Cranberry Orange Sourdough Scones
Cranberry Orange Sourdough Scones are a tasty way to use up that sourdough starter discard!
These cranberry orange sourdough scones are subtly sweet with a little sourdough tang. I’ve been trying to be better about using my sourdough discard so keep an eye out for more sourdough recipes! These scones are actually super simple to make and require pretty basic ingredients. And I know I say that about practically every recipe I post but it’s true! Let’s make these scones already!
Disclaimer: this post may contain affiliate links, which means if you decide to purchase any of the items linked in this post, I should earn a small commission. This creates no additional cost to you and helps support the work that goes into running The Fig Jar. Thank you! -Becky
Ingredients
Sourdough discard scones
Like I said- just basic ingredients like flour, sugar, butter, baking powder, salt, milk and eggs. And of course that sourdough discard. I’m calling these cranberry and orange scones, but you can of course sub in almost any dried fruit for the cranberry.
- All-purpose flour
- Sourdough starter discard
- Unsalted butter
- Sugar
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Dried cranberries
- Orange zest and juice
- Egg
- Milk
What is sourdough discard?
If you have a sourdough starter, you likely know what discard is! It’s the portion of the starter that you throw away, or discard, every time you feed the starter. Instead of throwing it away, you can use it in all sorts of baked goods!
If you don’t have a starter, here is a guide to making your own from King Arthur Flour. All you need is flour, water and time!
How to make sourdough scones
Step 1
Start by combining the butter, flour, sugar and baking powder using a pastry blender (affiliate link). The butter should be cold. And you’ll want to work the mixture together until the mixture looks kind like bread crumbs with some larger chunks.
Step 2
Then add the sourdough starter, egg, milk, cranberries and orange zest. Stir together until the dough starts to come together.
Step 3
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead gently until the dough becomes smooth, about 8-10 kneads should do. Pat it into a 1/2 thick circle, then cut into 8 triangles. Brush with an egg wash if desired, then bake at 400F until golden brown (15-18 minutes)
Step 4
Ice the scones! Icing is definitely optional. Scones are not very sweet so if you like things on the sweeter side, you will probably enjoy having an iced scone. You can also top them with butter, cream, and/or jam. Making the icing is very simple. Just stir together orange juice and powdered sugar, then either drizzle with a spoon or put the icing into a plastic bag, snip off an edge and drizzle away!
Tried this recipe?
If you’re looking for a recipe to use up sourdough discard, I hope you give this recipe a try! These are so good. I’d love to hear from you if you try it, leave a comment below or find me on instagram @thefigjar.
More sourdough discard recipes
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Cranberry Orange Sourdough Scones
Delicious cranberry orange scones with a sourdough twist! A great way to use up that discard!
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 18 minutes
- Total Time: 43 minutes
- Yield: 8 Scones 1x
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter (cold, cut into cubes)
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 egg (beaten)
- 1/2 cup sourdough starter discard
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- zest of an orange
- 1/4 cup milk
- an additional egg for an egg wash (optional)
Icing
- 2/3 cup powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp orange juice
- zest of an orange (optional)
Instructions
Sourdough scones
- Preheat oven to 400.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the butter and use a pastry blender to cut butter into flour mixture until you have a coarse meal.
- Stir in one egg (beaten), sourdough discard, orange zest, cranberries and milk.
- Turn out onto a floured surface and need gently about 10 times. Pat down to 1/2 inch thick circle. Cut into 8 slices and place on an ungreased or parchment lined baking sheet. Brush triangles with second (optional) egg if using with a pastry brush.
- Bake for about 15-18 minutes, until lightly golden.
Icing
- Whisk together orange juice, powdered sugar and orange zest in a small bowl until smooth. Pour into a ziploc bag and snip a 1/4 inch off the corner of the bag when ready to glaze the scones (make sure they are cool).
- Drizzle the icing over each scone in a zigzag pattern.
I made these tonight – it was feeding time for my sourdough. It was very easy to put together but I made a big mistake – I got distracted – my husband asked me something and had to step away and help him. I came back and finished mixing them – thought they were a bit dry. Anyway, I am just about to put them in the oven and see on my counter the sugar and the discard that I forgot to put in. Needless to say, they came out looking lovely and I will be trying them tomorrow but probably will be tough – MY FAULT. I will remake them WITHOUT distractions. Thanks for the easy well written recipe!
Aww I can totally relate, I’ve done this my fair share of times! I’m glad they still came out looking ok though! 🙂
Been making these for months and they are By far the best sourdough scone recipe. I use this recipe as a base to make a variety of different flavor (lemon, peach, blueberry) scones and it doesn’t fail! Fabulous recipe ! Thanks for posting Becky!
Ooh peach scones sound delicious! I’m glad you love the recipe, Bunnee!
Could I long ferment these before baking? If so, would I need to change anything?
Hi Shannon, I haven’t tested the recipe that way so I can’t really speak to what you would need to change but you are welcome to try it and let us know how it went!
When you specify a cup of flour, what does that correspond to in grams? What is your standard measure, in grams, for a cup of flour?
Hi there, I don’t cook/bake using grams, therefore I don’t have a ‘standard measure’ equivalent for you. King Arthur has this equivalent chart you might find helpfu: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/learn/ingredient-weight-chart#:~:text=For%20best%20results%2C%20we%20recommend,grams%20equivalencies%20for%20common%20ingredients.
These are absolutely amazing! Thanks for the recipe! Will make them again for sure.
Hi Judy! So glad you love these. Thank you for taking the time to leave a review 🙂
Hi there love the idea of this recipe! Should I used cold discard or room temperature right off the starter?
Hi Gina, it doesn’t really matter whether the starter is room temp or cold!
Oh good! I used 1/4 active starter + 1/4 cold discard because I wasn’t sure. Thanks so much!
Hi there, these look amazing and would really like to bake a batch tonight. Questions: can frozen whole cranberries work? I don’t have dried cranberries.
Hi Sue, I’m sorry I’m not 100% sure because I haven’t tried this. It might work! Let me know if you try it.
These were absolutely amazing. Easy to follow, simple recipe with great results. Thank you!
I’m so happy to hear! Thank you for the review, Jean! 🙂
These are an amazing!!!
I did a blueberry lemon instead, but still turned out great.
I let the dough chill for 30 mins in fridge and then cut up into 6 triangles!
I recommend cooking on middle self in oven and mins took closer to 20 mins!
Great recipe Becky!!
Yay! Blueberry lemon is such a great combo. Thank you for your review 🙂