my jerusalem kitchen

The old me didn’t understand the fuss about scones. The old me would have force fed myself bran, flax and buckwheat before pretending to be happy consuming something I knew would certainly make me fat. But the new me….oh the new me. I’m so much better for all of you, now. I have perspective. If I want to eat a scone with my family during Sunday brunch, now I do so without feeling like I need to eat edamame and brown rice for the next month to bring my world back into balance. And these scones are that perfect little breakfast splurge. And you know what? You can use a smaller glass to make the rounds more “calorie friendly.”

These are perfectly soft, not dense like many scones are. The cranberries pack a sour punch against the only slightly sweet biscuit and the lemon zest adds a fresh flavor that at least made me feel like even if I decided to indulge, I wasn’t going overboard. These are definitely worth trying, and if you find a way to make them healthier, holler at me.

Recipe lightly adapted from here

Makes 14 scones

What you need:

4 tblsp lemon zest
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar plus 3 tablespoons additional if using fresh cranberries
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
1 1/4 cups fresh cranberries, chopped coarse, or frozen cranberries
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 cup heavy cream

How to do it:

Preheat your oven to 375 F. In a bowl, combine flour, butter, lemon zest, salt, and baking powder. Combine until the mixture forms a coarse meal. In a small bowl, mix together the cranberries and 3 tblsp of sugar. In another small bowl, whisk the egg and egg yolk and remaining ½ c sugar until just combined, and then stir in the cream. Pour this “small bowl” into the flour mixture and combine well.

Grab a glass or round shaped cookie-cutter and dip it into some flour. Then empty your batter onto a well-floured surface, and get some flour on your hands. Flatten and shape the batter so that it is 1” in thickness and about 8 inches in diameter. Take your glass or cookie cutter and make rounds out of the dough, reusing the scraps and cutting more and more rounds until it’s all used up.

Place on a parchment-lined baking tray on the middle rack for 15-20 minutes or until the sides have goldened. Let cool for 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Note** You can flash freeze the scones and then cook them straight as long as you add a few minutes to the cooking time.