Use Your Discard to Make Sourdough Orange-Date Scones in Your Air Fryer or Oven

These scones are easy to make, taste good, and you can make them in your air fryer or oven in minutes. You also can use up a cup of discard in a quick and simple way, making the scones a great option if you don't want to fuss with a long sourdough project. The scones taste of orange with sweet pieces of date throughout. Although the scones contain butter, it's not a huge amount. Canola oil provides the extra needed fat to keep the scones tender. The scones make a nice treat for dinner, snacks, with tea or coffee, and for breakfast. Enjoy!

Sourdough Orange-Date Scones -- Makes 9

1 cup of all-purpose flour

1/4 cup of sugar

2 teaspoons of baking powder

1/2 teaspoon of salt

3 tablespoons of butter

3 tablespoons of canola oil

1 teaspoon of grated orange zest (zest from a small orange or a couple of clementines)

1/2 cup of chopped dates

1 cup of sourdough starter/discard

Sugar to sprinkle

In a large bowl mix together well the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the butter with a fork or pastry blender. Drizzle in the oil, a little at a time, and cut it into the flour mixture. Mix in the orange zest and dates. Stir in the starter/discard until combined and a soft, somewhat sticky dough forms.

For the air fryer: Cut small pieces of baking parchment to fit your air fryer basket. Drop small mounds of dough (about 1/4 cup) on each piece of parchment, spacing the dough mounds at least an inch apart. Sprinkle a little sugar on top of each dough mound. If you'd like, you can use damp fingers to shape the dough mounds into more of a disk shape. Put one dough-topped piece of parchment into your air fryer basket, put the basket in the air fryer, and air fry the scones at 320 degrees for 10-15 minutes until they are golden brown. Remove the scones from the air fryer to cool and repeat the air frying process with the remaining dough.

For the oven: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment. Drop small mounds of dough (about 1/4 cup) on the parchment, spacing the dough mounds at least an inch apart. Sprinkle a little sugar on top of each dough mound. If you'd like, you can use damp fingers to shape the dough mounds into more of a disk shape. Bake the scones for about 20 minutes, rotating the baking sheet mid-way through the cooking time, or until the scones are golden brown.