These bakery-style sourdough scones are studded with dried cranberry and white chocolate for a delicious buttery and flaky treat that’s perfect during the holidays (but which you can enjoy any time of the year).
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Why You’ll Love These Scones
- Bakery-quality scones that are a great way to use up discard.
- A delicious festive flavour combo that’s perfect for the holidays or any time of year.
- Easy to make ahead and stash in the freezer to level up a Christmas morning brunch.
If you’re a fan of scones, you’ll love my Blueberry Lemon Scones recipe, too!
Avoiding Common Scone Mistakes
Scones can seem intimidating, but the truth is they’re pretty easy to make! Just keep these tips in mind:
- Avoid over-mixing, or adding too much liquid. Mix just until it starts to stick together. The dough should look shaggy when you first mix it. It will hydrate and fully come together while it rests in the fridge.
- Keep your butter & dough cold. This ensures the butter remains separate from the dough, so it can burst into steam in the oven to create the beautiful flaky layers that scones are known for. Chill the dough in the fridge or freezer for at least 30 minutes before baking.
- Make sure your baking powder is fresh. Expired baking powder loses its potency and can result in dense scones.
Pro Tip
Have a warm kitchen? Freeze your butter and grate it into the dough. And don’t hesitate to pop the dough into the fridge or freezer any time you need to cool it down.
Key Ingredients You Need & Why
- Sourdough discard adds a tangy flavour that balances the richness of the butter, and helps make the crumb tender. If you don’t have any discard, you’ll need to either make a sourdough starter from scratch, or get some from a local bakery.
- Unsalted butter turns to steam in the hot oven to create beautiful flaky layers. You can use salted butter instead, but if you do you should reduce or omit the salt in the recipe.
- Heavy cream (at least 35% butterfat) makes the scones rich and tender. You can swap it out for whole milk or half-and-half. The scones will still be delicious, just not quite as rich.
- Dried cranberries add tart and fruity flavour to the scones.
- White chocolate balances the tartness of the dried cranberries. You can use chocolate chips, or roughly chop a white chocolate bar into chunks.
How to Make the Best Sourdough Scones with Cranberry & White Chocolate
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a medium bowl or measuring glass, whisk together the sourdough discard, egg, heavy cream, and vanilla extract. Refrigerate until it’s needed, especially if your kitchen is warm.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Toss the cubed butter until it’s all coated in flour, then use your fingertips or a pastry blender to work the butter into the flour mixture until the pieces are no larger than peas. Add the dried cranberries and white chocolate and mix until evenly distributed.
- Fold the discard mixture into the dry ingredients until the flour is evenly hydrated and you’re able to squeeze the dough together. Pour it out onto a clean work surface and pat it into a circle that’s roughly 8″ (20.3 cm) in diameter and 1″ (2.5 cm) thick. Wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days.
- Preheat your oven to 400˚F (200˚C). Cut the disc of dough into 8 wedges and arrange them on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone baking mat. Brush the tops with heavy cream, and generously sprinkle on some coarse sugar. Freeze or refrigerate the dough while the oven preheats (and for at least 30 minutes). Bake until puffed and just starting to turn golden around the edges, about 16-20 minutes.
Pro Tip
To give the scones a bakery-quality finish, mix up a thick glaze with powdered sugar and heavy cream, and drizzle it over the scones after they have cooled completely.
Tips for Making Ahead, Storing, Freezing & Reheating
- Store raw dough in the fridge for up to 2 days.
- Store baked scones at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Freeze before baking by arranging the cut wedges on a lined baking sheet. Cover and freeze until the wedges are solid, then transfer to a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Bake straight from the freezer, adding a minute or two to the bake time.
- Freeze after baking and cooling the scones completely. Don’t apply any glaze if you will be freezing the baked scones. Allow to thaw out at room temperature. To re-crisp the scones, reheat them in a 300˚F (150˚C) oven for 5–7 minutes.
FAQs
Yes, but active starter has a stronger gluten structure which could make it more difficult to mix the scone dough. For this reason, I prefer using unfed starter. Make sure your starter is no more than 2 weeks old so it doesn’t make the scones taste too sour, or even like acetone.
Yes. Sub out the discard with 85 grams of milk or buttermilk and 85 grams of all-purpose flour.
Yes! You can refrigerate or freeze raw dough, or bake the scones and freeze them to enjoy later.
Yes! Sub out the all-purpose flour for a 1-to-1 gluten-free flour mix. Make sure to either use discard from a gluten-free starter, or sub out the starter for 85 grams each of buttermilk and additional gluten-free flour.
Did You Make These Scones?
Let me know how they turned out! Drop a comment and rate the recipe below. And if you managed to grab a photo before devouring them, tag me @LowbrowFancy Instagram—I’d love to see!
Sourdough Discard Scones with Cranberry & White Chocolate
Ingredients
Method
- Mix wet ingredients: In a medium mixing bowl or measuring glass, whisk together 170 g sourdough discard, 1 large egg, 65 g heavy cream or half-and-half, and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract. If your kitchen is warm, cover refrigerate until needed.
- Mix dry ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together 235 g all-purpose flour, 4 teaspoons baking powder, and ½ teaspoon fine sea salt until combined. Toss in 140 g unsalted butter (cold and cut into ½" cubes, or frozen and grated) until all of the pieces are coated in flour. Use your fingertips or a pastry blender to work the pieces into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse bread crumbs with a few larger pieces that are no bigger than peas.
- Add the mix-ins: Toss in 55 g dried cranberries and 85 g white chocolate chips or chunks and mix in until evenly distributed.
- Add the wet ingredients: Add the discard and cream mixture and toss in with a rubber spatula or your fingers until the flour is evenly hydrated and the dough just holds together when squeezed. Pour it out onto a clean work surface and pat into a circle that's about 8" (20.3 cm) in diameter and 1" (2.5 cm) thick. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours and up to 2 days.
- Bake: Preheat the oven to 400˚F (200˚C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Cut the disc of dough into 8 wedges, and arrange the wedges on the baking mat. Cover the baking sheet and freeze or refrigerate the raw scones while the oven preheats (and for at least 30 minutes). Brush the tops of the scones with 2 tablespoons heavy cream and sprinkle on 2 tablespoons coarse sugar. Bake until puffed and just starting to turn golden on the edges, or about 16-20 minutes.
- Cool & Finish: Let the scones cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Whisk together 115 g powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons heavy cream or half-and-half and drizzle over the cooled scones. You can add a little more powdered sugar to make the glaze thicker, or a little more cream to thin the glaze out as desired.
- Enjoy! Scones are best eaten the day they're made, but will keep at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
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