Mini Eggnog Scones with Dried Cranberries

Mini eggnog scones are a great holiday addition to breakfast or brunch, as a treat with coffee or tea, or to use up leftover eggnog!

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Everyone on the internet is excited because it’s Christmastime! And yeah, that’s all fine and dandy, but for me that means it’s EGGNOG time! Though I rarely drink eggnog by itself, I LOVE the flavor of eggnog, with its creamy and nutmeg-y, slightly boozy flavor and I’ve used it in tons of stuff. I’ve made eggnog cinnamon rolls, eggnog cheesecake, eggnog pancakes, eggnog cookies and even made eggnog biscuits for my apple and fig cobbler. But I’m currently obsessed with these little mini eggnog scones with dried cranberries! Though you can totally upscale them into normal size scones (instructions on that below if you want) I prefer them smaller, making them a manageable size to eat with tea or coffee, or as part of a bigger breakfast buffet or meal. But don’t let the tiny size fool you. My partner can easily polish off two or three of them in one sitting!

How do you make eggnog scones?

Making eggnog scones is easy.  Combine the dry ingredients of flour, brown sugar, salt, baking powder and nutmeg. Then grate a stick of butter over the dry ingredients and toss them together to coat the butter flakes. Add the dried cranberries and repeat, tossing to coat the cranberries.

Beat together the wet ingredients of eggnog, egg, vanilla and rum extract (if using). Then drizzle the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and toss and fold the ingredients together until a dough forms. Don’t overmix. A few dry spots are ok.

Then divide the dough into 3 equal parts, form them into a 5-inch wide disk that is about 3/4-inch thick and cut each disk into 6 wedges. Stick it in the fridge while you preheat the oven. Once the oven has preheated and the scones have chilled, brush the top with a little more eggnog, sprinkle with some turbinado sugar and bake until golden brown!

What makes these scones better than others?

My biggest issue with scones is they tend to be very dry. I prefer a more moist and tender scone, and to achieve that I do a couple of things.

I grate the butter into the dough. This allows scones to achieve almost a biscuit flakiness, while still be rich in flavor. If you find the grating of the butter to be persnickety, you can cut the butter into small bits and then smash them flat with your fingers. You want the butter pieces to be roughly the size of peas, but flat disks if possible. Work fast though, as the heat of your hand can melt the butter.

I also use less flour in this recipe than a lot of other scone recipes. This makes the dough a little harder to work with, but I compensate for this by dusting the surface that I’m placing the dough and also dipping my cutting blade/bench scraper with flour so I can cut the dough cleanly. The less flour in the dough means it’s can absorb the surface flour without an issue. And a more moist dough makes a more moist scone.

Finally, I chill the scones while I preheat the oven. Though this may seem fussy, I find the 30 minutes in the fridge makes a difference in solidifying the butter a little and allow the scones to rise more. You can skip this step if you are in a rush and preheat the oven before making the scones and bake them directly, but expect the scones to be more dense and heavier.

How do I make these into normal size scones?

If you don’t want to make mini scones, just divide the dough into 2 parts , roughly 420 grams if you have a scale. Then flatten and pat each half into a disk that is roughly 6 1/2-inch round and 3/4-inch thick. Cut the disks into 6 wedges each and bake for 18 to 20 minutes in a 425°F.

Can I make the dough ahead?

Yes! I actually recommend making this dough ahead of time if you can. Make the dough and shape and form the scones. Then place them on a lined baking sheet and cover tightly with plastic wrap. The next morning preheat the oven and bake them directly from the fridge after removing the plastic wrap.

How do I store these?

Store leftover scones in an airtight container or in a heavy duty Ziplock resealable gallon bag at room temperature. Refresh the scones in a 350°F oven or toaster oven for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. Scones will keep for about 3 days. 

You can also freeze the scones, again keeping them in an airtight container or ziplock bag. Just thaw them out at room temperature, then refresh them in the oven or toaster oven in the same manner as above. Frozen scones will keep for up to 3 months in the freezer.

What sort of eggnog should you use?

You can use any store-bought eggnog for this recipe but you can also use homemade eggnog if you wish. Keep in mind that eggnog varies per brand and homemade recipe. Taste the eggnog and if it is on the sweet side, you may want to reduce the sugar in this recipe to accommodate. It. For extra sweet eggnog, I often use 3 tablespoons of brown sugar instead of 1/4 cup.

