Last week at my Bible study someone brought in scones. Normally scones don’t tempt me but a friend I was sitting with got a plate and brought it over to share. There were two kinds, blueberry and orange. Not expecting much I took a bite aaaannnnndddd….hold me back. These scones were good. No, not just good, AMAZING. I initially thought someone in our study had made them but I soon found out they were from Panera! I haven’t had much from Panera except their soups and sandwiches and of course when bagels were “healthy” a few years ago and I worked in an office that had them on a regular basis in the break room, I stuffed my face happily with the carb-y goodness. But I had never given their scones a second glance and I now realize that was a huge mistake! They are simply delicious. Out of the two, blueberry and orange, the orange was my absolute favorite. They were both flaky and buttery and not too sweet but the chunks of orange zest along with the delicious orange glaze on top, sent that one over the top in my opinion.
So naturally I went home and was obsessed with finding a recipe to duplicate my own Panera orange scone! I finally came across this one from Love Grows Wild. Overall this was a great recipe and everyone who tried the scones loved them. While I thought they were good, they didn’t quite meet my Panera scone standards. Haha. The scones I made were more cake-like and a tad on the bland side in my opinion. I think I was hoping for a lot more citrus flavor and a more crumbly biscuit texture. However, if you like your scones dense and cakey and not overwhelming sweet, these are the scones for you! They do go well with a nice hot cup of coffee!
- 3¾ c. All-Purpose Flour
- 6 T. Sugar, divided
- 1½ T. Baking Powder
- ½ t. Salt
- 1 Stick Unsalted Butter
- 3 Eggs, lightly beaten
- 1¼ c. Heavy Whipping Cream, divided
- 1 t. Pure Vanilla Extract
- 4-5 t. Orange Peel, finely shredded (I used two whole oranges)
- 1½ c. Powdered Sugar
- 1 t. Pure Vanilla Extract
- ⅓ c. Fresh Orange Juice
- Zest of One Orange
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl whisk together flour, 4 tablespoons of sugar, baking powder and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter (I grated mine first with a cheese grater) until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and set aside. In a medium bowl, combine eggs, 1 cup plus 2 tablespoon of heavy whipping cream, vanilla and orange peel. Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture. Using a fork, stir until just moistened and the mixture comes together in a ball. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead dough by folding and gently pressing for 10-12 strokes or until dough is nearly smooth. Divide dough in half. Pat or lightly roll each dough half into 8-10" circles. Cut each circle into 10 wedges. Place dough wedges two inches apart on baking sheets. Brush scones with remaining two tablespoons whipping cream and sprinkle with remaining two tablespoons of sugar. Bake 12-14 minutes or until golden. Remove from baking sheet onto a rack.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, vanilla, orange juice and orange zest. Spoon and spread over warm scones (I had enough to do this twice after the glaze dried the first time). Serve warm.
Enjoy!