It’s one of natures great gifts that the citrus season should fall in the winter. The glow of the bright green, yellow and orange of the fruit are enough to break the winter chill! This time of year the citrus is so beautiful and just looking at the bright colors I know that the zest and juice will give a terrific boost of flavor to my recipe.
I buy organic produce as much as I can, and I am especially picky if I am going to make any recipe that calls for the zest of a citrus fruit. If a fruit has been sprayed those chemicals will be leaving their residues on the fruit peel and I don’t want that ending up in my baking. For this reason, I don’t get to make these scones very often. Organic oranges seem to be hard to find but during the winter months they are plentiful.
These scones end up with a firmer texture, not like the Cranberry Buttermilk Scones I like to make. Still, they are a pleasure to bite into, tender from the sour cream, and not at all dry. The zest from the oranges gives a great burst of orange flavor. I am especially enamored with the crunchy cinnamon topping.
A Baker’s tip: When you zest an orange or any other fruit, you just want to take the colorful, outside edge of the peel. The underlying white pith can have a bitter taste.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup sugar, divided
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1 extra-large egg
- 2 Tablespoons orange zest (from 2 large oranges)
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment.
- Stir together the flour, sugar (reserving 2 tablespoons of the sugar) baking powder, salt. Cut in the butter, using your fingers or a pastry blender until the mixture looks like a coarse meal. Stir the raisins into the flour mixture.
- Whisk together the sour cream, egg, and orange zest. Stir the sour cream mixture into the flour mixture just until combined. Knead the dough lightly on the counter then press into a round.
- Stir together the reserved 2 tablespoons of sugar with the cinnamon and sprinkle on top of the scones, pressing it into the dough with the back of a spoon.
- Cut into 8 pieces with a knife that has been run under water. Move the scones onto the prepared pan with a spatula.
- Bake until light golden on the bottoms, about 18 minutes.
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