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Dessert

Cranberry Cream Scones

A sweet scone with cranberries, butter, and cream, finished with a milk glaze.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 12 ingredients
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Why it works: Nutmeg and cinnamon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 11,917 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

Cranberry Cream Scones

Oven400°F
Time20 to 25 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. In a small bowl, mix cranberries and 2 tablespoons sugar, then set aside.

  2. Preheat oven to 400°F.

  3. Butter an 8-inch circle in center of large baking sheet, or cover sheet with parchment paper.

Make the dough

  1. In a large bowl, mix remaining 1/3 cup sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, and spices.

  2. Mix in lemon peel and ginger if using.

  3. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

  4. Add cranberries, and toss well.

  5. In a small bowl, mix cream and vanilla.

  6. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the cream mixture.

  7. Stir just until dough pulls together.

  8. Keeping dough in bowl, knead 3 or 4 times with floured hands.

Shape and bake

  1. On a floured cutting board, pat dough into a 7-inch circle.

  2. Slice dough into 6 or 8 wedges, as you would pie.

  3. Reassemble slices in center of baking sheet, leaving 1/4 inch between pieces.

  4. Brush scones sparingly with milk, and sprinkle with sugar.

  5. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.

  6. Cool on sheet 1 minute, then loosen scones with spatula.

  7. Slide entire batch onto cooling rack.

  8. Cool thoroughly before wrapping.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

850Calories
22 gProtein
27 gFat
128 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 11 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Cream1 tbsp (15ml) heavy51
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Nutmeg1 tsp ground (2.2g)12
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Vanilla1 tsp extract (4ml)12
Cinnamon1 tsp ground (2.6g)6
Ginger1 tsp grated fresh (2g)2
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Nutmeg + cinnamontop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together11,917 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  2. Cinnamon + gingertop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together6,380 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  3. Lemon + gingertop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,154 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  4. Nutmeg + gingertop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together3,324 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  5. Nutmeg + lemontop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together11,318 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

All-purpose flour
Provides the main structure that holds the scones together as they bake.
Heavy cream
Adds richness and moisture, making the dough tender and soft.
Butter
Cut in cold, it creates flaky layers and a tender crumb as it melts in the oven.
Baking powder
Releases gas when heated, helping the scones rise and become light.
Fresh cranberries
Add tart bursts of fruit that contrast with the sweet, rich dough.
Sugar
Sweetens the dough and helps the crust brown during baking.

The step that matters

Stir just until dough pulls together. Overmixing develops gluten in the flour, which makes scones tough and dense rather than tender. Mixing only until combined keeps the crumb light.

Swap the ginger

The recipe marks ginger as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, lemon, butter, cream):

  1. Cardamomfits better
  2. Allspicefits better
  3. Clovefits about as well
  4. Gingerthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, lemon, butter, cream. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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