
Lately, I’ve noticed a trend in my baking – morning baked goods; buttery scones, warm fruity muffins, and waffles drenched in maple syrup. Perhaps it’s the time of year?! Simply put, the winter blues! This is when I crave comfort food from my oven and the warmth of a baked good served with a hot cup of tea!
The good news is spring is here! So perhaps my trend will be changing to light, fruity and sweet?! But for now, I’m sticking to my morning baking.
These scones can be enjoyed at any time of year, are a little different and a fun change. They are tender and flaky with the traditional feel of scones but with a crunchy and somewhat chewy texture from the coconut. The cranberries add a little sweetness but by no means are these scones sweet. If you’re looking for a sweet scone, this is not the recipe for you. I have made notes below on different varieties and how to easily sweeten up the scones if you’d like.

Ingredients
The ingredients are simple in a scone recipe and you may even have everything in your pantry. This is a basic and traditional scone recipe with a little added coconut flair! I opted not to use an egg in this recipe keeping them egg free and having a more country, rustic feel. These coconut cranberry scones are not sweet at all but if you’re looking to sweeten them up check my variations below.
- All-purpose flour
- Granulated sugar
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Unsalted butter
- Shredded unsweetened coconut
- Dried cranberries
- Full milk
- Vanilla extract
Variations
- Grated lemon peel
- Grated orange peel
- Mini white chocolate chips (sweetens up the recipe)
- Use shredded sweetened coconut or half sweetened and half unsweetened (sweetens up the recipe)
- Add coarse sugar to the tops of the scones
- Add a simple glaze to the tops of the scones
- For more of a nutty flavour, lightly toast the coconut before adding to the batter.

Cranberry and Coconut Scone Tips
The biggest mistakes people make are adding too much liquid and over kneading the dough. This recipe is a bit drier due to the coconut so be careful not to be tempted to add extra liquid. If you must, 1 or 2 tablespoons should do it.
- Keep all ingredients cold as possible, this will help create flaky layers.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Overmixing the batter will cause a dense and heavy scone.
- Handle the dough as little as possible. Do your best to lightly bring the dough together and pat into a rectangle.
- Cut the scones into rectangles or squares, don’t try and use a cookie cutter as this dough is a little more difficult to cut through with all the coconut.
- Use a large sharp knife.
- Pop scones in the freezer for 10 minutes before baking.
How to Make Coconut Cranberry Scones
Step One: Cut cold butter into small cubes. In a large bowl add flour, sugar, baking powder and salt, mix to combine. Add butter and using a pastry cutter cut butter into flour mixture until pea size crumbs form.





Step Two: Add coconut and cranberries, stir to combine. Then add milk and vanilla and using a fork mix until dough becomes ragged.



Step Three: Pour mixture out onto a work surface and gently shape into a rectangle approx. 1 inch thick. Using a sharp knife cut the rectangle in half, and then cut into 5 triangles on each side.



Step Four: Place each scone on a lined baking sheet. Brush the tops of the scones with milk and sprinkle the tops with more coconut. Place the baking sheet with the scones in the freezer for approx. 10 minutes. Then bake for 15-20 minutes.





Coconut & Cranberry Scones
These country style coconut and cranberry scones are loaded with chewy coconut and dried cranberries. They are flaky, buttery and each bite has a little crunch making them the perfect morning snack to pair with a hot cup of tea.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 40 mins
- Yield: 10 Scones 1x
- Category: Quick Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: British
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed
- 3/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut, plus extra for topping
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon full milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- milk for brushing on top
- extra coconut for the tops
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together.
- Add butter to the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter, cut butter into flour mixture until pea size crumbs form, it’s okay if you see a few larger pieces.
- Add coconut and cranberries, stir to mix.
- Add milk and vanilla, mix with a fork until the dough becomes ragged (your mixture will seem dry).
- Pour mixture out onto a work surface and bring together (gently, not to overmix). Pat and shape into a rectangle approx. 1 inch thick. Using a sharp knife cut the rectangle in half, and then cut into 5 triangles on each side (giving you 10 scones total).
- Place each triangle on your lined baking sheet approx. 2 inches apart.
- Brush the tops of the scones with milk and sprinkle the tops with more coconut.
- Place the baking sheet with the scones in the freezer for 10 minutes.
- Then bake for 15-18 minutes or until bottoms are browned and scones have puffed and set in the middle.
Notes
Store in a tin for up to 2 days. Best served warm from the oven and enjoyed the day of.
Scones can be frozen and rewarmed.
Additional Flavours to add;
– grated lemon peel
– grated orange peel
– mini chocolate chips
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 scone
- Calories: 345
- Sugar: 3.7g
- Sodium: 111mg
- Fat: 9.1g
- Saturated Fat: 5.9g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 57.4g
- Fiber: 2.6g
- Protein: 7.8g
- Cholesterol: 17mg
Keywords: Coconut, Cranberry, Scone, Breakfast, Biscuit
FAQ’s
Scone dough should be on the drier side as adding too much liquid will cause a dense and not so fluffy scone. Sometimes the ratio of flour or coconut may be off causing the dough to be a bit dry. If this is the case, add the dough back to the bowl and add 1 tablespoon of milk. Using a fork gently mix, keeping the dough ragged. Check the dough by gently squeezing it together. If it forms together then the dough is ready to be shaped and cut. Be careful not to overmix and shape the dough as this will also cause a dense scone.
There are a few top tips to achieve fluffy scones:
1. Keep all ingredients cold as possible
2. Don’t overmix the batter
3. Handle the dough as little as possible
4. Pop scones in the freezer for 10 minutes before baking
Yes, you can substitute fresh or frozen cranberries instead of dried cranberries. Keep in mind the taste will be slightly different as fresh cranberries are more tart.
You may also like:

Quite tasty.
I did substitute canned coconut milk/cream for the milk. Worked great!
★★★★★
Oh great idea! And good to know they turned out with coconut milk, thanks Andrea