Dried fruit cream scones

Adapted from The Breakfast Book by the great Marion Cunningham. The best scones you’ve ever had. Moist, tender and a breeze to make.

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour (270g/9.5 oz), plus additional flour for kneading
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon (3 teaspoons) baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries or other dried fruit (chopped if large)
• 1/4 cup golden raisins
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream

Sugar topping

• Cream or melted butter for brushing on scones
• 2 tablespoons sugar (raw/coarse sugar gives a nice crunch if you have it)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl. Mix with a fork.
3. Add cranberries and raisins. Mix.
4. Pour in cream (but keep the measuring cup for later) and mix with fork until dough becomes thick and hard to stir.
5. Using hand, knead the sticky dough in the bowl, turning and pressing the dough to incorporate the flour. Add more flour if you need it, a tablespoon at a time, until surface of dough is smooth, soft and no longer sticky.
6. Split the ball in half to form two smaller balls. Then split each half again in two smaller balls. You will now have four small balls of dough.
7. On a lightly floured surface, slightly flatten each ball into a thick disc about 5 inches in diameter.
8. Pour a few drops of cream from the empty measuring cup on each disc and use fingers to spread cream evenly over the top. Sprinkle with sugar.
9. Cut each disc evenly into six wedges. Place on ungreased baking sheet, leaving some room in between for scones to rise as they bake.
10. Bake 15 minutes, or until scones are golden brown.

Makes 24 small scones.

Notes

• Substitute any dried fruit or nuts you like. Chop nuts and large fruit, eg dried apricots.
• I don’t recommend substituting fresh fruit for dried – I’ve tried making these with frozen blueberries, and oddly enough the water moisture of the fresh fruit dilutes the creamy moistness of this scone dough. The frozen blueberry scones were good, but the dried fruit scones are life changing.
• If you want to use a pint (2 cups) of cream, here are the other proportions: 2 2/3 cups flour, 4 teaspoons baking powder, 2/3 teaspoon salt, 1/3 cup sugar, 2/3 cup cranberries, 1/3 cup golden raisins, 2 cups heavy cream. Divide into six balls. Makes 36 small scones.
• If you want to use a quart (4 cups) of cream, here are the other proportions: 5 1/3 cups flour, 8 teaspoons baking powder, 1 1/3 teaspoons salt, 2/3 cup sugar, 1 1/3 cup cranberries, 2/3 cup golden raisins, 4 cups heavy cream. Divide into 12 balls. Makes 72 small scones.

Here’s the link back to the Cream scones (cue the trumpets!).