Orange Cranberry Scones (With gluten-free instructions)

If you like a fun breakfast, then this orange cranberry scones recipe is for you. The cheeriness of orange flavor studded with sweet-tart dried cranberries, and a delightful citrus glaze are the perfect way to wake up in the morning! All you need to go with them, is a hot cup of coffee.

I started making scones for my kids years ago when I realized that the simple act of adding fruit to biscuit dough made them feel like they were having a special breakfast without any added sugar. 

At the time, we were all eating gluten-free for the benefit of my husband who has celiac disease, which you’ll see reflected in our gluten-free blueberry scones recipe.

Since then, the kids and I have switched back to mostly using wheat as some of us respond as poorly to some of the gluten-free ingredients (guar and xanthin gum particularly) as he does to wheat. 

I will admit that move to making wheat for us, and gluten-free for him has complicated my life a little bit – now I have two batches of nearly everything to make. 

And because of it, I find myself developing recipes that work well with both gluten-free and traditional flours to minimize what I have to think about when baking. 

This is one of those recipes where you can swap between a good gluten-free flour mix, and wheat flour with just a few tweaks. 

I love making scones based on what fruit is in season. I think we’re pretty much at the end of citrus season (is there a clear season? I’ve read conflicting information.), so we’re enjoying orange cranberry scones for now before moving on to gluten-free strawberry scones as soon as strawberries come back in season (soon!). 

Orange Cranberry Scones 

• Scone dough is very similar to biscuit dough, but the finished product is somewhat heavier, and without the flakiness you expect in biscuits. that’s part of the reason that while I wouldn’t recommend using a gluten-free baking powder biscuits recipe for regular wheat biscuits, but scones recipes are fairly interchangeable. (you can read more about the characteristics of scones on this Wikipedia article).
• This is a great dough to make ahead. Wrap it in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight before rolling out and baking for a quick breakfast treat in the morning. 
• Chopped fresh cranberries can be substituted for the dried cranberries. One of my favorite things is to stock up on and freeze fresh cranberries during the holiday season so I can use them in recipes like cranberry kuchen, and add them to our favorite Brussels sprouts side dish throughout the year. In this recipe, the dried cranberries make for a nice sweet flavor, but fresh cranberries, make for juicy pockets of tartness that are to die for. 
• When making scones, I like to shortcut the process, by using my food processor to cut in the butter. If you don’t have a food processor, use a pastry cutter, fork, or spatula, to cut it in. The result is essentially the same, it will just take longer. 

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