Scones are one of my favorite breakfast treats. Paired with a warm cup of coffee, a delicious scone is a great start to the day. I usually gravitate towards blueberry scones, but citrus season is here. My fridge is packed with all this beautiful fruit, and I just had to use these blood oranges in something. In these scones, the sweet white chocolate blends with the bright tang of the blood orange for a beautiful, soft scone that pairs perfectly with a cup of hot coffee or tea.
Is there a trick to blood orange scones?
Like all scones, there is a trick-- butter!!!
Think of these like a butter-based pie crust. You want those beautiful chunks of butter in there to help puff up the scone and lend itself to a tender crumb. The best way, in my opinion, to do this is to go in with your fingers and do it by hand. (I learned how to do this by watching Ina Garten. She's a goddess, and I trust her with all things.)
I know a lot of people do it using a cheese grater, but that never works for me. It always over-incorporates the butter. I'm left with a rather "stodgy" scone that is more sad-biscuit than anything else. If you don't want to use your hand, you can try to cut it in with a pastry blender or even use a food processor. As long as you can see those beautiful pearls of butter in the final product!
Can I use other flavors?
Yes! Just make sure you keep the ratios the same! Some of my favorite combinations are blueberry lime, lemon thyme, and mojito (which is uses rum with lime…so damn good!). I do recommend trying to keep your fold-in ingredients to dry goods. Think dried fruit (cranberries, raisins, etc) or chocolate.
It can get really messy trying to fold in something like fresh blueberries, but it isn't impossible. In fact, I prefer to use frozen if you're going to fold in real fruit! It holds it's integrity a bit better as you work it into the dough.
Blood Orange and White Chocolate Scones
Ingredients
Scones
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter cold
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup blood orange juice
- 2 tablespoon blood orange zest
- 2 cups white chocolate chips
Glaze
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup blood orange juice
- 2 tablespoon blood orange zest
- 1 to 3 tablespoon milk
Instructions
- In your bowl, combine butter and flour. Using your fingers, begin to combine the flour and butter. "Flatten" the cubes of butter in between your fingers. Continue until all the cubes are flattened.
- .Add remaining ingredients (except white chocolate chips) and stir. You may need to use your hands to knead together to fully combine. Fold in white chocolate chips.
- Wrap in cellophane and chill for thirty minutes. While dough is chilling, preheat oven to 400°F.
- On a floured surface, roll dough into a large circle. Either cut into triangles or using a biscuit cutter, create circles. Place cut-out dough on a lined baking sheet and brush with egg wash. Bake for 25 minutes.
- While your scones cool, combine the glaze ingredients. Pour over the scones and let set. Serve with a little bit of butter and jam and enjoy!