Cranberry-Buttermilk Scones

If you haven't noticed yet, I pretty much LOVE scones! J'adore! I love how they are cake-like, but never too sweet. I love how they are biscuit-like, but always sweeter. God, I wish they sold them everywhere else in Europe! But then again, planning a trip to the UK and getting excited about all the scones I'm going to eat, has its charm! These are pretty basic scones, except I'm using buttermilk instead of cream and adding dried cranberries instead of raisins. They didn't quite measure up to the Chocolate Scones or Maple Scones I made a while back, but they were still nice. Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Cranberry-Buttermilk Scones recipe: adapted from Martha Stewart's Blueberry-Buttermilk Scones

Ingredients:
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup cake flour
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 4 ounces (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 1 large egg + 1 large egg lightly beaten for egg wash
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Fine sanding sugar, for sprinkling

Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk together flours, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter, or rub in with your fingers, until mixture has the texture of coarse meal. Stir in dried cranberries.
- Whisk together buttermilk, 1 egg, and the vanilla. Drizzle over flour mixture, and stir lightly with a fork until dough comes together but a small amount of flour remains in bowl.
- Turn out dough onto a work surface, and gently knead dough once or twice just to incorporate flour. Pat dough into a 1-inch-thick round. Cut into 12 wedges. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Brush with egg wash, and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Bake until golden brown and cooked through, about 22 minutes. Transfer scones to wire racks to cool. Scones are best served immediately but can be frozen for up to 1 month. Thaw, and reheat in a 350-degree oven for 10 minutes.


That deep, deep red of the dried cranberries is so mesmerising.

Pre-oven, topped with egg wash and fine sanding sugar.

I got about 12 scones out of the recipe, but they didn't last very long in my household so I guess I have to fix up another batch.

Ow yeah!!! :D