Cranberry Scones Recipe
Cranberry Scones: deliciously soft on the inside, crispy on the outside, buttery, flaky and so perfect in every way. These scones will fulfill your breakfast or afternoon tea with your friends.
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Scones are one of the easiest, quick breads to throw together, as long as you don’t overmix the dough. Overmixing creates dry scones and definitely not flaky.
Scones are so easy and take so little time to make. They taste as good as fresh the next day as well. Wrap them in a plastic food wrap, keep them at room temperature. Next day, microwave for 20-30 seconds and enjoy. Why go to a coffee place in the morning and pay $5 for a scone when you can get fresh, warm 8 scones for the price of one?
I would bake these the night before and my husband loves to grab few of these on his way to work. I could make him a batch of very fresh early morning, but who would want to wake up at 5 am to do some baking? Definitely not me!
Our 2 kiddos keep me entertained throughout the day and I really need my sleep if I want to keep up with their entertainment the next day. They’re both so full of energy, sometimes it’s impossible to cook and catch up with their energy at the same time 😀
What Makes Scones so Flaky
When making scones, it’s important to keep all the dairy ingredients cold. The eggs, sour cream and butter. Cold dairy ingredients will make the scones flaky, moist and melt-in-your mouth. You don’t need food processor to make the dough, all you need is your hands, grater, fork and pastry scraper. I keep running across recipes where they tell you to food process the scone dough, but I think it’s time consuming and you’ll only get another appliance to wash. I like to make it as easy as possible for me and for you! 🙂
Cranberry Scones Ingredients:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar + 1 tsp for dusting (or sparkling sugar)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick) refrigerated
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
How to Make Cranberry Scones:
1. Preheat the oven to a 400°F. Line a parchment paper with a baking sheet. In a medium bowl, sift, combine and whisk: 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp baking soda and 1/4 tsp fine salt. Grate 1 stick refrigerated unsalted butter into the flour on the large holes of grater. Work in the butter with fork until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in 1/2 cup dried cranberries.
2. In a separate mixing bowl or liquid measuring cup, combine and whisk 1 egg and 1/2 cup sour cream until smooth. Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and stir with a fork until the dough starts to come together.
3. Using your hand, continue by pressing the dough against the bowl into a ball. It would seem as there’s not enough liquid in dough and you’ll see lose flour, but as you press, the dough will come together. (Do not overwork the dough!) Transfer the dough onto a lightly floured surface and pat into a 7-8” circle about 3/4“ thick. Sprinkle with 1 tsp of granulated or sparkling sugar. Using a pastry scraper, cut dough into 8 triangles.
4. With help of pastry scraper, carefully transfer scones onto prepared baking sheet, 1-2” apart. Bake for 13-15 minutes until golden (I did 13). Transfer onto a cooling rack and serve warm and fresh with a cup of coffee or tea. Enjoy!!
If you make this recipe, share your creations with the rest of us. Hashtag your photos #olgainthekitchen or by clicking on social icons on top of this page.
More Scone Recipes to Explore:
- Pumpkin Scones – truly taste the fall season
- Raspberry Scones – these are elegant and eye-catching
Cranberry Scones
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar + 1 tsp for dusting
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (or 1 stick) refrigerated
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to a 400°F. Line a parchment paper with baking sheet and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, sift, combine and whisk: 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp baking soda and 1/4 tsp fine salt. Grate 1 stick refrigerated unsalted butter into the flour on the large holes of grater. Work in the butter with fork until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in 1/2 cup dried cranberries.
- In a separate mixing bowl or liquid measuring cup, combine and whisk 1 egg and 1/2 cup sour cream until smooth. Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and stir with a fork until the dough starts to come together.
- Using your hand, continue by pressing the dough against the bowl into a ball. It would seem as there’s not enough liquid in dough and you’ll see lose flour, but as you press, the dough will come together. (Do not overwork the dough!) Transfer the dough onto a lightly floured surface and pat into a 7-8” circle about 3/4“ thick. Sprinkle with 1 tsp of granulated or sparkling sugar. Using a pastry scraper, cut dough into 8 triangles.
- With help of pastry scraper, carefully transfer scones onto prepared baking sheet, 1-2” apart. Bake for 13-15 minutes until golden (I did 13). Transfer onto a cooling rack and serve warm and fresh with a cup of coffee or tea. Enjoy!!
Beth says:
Oh my! This is it. This recipe right here made my husband like scones! I’m never going back to my old recipes. Your tips made ALL the difference. Thank you so much.
Dr. Frank M Wilson says:
Made the recipe exactly as written except used a 6 ounce package of dried cranberries . They were excellent! Thank you
Linda says:
Hi Olga this has been the best scones recipe i’ve ever tried, however i’m on health restrictions so can i substitute AP flour with almond flour, sour cream with non dairy sour cream, and sugar for monk fruit sugar
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Hi Linda! Without experimenting myself, I wouldn’t know how much the changes would affect the outcome of the scones. I would think if you replace all-purpose flour for almond flour, the scones could spread more instead of rising to the top. Non dairy sour cream shouldn’t be an issue. If you decide to experiment, please do share with us. Thanks
gregory ota says:
I will use this recipe again! I’m someone who appreciates a crusty crunchy exterior with a soft inside, good balance of sweetness.
Olga in the Kitchen says:
That’s wonderful! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this scones recipe!
Ruth says:
Our go-to scone recipe. We use this exact scone recipe and just switch out the berries or for fresh berries whenever we feel like it. The best scone recipe I have ever tasted!
Olga in the Kitchen says:
That’s sounds amazing, Ruth! I’m so glad you found a favorite on my blog :).
Nilla says:
These are super! Made them twice over the past week and each time they were gone in seconds. So far, the best scone recipe I have ever tasted.
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Aww thanks Nilla, I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe 🙂
Karen says:
Can you use fresh cranberries?
Olga in the Kitchen says:
I personally have not tested this recipe using fresh cranberries, but readers shared success stories with fresh berries.
María A. Gonzalez says:
Hi Olga, These cranberry scones look delicious!
Question: I already have salted butter in the refrigerator. I’d like to use it for these scones. Should I just skip the 1/4 tsp of salt from the recipe since the butter is already salted? What do you recommend?
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Hi, I’ve never used salted butter in scones, but I would probably recommend skipping the salt and maybe increasing the sugar a notch, maybe 1/3 cup.
Nadezhda says:
This is the very best scone recipe I have ever tried. It always turns out just perfect and works great with other dried and fresh berries. This recipe is absolute the keeper!!
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Thank you Nadezhda, I’m glad you like these so much 🙂
James Malone says:
Love the recipe and the instructions. I had tried making scones in the past, but it just didn’t seem to come out right. Now, I’ve made them with cranberries and also with a cup of frozen blueberries.
Only thing I’ve changed is adding 3tsp baking powder and baking about 20 minutes. Love the ability to make a perfect scone!
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Thanks James! Adding blueberries sounds really delicious. Thank you for tips. Glad you liked it 🙂
Jennifer says:
I made your recipe 3 times last week lol and this week once already. I think this is the best scone recipe I’ve ever tasted. It’s so delicious with a cup of coffee early in the morning. My kids love them too. I did cranberries and blueberries and even cherries for the dried fruit. I can’t wait for your pumpkin recipe. I saw your Instagram post with pumpkin scones and I think I’m getting addicted to the scones lol Thank you for such good recipes! You’re the best!
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Thanks Jennifer! 🙂 There was a week I made these every day (5 times). Sometimes it feels like I can’t start my morning until I have a fresh, warm scone! 😀