These cranberry orange scones are pure holiday magic-soft, buttery triangles of citrus-kissed temptation that smell like Christmas swooped into your kitchen wearing perfume and good intentions. Tart cranberries, bright orange zest, and a sweet glaze come together in a bakery-style treat that makes you look way fancier than the effort required.
Perfect for holiday brunch, neighbor bribery, or any morning when you want pastry-shop vibes without changing out of pajamas. Watch the full video below to see exactly how the dough should look-soft, shaggy, and ready for those bright ruby cranberries.
Table of Contents
🗝️ What gives these cranberry orange scones their holiday magic
- Fresh orange zest + tart cranberries = bakery-level flavor without paying $6.75 and pretending you enjoy small talk at the Starbucks counter.
- Soft, tender crumb every time thanks to cold butter, buttermilk, and a dough you barely have to touch-lazy genius approved.
- They're shockingly quick: from craving to cooling rack in about 30 minutes, which is basically a holiday miracle.
- Freeze like a dream, so you can stash a few and act surprised when guests rave over your "effortless" holiday brunch.
- Sweet citrus glaze on top because you're extra and these scones deserve to shine like the pastry royalty they are.
Print the free cranberry orange scones cheat sheet and skip the guesswork. It's your quick-hit guide for baking tips, FAQs, and all the little tricks that make these citrusy bites of winter goodness come out perfect every single time. Print it, pin it, or tape it to the fridge like a love note from your future competent self.
📖 Recipe
Cranberry Orange Scones
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- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup sugar
- zest from 1 orange
- ½ cup butter, frozen
- ⅔ cup buttermilk
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 teaspoons vanilla extract, or orange extract
- 1 cup cranberries, fresh or frozen
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons orange juice , more if needed - enough to make a glaze
- ½ teaspoon orange extract, optional
Instructions
- Mix the all-purpose flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and sugar.
- Grate butter into the dry ingredients.
- Stir
- Grate orange zest into the mixture.
- Stir
- Stir in cranberries
- Place in the freezer for 10 minutes.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg yolk and vanilla extract until blended.
- Add to the flour mixture and stir with a fork until dough forms a ball. Dough will be sticky.
- Place the dough onto a silpat lined baking sheet and gently pat into a disk about 1-inch thick. No need to roll!
- Cut the dough into wedges with a sharp knife. Don't separate the wedges if you. like soft sides. Separate them if you like crusty sides.
- Sprinkle top with sugar and let the cranberry scones stand twenty minutes at room temperature. This helps the gluten relax.
- Bake for 15 minutes at 400°F or until golden brown. Interior temperature will be 200℉ if checked with an instant-read thermometer.
Glaze
- Mix the powdered sugar and orange juice (and orange extract if using) until it's a smooth glaze.
- Spoon over warm scones.
Notes
- For best results, use real buttermilk in your baking recipes! DIY buttermilk will sometimes do the trick, but doesn't have the same thick texture or tangy flavor as the real stuff.
- Let the scones rest for 20 minutes before baking, either at room temperature or in the fridge if your house is too warm. This allows the gluten to relax and helps make tender scones.
- Brush the tops of the scones with heavy cream or an egg wash before baking to give 'em a pretty shine.
- Use just enough juice to make a pourable glaze. Add more powdered sugar if your glaze is too runny or more orange juice if it's too thick.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
🧾 Citrus glazed cranberry orange scones ingredients
Everything you need for these bakery style cranberry orange scones is simple, cozy, and already hiding in your kitchen just waiting to make you look like a pastry chef with zero effort.
- All-purpose flour - the humble workhorse that holds this whole delicious operation together.
- Baking powder - the "rise and shine, darling" of the scone world.
- Baking soda - because a little chemistry never hurt anyone.
- Salt - just enough to make the flavors pop like gossip in a high school locker room.
- Sugar - the sweet talker of the bunch.
- Cold butter - frozen solid, bossy, and ready to make those flaky layers happen.
- Fresh cranberries - tart little jewels that keep everyone on their toes.
- A bright, zesty orange - because citrus is the closest thing we get to sunshine in December.
- Powdered sugar - for that dreamy drizzle that makes everything look intentional.
- Vanilla extract - the quiet hero that smooths out the whole situation.
- Buttermilk - tangy, rich, and the secret behind that tender crumb.
- One egg yolk - the binder, the softener, the unsung construction crew.
🔪 How to make these easy holiday scones
Follow these simple steps and you'll have cranberry orange scones that look bakery-made-without any of the stress, drama, or overpriced lattes.
- Grate the cold butter right into the dry ingredients-yes, frozen butter, don't fight me on this-then toss it together like you're making the fluffiest biscuits of your life.
- Mix in the orange zest and cranberries until everything looks festive enough to gossip about you.
- Pour in the buttermilk, egg yolk, and vanilla, then stir with a fork until a soft, shaggy dough shows up and says, "I'm ready."
- Gently pat the dough into a 1-inch-thick disk, slice it into wedges, and slide those beauties onto a prepared baking sheet to bake until golden and glorious.
👩🍳 If you have questions
Here are some of the most commonly asked questions about these homemade scones. You'll find more FAQs and tips on the free kitchen cheat sheet or ask in the comments.
I wouldn't. Fresh cranberries provide a burst of tart juice in every bite and help keep your scones moist. Dried cranberries can dry out your scones and make them too crumbly. Feel free to sprinkle some dried cranberries on top of the scones, though!
If your scones are tough on your first try, that means you overmixed the dough or handled it too much. Next time, make sure you mix the wet ingredients with a fork and gently pat the dough by hand.
The baking powder/baking soda in this cranberry orange scone recipe helps them rise tall. If you flatten the dough thinner than half an inch, the leavening agents won't be strong enough to make your dough rise.
📚 More recipes for your scone-loving heart
If these cranberry orange scones have you feeling like Bridgerton main character energy is swirling through you, wait until you wander through the rest of the pastry lineup.
My Classic Pumpkin Scones come in tender, flaky layers with a bourbon maple spice glaze that practically hums "fall sweater weather." If you're craving more of that orange-cranberry magic, the Copycat Cranberry Bliss Bars bring the tangy cream cheese and sweet white chocolate energy that Starbucks wishes it had.
Prefer a brighter citrus pop? The Lemon Blueberry Scones deliver sunshine-in-a-bite with fresh berries and a glossy lemon glaze straight out of a bougie coffeehouse. And if you're feeling adventurous, the Apricot and White Chocolate Scones are soft, sweet, and absolutely irresistible-like the dessert you pretend you're making for guests but absolutely eat yourself.
Level up your cranberry scones with a spoonful of lemon curd or mock Devonshire cream! Or both, if you're anything like me.
The last word on these scones
These cranberry orange scones are your new holiday flex-soft, citrusy, buttery show-offs that make people think you've secretly been taking pastry classes instead of doom-scrolling at midnight. They're fast, freezer-friendly, and dangerously good with a shameless amount of glaze.
Bake them for brunch, bake them for "self-care," bake them because the universe whispered treat yourself, and who are you to argue? Once you taste these bright little triangles of joy, you'll wonder why you ever settled for anything less than homemade magic.
Now go on and claim your pastry supremacy. You've earned it.
If you love this recipe please comment below and give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Denise says
Love your recipes!