On Christmas morning, your family will enjoy these wholesome cranberry scones spiced with cinnamon and grated orange peel. The dough can be made the night before; the next day, in just 15 minutes, you can have fresh warm scones. However, don’t store the dough for more than one day in the fridge because they are best when made fresh.

In this recipe, there’s no white flour, no butter and no refined sugar. Instead, I added a mix of oat and whole wheat flour and substituted the butter with olive oil and natural Greek yoghurt. Not overly sweet, I used maple syrup as the main sweetener.

I’m a big fan of cooking and baking with extra-virgin olive oil because it is one of the healthiest oils around. According to nutrition experts, extra-virgin olive oil contains health-promoting fats known as mono- and polyunsaturated fats. Many studies have linked the oil to better heart health.

These scones are versatile and easy to make. They can be made vegetarian or vegan, depending on the type of yoghurt that you use. The cranberries can be substituted with other seasonal berries, such as blueberries, raspberries or strawberries.

Enjoy and Merry Christmas!

Cranberry scones

Oven: 210°C / 410°F

Baking sheet lined with parchment

12-16 scones (depending on scone size)

INGREDIENTS

Dry ingredients

• 1 cup oat flour (processed from natural rolled oats)
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon (tbsp) baking powder
• 1 teaspoon (tsp) cinnamon
• zest (outer peel) from 1 orange, finely grated
• Pinch of sea salt

Wet ingredients

• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
• 1/3 cup almond milk, unsweetened (store-bought or homemade)
• ½ to ¾ cup (add gradually, so start with ½ c. – see procedure) of  natural Greek dairy yoghurt or natural soy yoghurt *

Fresh fruit

• 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, sliced in two**

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Notes

*I used a natural 10% fat Greek dairy yoghurt. You can also use a lower fat or nonfat type. For vegan use either a natural plain soy or Greek soy yoghurt. The yoghurts should be unflavoured. If using a full individual 180 gram container, the measurement is closer to 3/4 cup of yoghurt.

** For added sweetness, mix in one tablespoon of granulated sugar to the cranberries. Can substitute with other seasonal fruit such as: blueberries, pitted cherries, raspberries, strawberries etc.. 

PROCEDURE

Process the rolled oats (about 1½ cups) in small blender/ NutriBullet until fine and powdery and then measure exactly one cup of oat flour. Store remaining oat flour in a container for future use, it will keep for 3 months. In a big bowl add the oat flour, the whole wheat flour and the remaining dry ingredients and mix with fork. Set aside.

In a smaller bowl, hand mix or whisk the wet ingredients. Add the wet to the dry and mix by hand with a fork or wooden spoon until combined. The mixture should be thick and not runny. It should also be sticky, that is normal. Add a bit more yoghurt if the batter is too dry, but don’t add more than 3/4 cup total. Add the sliced cranberries and mix again. When you spoon out the dough on the baking sheet, it should be moist but still hold and stick together as shown below.

Measure about 1 heaping tablespoon or a scoop of dough and lightly shape with your fingers into balls. They will look irregular, but that’s OK, they’re scones. Place each ball on the parchment-lined baking sheet leaving about 2 inches in between as they will expand in the oven.

Note that you can store the dough in a sealed container in fridge until you’re ready to make a fresh batch of scones or proceed straightaway to baking. Chilled dough is easier to handle and shape than unrefrigerated dough. The dough keeps for 1 day in fridge, however they are best when made fresh.

Bake in preheated oven on middle rack for 13 to 15 minutes, or until golden. Larger-size scones may need to bake one or two minutes more.  When done, let the scones settle on the baking sheet for 2 minutes and transfer to a cooling rack.