Pumpkin and cranberry are a surprisingly welcome flavor combination: tart cranberries and subtly sweet, earthy pumpkin come together for a truly delicious scone!

Pumpkin Cranberry Scones from A Duck's Oven. Scones packed with plenty of pumpkin, fall spices, and tart cranberries!

Scones are a funny food. I think when most people think of them, they unfortunately picture a weird, dry breakfast bread thing. That is neither appetizing nor correct. A good scone should be dense and moist and full of delicious flavor.

I shall now take a big step down from my soapbox since I only started baking scones six months ago.

I’ve had lots of good scones and bad scones. I mean, who doesn’t love a blueberry scone from your favorite coffee shop, especially when it’s just a little warm? But my breakfast pastry world turned upside down when I made scones myself for the first time. That incredible batch was cinnamon apple scones, a breakfast Fiance now begs for on the reg. Then I decided even more scones needed to be had, so these peanut butter chocolate chip scones came to be. They are literally perfect when paired with a cup of strong, black coffee.

As delicious as those scones may be, I think these pumpkin cranberry scones might be my favorite so far. I love the combination of pumpkin and cranberry in these babies. Pumpkin is more of an undertone than a bold flavor and the cranberries are perfectly tart and sweet. These two go oh so very well together! And just like their peanut butter friends, they are awesome with a big cup of coffee. Really though, I might just think everything goes well with a big cup of coffee.

And for reals, this time of year, we’ve got to find a way to sneak pumpkin into everything. I love, love, love my easy pumpkin waffles for a pumpkin breakfast, but these scones are a lot easier to eat on the go. I may not be all that busy here in South Africa, but the moment we land back in Portland I will be going full-speed ahead between being back at work (I’ve missed you, restaurant industry!), planning our wedding, being a bridesmaid in two of my favorite people’s weddings, building a house (more on that exciting thing later!), and spending time with my best friend’s new baby! All incredibly happy and wonderful things, but I’m definitely going to need breakfasts I can take with me while running out the door.

Pumpkin Cranberry Scones from A Duck's Oven. Scones packed with plenty of pumpkin, fall spices, and tart cranberries!

Do you wanna know what the best part about these scones is? They’re so easy to make it’s silly. The milk in this recipe is more of a binder to hold the dough together than anything else, so you can absolutely substitute it with a non-dairy alternative. The icing is also totally optional, I just like the extra hit of sugar.

Pumpkin Cranberry Scones from A Duck's Oven. Scones packed with plenty of pumpkin, fall spices, and tart cranberries!

I hope you get to eat so many pumpkin-filled foods this fall that you are completely sick of them by the time January rolls around. Make sure these pumpkin cranberry scones make their way into your kitchen!

And then, of course, be ready to eat even more pumpkin next fall.

You can also view this recipe as a step-by-step web story here.

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Pumpkin Cranberry Scones

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 27 minutes
Yield: 12 Scones
Pumpkin and cranberry are a surprisingly welcome flavor combination: tart cranberries and subtly sweet, earthy pumpkin come together for a truly delicious scone!

Ingredients
 

Scones:

  • 2 cups flour
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pumpkin spice, or mixed spice
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • ¼ cup cold butter, cubed
  • ¾ cup pureed pumpkin
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup chopped dried cranberries
  • 2 tsp raw sugar

Icing:

  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla
  • 4 tbsp milk

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Grease a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the flour sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pumpkin spice, and cinnamon.
  • Cut the cold butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter. If you don’t have one, you can use a fork or crumble the butter with the dry ingredients using your fingers.
  • Mix in the pumpkin, milk, and cranberries until completely combined and cranberries are evenly distributed.
  • Divide dough into two even pieces. Form each piece into a disc with a 6 inch diameter and place on the greased baking sheet. The dough will be sticky, wetting your hands will make it easier to shape the dough. Cut each disc into six wedges (like a pizza) but don’t separate them.
  • Sprinkle the raw sugar over the discs.
  • Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until edges are golden brown.
  • While the scones are baking, make the icing by mixing the vanilla into the icing and the milk one tablespoon at a time until icing reaches desired consistency.
  • When the scones have cooled, drizzle the icing over them and serve.
Course: Breakfast
Author: Chelsea Cole
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