Text, photos and food cooked by Michal Martinek

May 16, 2019

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Walnut Cranberry Scones

If energy bars were a pastry, they would be these scones. 

They’re dense, and packed with walnuts and dried cranberries. Almost like a complete meal!

There’s butter too, which means no dryness, no dusty taste. Plus, it makes them tender and soft on the inside.

I used walnuts for their crunchy texture, and cranberries for a burst of sweet & sour flavor. 

I like these scones for breakfast or with coffee in the afternoon. 

I made them for office meetings, my friend’s baby shower, and a beach picnic in Malibu. I took two on an L.A. – N.Y. flight once and shared one with a salivating dude across the aisle. It’s my go-to scone recipe!

I recommend you use a food processor because it evenly and quickly incorporates the butter into the flour. If you don’t have one, it’s fine too—you can use a pastry blender or your fingertips to rub it into the flour. 

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1. Yields 8 scones
2. 10 tablespoons (140 g) unsalted butter
3. 2½ cups (425 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
4. ¾ cup (108 g) packed brown sugar
5. 2 tablespoons (22g) baking powder
6. ½ teaspoon dried ginger
7. ½ teaspoon salt
8. 2 eggs
9. ¼ cup (50 ml) whole milk, plus 2 tablespoons for brushing
10. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
11. ¾ cup (90 g) dried cranberries
12. ½ cup (50g) chopped walnuts

1

Preheat the oven to 400 F (200 C). Position your oven rack in the middle. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2

Cut the butter into ½-inch (1.5 cm) cubes and place in a freezer for 3 minutes, while you prep the dry ingredients.

3

Place the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, dried ginger, and salt into the bowl of a food processor fitted with and S-blade. Pulse for 8 seconds to mix.

4

Add the butter to the flour and pulse for about 15 seconds, until there are no large chunks of butter, and the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Transfer to a large bowl.

5

In a medium bowl, lightly beat the eggs with a fork to break up the yolks. Add the milk and vanilla extract, and mix. Stir in the cranberries and walnuts.

6

Make a small well in the middle of the flour mixture, and pour in the egg mixture.

7

Using a spatula or wooden spoon, work slowly from the sides of the bowl toward the middle. Lightly stir and toss, mixing the flour mixture with the wet ingredients.

8

Dump the mixture on a clean surface and knead lightly with your hands, about 10 times, to bring it all together into a ball. Press down with the palm of your hands to form an 11-inch (28 cm) diameter disc, about 1¼ -inch (3 cm) thick.

9

Cut the disc into 8 equal triangles with a knife.

10

Transfer the scones onto the baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches (5 cm) between them. Brush the tops lightly with milk.

11

Bake in the oven for 25–30 minutes, until the tops are golden brown.

12

Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack. Serve at room temperature.

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