Apricot-Orange Cream Scones

These versatile scones, containing no egg, can be mixed, baked and ready to enjoy in 35 minutes! MORE + LESS -

cups Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour

tablespoons granulated sugar

teaspoons baking powder

teaspoons grated orange peel

1/2

teaspoon salt

1/2

cup chopped dried apricots

1/2

cup white vanilla baking chips

1 1/3

cups whipping cream

cup powdered sugar

to 3 tablespoons orange juice

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1

Heat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease cookie sheet. In large bowl, mix flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, orange peel and salt until well blended. Stir in apricots and baking chips. Add whipping cream all at once; stir just until dry ingredients are moistened.
2

On lightly floured surface, knead dough 6 or 7 times until smooth. Divide dough in half. Pat each half into 6-inch round; cut each into 6 wedges. Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet.
3

Bake 10 to 13 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 5 minutes. Meanwhile, in small bowl, mix powdered sugar and enough orange juice for desired drizzling consistency. Drizzle icing over warm scones. Serve warm.

Cranberry-Pecan Scones: Substitute dried sweetened cranberries for the apricots and add 1/2 cup chopped pecans with the cranberries. Double Chocolate-Almond Scones: Omit orange peel and apricots. Stir in 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips with the white baking chips. Add 1/4 teaspoon almond extract with the whipping cream. For the icing, substitute water for the orange juice and stir in 1/4 teaspoon almond extract. Sprinkle tops of iced scones with 2 tablespoons sliced almonds.
For the lightest, most tender scones, quickly mix and shape the dough, handling it as little as possible. Use only a sprinkle of flour on the work surface.
Using whipping cream in this recipe eliminates the need for butter and eggs. The high fat content in the cream makes them very tender and rich.