Better Than Panera, Orange Cranberry Scones

The last time, about a year and a half ago now, that my daughter paid around $2.50 for a yummy orange scone at Panera, I confidently said, 'I bet I can make those at home for a lot less.' I knew it was not only possible, but very likely they would be healthier too. Since my first batch, I've quietly thought to myself that they are tastier also. Last week, when a friend told me, "They're better than Panera," and promptly asked for the recipe...I thought there may just be others out there who are tired of forking over too much hard-earned cash for a sometimes rock-hard scone.

 

A few years ago, I found this great recipe on Opera Singer in the Kitchen's website. Full credit goes to her for the original. I have modified it even further though so I'm not going to copy her version here.

 

Ingredient list:

• 1 1/2 cups spelt flour (You can use a combination of whole and white, more white than whole though. )
• 2 Tablespoons Sucanat
• 1 Tablespoon organic orange zest
• 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon (or less) sea salt
• 6 Tablespoons coconut oil
• 1 cup organic cranberries, chopped
• 1 flax or chia "egg" {1 tablespoon flax meal or chia seed + 2 Tablespoons water}
• Approximately 1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice and/or coconut milk (Look for details about this at the end)

 

Preheat over to 425° F. Stir flour, Sucanat, orange zest, baking powder, baking soda and sea salt together in a large bowl.

 

Cut in coconut oil with a pastry cutter until it looks almost like a crumb topping.

 

Now is the best time to toss in your fruit of choice so it doesn't all stick together once the wet ingredients are added.

 

Stir in the egg and juice/milk combination (I'll explain this further at the end). Mix together with a fork or wooden spoon until the dough starts to form a ball.

 

*Here's the secret to making them like Panera! Do not roll them out like a cookie or pizza dough, which is very common. Instead divide into fourths and pat into a square-ish shape. They will be rather thick. I use parchment paper to make clean up easier and also, because depending upon your pan, if you don't, you'll have to lightly grease the cookie sheet. If you want a fairly healthy version of this scone, then right here, sprinkle them with either Rapadura or Sucanat sugar because they are chunkier and look pretty.

 

Bake 10-14 minutes depending upon desired level of  "doneness".  If you're opting for the most Panera-like scone you can get, while they are baking, mix together the following for a glaze:

 

• I Tablespoon coconut oil, melted
• about 1-2 Tablespoons orange juice
• about 1/3-1/2 powdered sugar

As soon as the scones come out of the over, drizzle a lot of glaze on top. You also have the option of letting them cool a little, making a thicker glaze and spreading it on top to resemble the Panera scones. The recipe for the glaze is mostly approximations, dependent upon how thick you want it.

 

And that's it...almost!

 

Here are my fool-proof  "must do's" if you are looking to have the "better than" label attached to your healthier scones.

• If you're using spelt, which is a wetter dough than all-purpose, bleached, yuck...you must at some point, mix it by hand. This is the only way to make sure your dough is not too wet, which leads to the second "must do".
• The juice/milk combination is strictly a matter of preference, more juice means more orange flavor. But, if using spelt, you will most likely not need the entire liquid unless you are hoping to do a completely whole wheat or whole spelt scone. Then, you also need to opt out of Sucanat in favor of honey, maple syrup or agave instead.
• Yes, I have made the dough far too wet in the past, and they still bake up very tasty and nice. Handling them, not having a whole scones-worth of dough stuck to your hands and shaping them well goes much better with a dough that is mixed just until it sticks together. Try adding about half of the necessary liquid and increasing it as needed.
• The original recipe makes eight scones. In order to get the Panera size, you'll only get half of this amount from my version. I easily double it though (as I did in the photos above) and still get eight. Just remember when you're eating them...1 of my scones = 2 of the originals!
• This recipe is very versatile and is the only one I use for scones. It is super easy to swap out flavor and fruit options to experiment with different tastes. I've made pumpkin (just watch the amount of liquid very carefully); lemon/poppy seed; gingerbread; blueberry/lemon; apple/cinnamon;is cranberry, the original dark chocolate/orange or like Panera, just orange. I used fresh cranberries for the recipe because they are widely available right now and are just so much better than the dried version. Dried is entirely usable though. Really, the possibilities are pretty much endless.
• Last thing, I can't stress enough the part about shaping them by hand. I read a few years ago, that as a low gluten flour and because it is wetter than regular wheat, spelt should not be handled much. Keep in mind that by stirring less, combining just until it holds together and shaping, instead of rolling them out...you will be rewarded with tender, flaky...very delicious scones.

Oh yeah...one more thing: Eat them while they're warm! They really taste best that way.