Once the leaves start to turn colors and the temperature starts to drop, the first thing that seems to pop up is not halloween costumes, but pumpkin spice EVERYTHING. Walking down the aisles of the grocery store, I’m pretty sure 1/4 of everything there is pumpkin spiced. Cookies, pasta sauce, coffee/tea, cream cheese, pancake batter, even mochi ice cream (you can find this at Trader Joe’s).

I won’t lie, I do love pumpkin flavored things… to an extent. I don’t need everything pumpkin flavored, but there is something comforting about a nice pumpkin bread or muffins. So recently I made some pumpkin chocolate chip bread (one loaf flew all the way to the West Coast) that left me with some leftover pumpkin puree. I couldn’t let it go to waste, so I made some pumpkin scones. These turned out a little cake-ier, more like a mix between a scone and a muffin top. Not that there is anything wrong with that – just wanted to let you know.

Using a pastry cutter to cut in the butter into the dry flour mixture. If you don’t have a pastry cutter, you can use two knives, a fork, or your fingers. If you use your fingers, work quickly so the butter doesn’t warm up too much.

Dry ingredients, wet ingredients, and orange zest.

An ice cream scooper works perfectly for making similar sized scones.

Perfect warm or room temp!

Pumpkin Cranberry Scones

2 cups flour (I used 1 cup all purpose and 1 cup whole wheat)
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon dried ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg white
1/2 cup buttermilk* (see below for how to make your own buttermilk)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup cold butter, cut into small cubes.
zest from 1 small orange
3/4 cup dried cranberries

*to make buttermilk: mix 1/2 cup milk with 1/2 tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice. Let sit 10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or baking mat.

In a large bowl, whisk flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and salt. In a smaller bowl, whisk together egg white, buttermilk, and vanilla. Set aside.

Put the butter cubes in the bowl with the dried ingredients and cut in with a pastry cutter until it resembles small peas. Mix wet ingredients in with the dry ingredients. Add orange zest and cranberries. Stir to combine. Use an ice cream scooper to scoop batter onto baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temp. Enjoy!