Variations

I used dried cranberries because the festive red berries taste great with the eggnog flavor. But you can use other dried fruit or even a blend of dried fruit if you wish. Some great alternatives would be:

• Dried cherries
• Black raisins
• Golden raisins
• Currants
• Dried blueberries
• Dried figs, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
• Dried apricots, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
• Crystallized candied ginger, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces

If you like these scones, check out these other breakfast treats:

• Fig and Hazelnut Scones
• Pumpkin Star Bread with Dried Cranberries
• Cinnamon Rolls
• Cinnamon Orange Pull-Apart Bread
• Cardamom Buns
• Cranberry Spiral Bread
• Apricot Yeast Brea
• Carrot Muffins
• Gingerbread Cupcakes
• Pumpkin Spice Latte Bread
• Apple Cider Donuts
• Apple Fritters

Print

Mini Eggnog Scones with Dried Cranberries

These mini eggnog scones are studded with festive tart and sweet dried cranberries. Grating the butter and chilling the dough before baking ensures that the scones will rise nicely, leading to a flaky and fluffy scone that isn’t heavy or dense. The slightly moist dough allows you use a little extra flour on the surface, bench scraper or knife, and your hands so you can form the scones without making a dry baked good. Use whatever eggnog you have on hand (storebought or homemade) but keep in mind that sweeter eggnogs will result in a sweeter scone. If the eggnog is very sweet, I reduce the sugar in the dough to 3 tablespoons.

Calories 143kcal

Author Irvin

Ingredients

Dough

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 315 g
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar 55 g
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup cold butter 115 g or 1 stick
• 1 cup dried cranberries 130 g
• 3/4 cup cold eggnog storebought or homemade
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon rum extract optional but recommended

To finish

• All-purpose flour for forming scones dough
• 2 tablespoons eggnog
• 2 tablespoons turbinado sugar or white sugar

Instructions

• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or with a silicon baking mat.

  Vigorously mix together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg in a large bowl with a balloon whisk until uniform in color.
  
• Grate the cold butter through the large hole of a box grater or hand grater into the dry ingredients. Toss gently with the dry ingredients to coat the grated butter. Add the dried cranberries and toss again to coat.
  
• Place the eggnog, egg, vanilla extract and rum extract (if using) in a glass measuring cup and beat together with a fork or a small whisk. Drizzle all the eggnog mixture over the dry ingredients and toss gently to combine with a spatula or wooden spoon.
  
• Mix until a moist dough forms, but don’t overmix. Don’t worry if there are a few dry spots here and there. Just mix gently, folding the dough over itself until most of the dry ingredients are absorbed.
  
• Dust a clean surface lightly with flour, then scrape the scone dough out onto the surface. Divide the dough into 3 parts, roughly 275 grams per part if you have a scale.
  
• Dust your hands with flour and take one dough part and gently pat the dough into a 5-inch wide disk, about 3/4-inch thick. Dust with a little more flour if the dough is sticking.

  Take a bench scraper or a butter knife, and cut the disk into 6 even wedges. You can coat the bench scraper or knife with flour if the dough is sticking when you cut.
  
• Move the wedges to the lined baking sheet, leaving at least 1 inch of space between each wedge. Repeat with the remaining dough.

  Once the scones are formed place the entire baking sheet with the scones on them in the fridge. If you plan on baking the scones the next day, cover the scones tightly with plastic wrap. If you plan on baking them the same day, no need to cover them. Let the scones chill 30 minutes minimum in the fridge.

  While the scones are chilling preheat the oven to 425°F.

  Once the scones have chilled, pull them out of the fridge and brush the top of the scones with the eggnog and then sprinkle with turbinado or white sugar. Bake in the oven for 13 to 15 minutes or until the top of the scones are golden brown and the sides of the scones look slightly dry. Let the scones cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before moving them to a wire rack to cool completely.
  

Notes

• The scones can be shaped and formed the day before, covered tightly on a baking sheet with plastic wrap, and baked the next day directly from the oven. Just brush the eggnog and sprinkle the turbinado sugar on top right before baking.
• These scones can be made in a more traditional size. See section above for directions on this.

Nutrition

Calories: 143kcal | Carbohydrates: 18.6g | Protein: 2.5g | Fat: 6.5g | Saturated Fat: 3.9g | Cholesterol: 31mg | Sodium: 145mg | Potassium: 137mg | Fiber: 0.7g | Sugar: 5.4g | Calcium: 59mg | Iron: 1mg

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