Cranberry Oat Scones
Happy New Year, folks. 
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So – probably because I’ve been eating a lot of root vegetables (which tend to be on the sweet side), I’ve been craving sharp-tasting foods. I miss the tomatoes and arugulas of summer. Consequently, I’ve been on a bit of a cranberry kick for the past week or so. I love the look of the bright red berries – like rubies in a jar – and had a good time making my own super-simple cranberry sauce (1 bag of raw cranberries + 1C sugar and 1C water) earlier this week. I added candied ginger to the mix and it works gorgeously.
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Hat-tip to Royalty Free Photographs - http://www.squidoo.com/royalty-free-photographs - for the picture.
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Anyway. So I have cranberry sauce. Whatever shall I do with it?
Obviously, I decided that the best idea would be to experiment with baked goods. (What can I say: I’m a fan of dessert).
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I decided on Cranberry Oatmeal scones because (a) I went to the Scone Witch last week – you can read about that over here – and I wanted to do something thematic with my writing this week, (b) they don’t require a lot of sauce, so they’re a great way to use up left-overs if you have them lying around – which, in early January, I’m sure at least some of you do – and (c) I’ve always thought of scones as the perfect accompaniment to a warm cup of tea, so offering up a winter-seasonal scone recipe seemed like a good idea.
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I should warn you: This scone isn’t a light-and-flaky pastry. In addition to upping the “healthy” factor of the dessert (it’s not an oxymoron! Seriously!), the rolled oats, whole wheat flour and yoghurt give these scones a consistency that is closer to brownies than to pie-crust. They’re just the thing to nibble on while curled up on the couch with hot tea and a good book.
Here’s the recipe:
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You Will Need:
One small mixing bowl (for the wet ingredients)
One large mixing bowl (for everything)
Measuring cups and spoons
A fork
A cookie tray OR muffin tin (or a loaf or cake pan – it’s a versatile recipe) lightly oiled
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Ingredients:
1 C rolled oats
2 C all-purpose whole wheat flour
1/3 C light brown sugar, packed
3 tsp (=1 tbsp) baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ C butter or margarine
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2 eggs, beaten
1/3 C plain yoghurt
1 tsp vanilla OR orange extract
2/3 C cranberry sauce (NOTE: I’m working on the assumption of *thick* cranberry sauce. If yours tends towards liquid/juicy, drain the juice and opt for the mashed cranberries alone)
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Directions:
1) Preheat the oven to 425F.
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2) In the large mixing bowl, mix the dry ingredients, then add the butter/margarine and cut it into the flour mixture (I recommend margarine or shortening for this, as it’s workable when cold – and you want it to be cold). As long as you’ve washed them well, you can use your hands to do the cutting, but a fork will work just fine.
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3) In the small mixing bowl, combine the egg, the plain yoghurt, the vanilla/orange extract, and the cranberry sauce. Mix with the fork until well-blended.
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4) Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients to them. Blend lightly with the fork until you have a soft dough.
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5) Scoop out quarter-cup-sized balls of dough and place them on the greased cookie sheet or into the cups of the greased muffin tin. (NOTE: You can also drop all of the dough into a greased cake or loaf pan and use the dough to make a thick cake or dessert loaf).
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6) Bake your scones in the oven for abut 15 minutes, or until they are golden brown. NOTE: If you are doing the loaf/cake version, you will need to cook it for a good half-hour.
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7) Serve hot with butter, and enjoy.
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You can switch out the cranberry sauce in favour of apple or pear butter if you so desire, but lower the sugar content to ¼ cup. These make for a tasty breakfast treat if you toast them in the toaster oven. They’re delicious on their own as a snack with a cup of tea or mulled cider, and would make a wonderful wintery shortcake when paired with baked apples or fruit compote and vanilla yoghurt or cream (I served them this way for dessert the other night, and they were delightful).
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Got a favourite go-to winter dessert that you’re dying to share? The kind that’s easy to throw together and never fails to please? Tell me all about it in the comments!
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TTFN,
Allison.
