Simple Scones

These scones are easy to make and delicious, especially when they're made by someone other than myself! This is the original recipe here, which calls for 1 tsp baking powder and 1/4 tsp baking soda. I always wondered why both of these ingredients were required in many recipes when just one of them should work as a leavening agent on its own. Click here to see what happened when I tried making a batch of these scones using only baking powder, and one using only baking soda. These scones may look pretty messy, but they still tasted great with tea, so for someone as inept at baking as myself I consider that a success.

• Difficulty: Easy
• Category: Science of Recipes

Ingredients

• 2 cup all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar (plus 1 tsp sugar to sprinkle on top)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 8 tbsp unsalted butter (1 stick (frozen))
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 large egg

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit
2. In a medium bowl, mix flour, 1/3 cups sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Grate butter into the flour mixture, use fingers to work the butter into the mixture, then stir in the dried cranberries.
4. In a small bowl, whisk sour cream and egg until smooth.
5. Using a fork, stir sour cream mixture into flour mixture until large dough clumps form.
6. Use your hands to press the dough into a ball, then place the dough onto a lightly floured surface and pat into a 7-8 inch circle about 3/4 inches thick.
7. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 tsp sugar, cut dough into 8 triangles, and place them on a cooking sheet about 1 inch apart.
8. Bake until golden, about 15 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes and serve warm or room temperature.