My absolute favorite scone recipe, these mini orange scones use fresh orange zest and an orange juice glaze for an absolutely addictive bakery-style treat. With hints of vanilla and cardamom spice, these easy scones are flaky-crumbly, moist, and come together in just 30 minutes with minimal effort! You’ll swear these are better than Panera!
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a food processor, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cardamom, and orange zest.
Add cold butter cubes and pulse in the food processor until mixture has the texture of wet sand. If you don't have a food processor, you can use a pastry blender, a fork, or your fingertips to cut in the butter. Don't use the palms of your hands because that will transfer too much heat to the butter.
Beat egg, cream, and vanilla extract in a separate bowl. Pour into food processor bowl and pulse with flour mixture until just combined.
Pat mixture into a ball and shape into a 7 inch square. Cut into a 9-square grid, then cut each square diagonally to make 18 triangle-shaped mini scones. Arrange scones about an inch apart on prepared baking sheet.
Brush the tops of the scones with cream and shake on coarse sanding sugar liberally.
Bake for 12-17 minutes, or until you can see golden brown around the bottoms of the scones.
For the icing
Mix the ingredients for the icing in a small bowl until smooth.
After cooling the baked scones for a few minutes, flip the scones top-side down and dip the tops into the icing. Let excess icing drip off before putting right-side up on a wire rack. For easier cleanup, put wire rack on top of a baking sheet to catch drips.
Let dry completely before storing. (If they are not completely cool and dry when you store them, the icing will be gooey instead of hard and shiny tomorrow!) Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days or in the fridge for up to a week. See notes for freezing instructions.
Enjoy on their own or with clotted cream, homemade lemon curd, or orange, cherry, or cranberry preserves!
Notes
Freezing unbaked scones: You can freeze the unbaked scones after you brush them with cream and sprinkle with sugar. Freeze them separately on a baking sheet for an hour or until they’re set, then store in a freezer bag for up to 3 months until you’re ready to bake.To finish making the scones, remove from the freezer while you’re preheating the oven. Bake as instructed, adding a couple minutes to the baking time. Alternately, thaw overnight in the fridge and bake for the normal amount of time. Glaze as instructed.Freezing baked scones: You can also store baked scones in the freezer in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to three months. If you freeze them already glazed, thaw overnight and enjoy at room temperature. If they’re unglazed, you can reheat them in the oven at 300 degrees for about 10 minutes and add the glaze afterwards.