St. James Easter Scones Recipe

Inspired by hot cross buns, our St. James Easter Scones Recipe is a quick, elegant, and delicious addition to any brunch, holiday, or special teatime. Combining brown sugar, warm spices, tart cranberries, and fresh orange, these delightful scones will bring a festive touch to your table. We recommend pairing this recipe with our Lady Day pomegranate black tea (scroll past the recipe to see additional tea recommendations).

St. James Easter Scones Recipe

Servings: 12 scones

Prep Time: 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

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Ingredients Instructions Notes

Ingredients

  

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cup packed brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. cinnamon
• ¼ tsp. freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp. orange zest
• 1 stick + ½ cup very cold butter cubed
• 1 cup dried cranberries, raisins, or dried currants roughly chopped if desired
• ¾ cup + 1 Tbsp. cold heavy cream
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 ½ – 2 tbsp. freshly squeezed orange juice or bottled orange juice

Instructions

 

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and orange zest until the brown sugar is well distributed throughout the flour.
2. Use a pastry blender to cut the butter into the flour mixture until the butter resembles coarse crumbs.
3. Stir in the dried cranberries, raisins, or dried currants.
4. Use a fork to stir in the heavy cream and vanilla extract until evenly moistened, but be careful not to overwork the dough. Place dough in the fridge for 20 minutes to chill.
5. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Prepare a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
6. Use a ¼-cup spring-loaded ice cream scoop to place rounded mounds of dough onto the prepared cookie sheet with about 2 inches of space in between.
7. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, until scones begin to turn golden brown. Allow to cool before frosting.
8. Whisk the powdered sugar and orange juice together until a thick, smooth frosting forms. Drizzle the frosting on the top of the scones.

Notes

Baking Tips:

1. If you don’t have a pastry blender, you can also use your fingers to distribute the butter in to the flour sugar mix. Make sure to work quickly so the butter stays cold. If the butter begins to melt, return the mixture to the fridge and chill well.
2. If your frosting is too runny when you’re making it, add powdered sugar until it thickens.

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Tea Recommendations:

We recommend you serve this afternoon tea recipe with the following loose leaf teas.

We hope you enjoy our St. James Easter Scones Recipe as much as we do!