Orange & Cranberry Scones with Honey Glaze

• 2 cups flour
• ¼ cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup fresh or frozen cranberries
• ½ cup cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces
• 2 eggs, divided use
• 1 orange, zested
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
• 3 to 4 tablespoons half-and-half
• 1 tablespoon sparkling or granulated sugar, for garnish
• 2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted, for glaze
• 2 to 3 tablespoons milk, for glaze
• 1 tablespoon honey, for glaze

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until they are well blended. In a small food processor, pulse the cranberries until they are coarsely chopped and add them to the flour mixture.

In a small bowl, whip 1 egg with a fork and stir in the orange zest and juice. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture, add 3 tablespoons of the half-and-half, and stir just until the mixture comes together. If the dough is too dry, stir in the remaining half-and-half. Turn the dough out onto a floured pastry cloth or counter and knead it several times until the dough is smooth.

Roll out the dough into a 13-inch by 4 ½-inch rectangle with a 5/8-thickness, tapping the edges with a metal pastry scraper to keep them even. Cut the dough into triangles with a sharp knife and transfer the scones to a lightly greased cookie sheet.

In a small bowl, whip the remaining egg with 1 tablespoon water to form an egg wash. Brush the egg wash over the tops of the scones and sprinkle them with sparkling sugar. Bake 15 to 17 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Remove them from the oven and transfer them to a wire rack to cool.

When they are cool, whisk together the confectioners’ sugar, milk, and honey in a medium bowl to form a thick glaze. Drizzle the glaze over the scones in a zigzag pattern and set them aside until the glaze has dried.

Yield: 8 to 10 scones