My hubby absolutely adores scones. For me they are usually a little boring so i love to spice them up a bit. And with Christmas around the corner I was inspired by the flavours and colours or the season and these delicious tea time treats were the result. Spiced rum soaked Cranberry & Pistachio Scones drizzled with white chocolate. Yum!
The alcohol is totally optional and these freeze well too so great to make in advance
Cranberry & Pistachio Scones
My hubby absolutely adores scones. For me they are usually a little boring so i love to spice them up a bit. And with Christmas around the corner I was inspired by the flavours and colours or the season and these delicious tea time treats were the result. Spiced rum soaked Cranberry & Pistachio Scones drizzled with white chocolate. Yum! The alcohol is totally optional and these freeze well too so great to make in advance
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Ingredients
- ⅔ Cup Unsalted Butter (85g) Very cold
- ⅓ Cup Dried Cranberries
- 2 Tbsp Spiced/Dark Rum, Whiskey or Bourbon* Optional, see notes below
- ¾ Cup Milk (180ml)
- 1 tsp Lemon Juice
- 1¾ Cups All-Purpose/Cake Flour
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 3 Tbsp Castor Sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract Optional
- Zest of approx. 1 Lemon Around 2 Tablespoons of zest
- ¼ Cup Pistachios (unsalted, shelled) Roughly chopped
- 40 grams White chocolate, melted, to drizzle over the top after baking Optional
Instructions
- Measure out the butter and place in the freezer to chill
- Add the dried cranberries to a bowl and pour over the rum, then set aside for at least 15 minutes or longer to plump up and re-hydrate*
- Measure out the milk and add the lemon juice and let stand for around 5 minutes. This will create buttermilk
- Preheat the oven to 220°C. Line a large baking sheet/tray with baking paper and set aside
- Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into a large bowl or add it and give it a stir with a whisk to ensure there are no lumps and to add air
- Grate the ice cold butter into the flour mixture, then using your fingers or a pastry cutter, cut or crumb the butter through the flour until it's well distributed and a fine crumb
- Drain any excess liquid from the cranberries, then add the cranberries, lemon zest and chopped pistachios to the flour mixture
- Next, add the vanilla to the milk mixture then pour it into the dry ingredients
- Stir until combined and all the nuts and fruit are evenly distributed. Do not overmix
- Place the dough ball onto a well floured surface and gently pat into a thick disc shape around 3-4cm high. If it is slightly uneven, gently roll a rolling pin over the top, but do not press down as you will loose the airy fluffy interior
- Use a 4-6cm round cookie cutter to cut out the scones. The cleaner the cuts the better and straighter the scones will rise. Gently press any remaining dough together and repeat until you've used up all the dough. I get around 10 to 11 x 5cm sized scones out of this dough
- Arrange them on the baking sheet leaving a small gap between each. (They should only rise upwards and not expand sideways while baking) Brush the tops of the scones with a beaten egg, then bake for around 10 minutes, until risen and golden on top
- Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes. I drizzled over some white chocolate after cooling a little, just for an extra touch but this is optional
- These are always best served warm with butter, jam and/or cream
Notes
*If you prefer not to use alcohol to re-hydrate the dried cranberries, you can use them as is or pour the same amount of boiling water over them to plump them up a bit
These scones freeze well too if you want to make them in advance. Just do not add the chocolate before freezing. If frozen, defrost thoroughly before use, best taken out the night before if you’d like them for breakfast, then pop them in a 160°C oven for a few minutes to refresh and warm through
Tried this recipe?Post your pics and tag us at @my_homemade_kitchen_za or #myhomemadekitchen!
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