this easy cranberry scone recipe? Check out some of my other recipes you’re sure to enjoy!

• Orange Cranberry Bread: the most delicious dessert bread, dotted with tart cranberries, loads of orange zest and simple glaze. Super moist, fluffy and delicious!
• Blueberry Scones: another favorite of mine! The best blueberry scones with fresh and dried blueberries. You can also add lemon zest for a bit of lemon flavoring!
• Keto Cranberry Orange Scones: if you’re on a low-carb or gluten-free diet, check out these low-carb, keto scones! They’re sweetened with erythritol and made with almond flour.
• Cranberry Orange Cake: perfect for the holidays, made with delicate orange cake layers, filled with cranberry sauce and frosting with a creamy cream cheese frosting!

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