lemon cranberry scones

wow. these were so good even rory ate two. (he's not a fan of cranberries OR lemons) i'm not gonna say how many i ate...for reals..try them. they'd be great with orange zest too, i just had lemons on hand. anyways, perfect saturday morning breakfast or brunch item!


Lemon Cranberry Scones-adapted from The Joy of Cooking (aka food bible)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Whisk together thoroughly in a large bowl:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

drop in:

6 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Cut in the butter with 2 knives or a pastry blender, tossing the pieces with the flour mixture to coat and separate them as you work, until the largest pieces are the size of peas and the rest resemble breadcrumbs. Do not allow the butter to melt or form a paste with the flour.

Stir in:

1/2 cup dried cranberries

Whisk together, then add all at once:

1 cup heavy cream (i used the rest of our half and half)
1 tsp grated lemon zest

Mix with a rubber spatula, wooden spoon, or fork just until the dry ingredients are moistened. Gather the dough into a ball and knead it gently against the side and bottom of the bowl until loose pieces of dough adhere and the bowl is fairly clean. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and pat the dough into an 8-inch round about 3/4 inch thick. Cut into 8 or 12 wedges and place at least 1/2 inch apart on the baking sheet. Brush the tops with 2-3 tsp cream or milk. Sprinkle tops with sugar.

Bake until the tops are golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on a rack or serve warm.