Whole Wheat Scones with Orange Scented Cranberries

I realized the other day that I never eat white bread, when I do eat bread, its always wheat, rye, or some other dark veriety. I began to wonder why whenever I cook I always use white flour and not a more healthful choice. So, here are whole wheat scones, made with orange flavored dried cranberries, which I always buy at Trader Joe's, they are great for snacking, putting on cereal, using in stuffings, and now - scones. I used skim milk in this recipe to cut out a bit of the fat, it does make a more dense and dry scone, but that's a fair trade off for a more healthy scone.

½ c milk
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ stick (2 ounces) unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
3 Tbs sugar
1/4 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Beat together the milk and the egg and then set aside. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking soda, and salt. Rub the butter into the flour mixture, working until you have no lumps bigger than a pea. Add the sugar and whatever additions you choose, and stir or toss to mix. Pour the wet ingredients into the dries, reserving just a tad of the milk-egg mixture to use as a glaze. Bring dough together gently with a wooden spoon.

Turn dough out onto a clean counter and knead it no more than 12 times. Pat dough into a round approximately ½-inch thick, and cut into 8 or 12 wedges. Place on an ungreased baking sheet or a Silpat, if you have one. Using a pastry brush, glaze wedges.

Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until golden. Cool on a rack.

Rating = Good