Scones

One of the first things I ever learned how to make was a true scone, made out of my mom’s notes from a recipe she gleaned from the U.S. Embassy community. The following is the

closest I can recall to that original shared offering and it appears in the British Baking Book. These should be served immediately from the oven with the best quality jam and clotted cream or spreadable room temperature butter. My sons like Vermont creamery salted butter best.

Ingredients

3 ½ cups plain white flour

2 tbsp. baking powder

3 tbsps. Demerara (coarse raw sugar), or regular white sugar

Pinch of sea salt

2/3 cup butter cubed at room temperature

2 eggs beaten

1 tsp. lemon juice

6 tbsps. Whole milk

Flour for dusting the counter

1 egg yolk, plus 1 tbsp. milk for egg wash

Preheat oven to 425 F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Put the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in bowl and rub in the butter with your fingers until it looks like fine crumbs. Add the eggs and then the lemon juice. Add the milk, a little at a time and mix with a spoon until you have a soft, sticky dough.

Place the dough on a floured work surface and knead it together until the flour is incorporated and the dough is still soft but not as sticky. This generally should take no longer than a minute. Flatten the dough with your hands until it’s about ¾ inch thick. Use a piece of parchment paper to smooth the top of the dough to give the scones a nice finish.

Using a 2-inch biscuit cutter for small scones cut out the scones by pushing the cutter straight down. Try not to twist it since it will affect how they rise. Pat the remaining dough back together and cut out more scones until you have used all the dough.

Place the scones on the sheets and brush with the egg wash. Bake in the middle of the oven for 10-15 minutes until the scones have risen and are golden in color.

Transfer to wire racks to cool slightly. Cover them with a tea towel to keep them warm and soft. They must be eaten the same day or reheated in an oven.