Last Christmas, my mom decided that she wanted to make a batch of scones on Christmas morning. She looked through her cookbooks and scoured the internet, finally settling on a Cranberry-Orange scone recipe (I believe she got it off the internet, but I don't know the source). That morning, she quickly stirred up the batter in order to get it in the oven before the turkey needed to go in. When it came out, there was a line of people waiting for the scones, as they had filled the house with a hypnotically good smell.

This is the perfect recipe for a busy morning, because as long as you have buttermilk (you can also fake buttermilk by stirring a tablespoon of lemon juice into a cup of milk) on hand, all the other ingredients are fairly ordinary. You can even mix all the dry ingredients together the night before you want to bake them to hurry things along in the morning. Cranberry Orange Scones

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (you can use whatever flour you have on hand, but this particular flour makes a very nice crumb)
1/4 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter
1/2 dried cranberries
2 teaspoons grated orange zest (you can substitute lemon if you find yourself without an orange)
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 large egg

Optional glaze
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2-3 tablespoons of orange (or lemon) juice

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together. Cut in butter until it resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in cranberry and zest.

Measure buttermilk into a 2-cup measuring cup. Break egg in and beat to combine. Pour into dry ingredients and mix with a fork. You may need to use your hands to make sure all the flour gets incorporated. It is a very wet batter, so it gets a little sticky.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat and form the batter into a large patty. Cut it into 8 segments with a knife, but do not try to move. This is only to speed up the cooking process and give you a guide when you go to cut into it later. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-25 minutes, until it is golden on top.

Mix powdered sugar and juice into a glaze and dribble it over the scones.