Sunday mornings can mean many things; carefree lazing, sunrise jogging, or hangover nursing. But how ever you spend your early moments on the day of rest, sooner or later breakfast will become a nagging craving in the back of your mind. Sure, the classic standards are always an option; eggs, bacon, pancakes, waffles; the typical diner denizen. But why not try something new? Something flaky and buttery? Something that is as comfortable with breakfast or if someone pops around for tea? Something ... British!
The lovely scone is a versatile dish. Have it with jam for breakfast, or as a late afternoon snack. Have it plain or stuffed with blueberries, raspberries, or chocolate chips. You can even have it savory; with cheese, poppy seeds, or cumin.
And the thing is, scones are easy to make! I was surprised when I first started scouring the internet for recipes. The basic recipe idea is simple and you can make whatever variation you want.
I will be making both plain and blueberry scones today, as the basic batter is the same. The only difference is that I add some blueberries in half the batter.
For 15 - 20 scones, you will need:
Now add the cold butter.
If you have a food processor, you could add the butter and dry mix to it, and pulse until you get a rough powder. Otherwise, you can use your fingers to incorporate the butter by taking some butter and some flour between your fingers and squeezing.
Either way, you should end up with a rough-textured, dry powder.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg well ...
... add the milk ...
... and mix well.
Make a well in the center of the buttered dry mix.
And add the milk and egg mixture to the well.
Fold the mixture together to form a sticky dough.
Yes, I know it is very sticky, but that is why your scone is going to be oh-so-melt-in-your-mouth soft and delicious. A drier dough would make a drier scone, so resist adding more flour.
Now, I divided my dough roughly into two parts and added 50 grams of blueberries to one half. Fold the blueberries in until they are somewhat evenly distributed.
Sprinkle some flour onto your working surface.
Roll out the dough onto the floured surface.
And gently knead a little, just folding it into itself on all sides until it firms up a little.
You can, if you like, roll them into small balls and flatten them, or shape them however you want. I chose to roll the whole dough until it was about 2 centimeters thick.
And then I basically cut out triangles and arranged them on a parchment-paper lined baking tray.
Allow them to rest for a few minutes and then pop them in the oven. 15 minutes of cooking time is a rough estimate, but it is going to depend a lot on your oven and the original temperature of the butter, amongst other things. It is best to keep your eye on them after 10 minutes.
And that is all there is to it! Best served with jam, for breakfast or afternoon tea, and can be kept sealed in an airtight container for a few days.
The lovely scone is a versatile dish. Have it with jam for breakfast, or as a late afternoon snack. Have it plain or stuffed with blueberries, raspberries, or chocolate chips. You can even have it savory; with cheese, poppy seeds, or cumin.
And the thing is, scones are easy to make! I was surprised when I first started scouring the internet for recipes. The basic recipe idea is simple and you can make whatever variation you want.
I will be making both plain and blueberry scones today, as the basic batter is the same. The only difference is that I add some blueberries in half the batter.
For 15 - 20 scones, you will need:
- 3 cups of flour
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 5 teaspoons of baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 180 grams of cold butter
- 1 cup of milk
- 1 egg
- 100 grams of blueberries (if you are making a full batch of blueberry scones)
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Start by preheating your oven to 200C (390F).
Add the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt to a bowl and whisk everything together.
Now add the cold butter.
If you have a food processor, you could add the butter and dry mix to it, and pulse until you get a rough powder. Otherwise, you can use your fingers to incorporate the butter by taking some butter and some flour between your fingers and squeezing.
Either way, you should end up with a rough-textured, dry powder.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg well ...
... add the milk ...
... and mix well.
Make a well in the center of the buttered dry mix.
And add the milk and egg mixture to the well.
Fold the mixture together to form a sticky dough.
Yes, I know it is very sticky, but that is why your scone is going to be oh-so-melt-in-your-mouth soft and delicious. A drier dough would make a drier scone, so resist adding more flour.
Now, I divided my dough roughly into two parts and added 50 grams of blueberries to one half. Fold the blueberries in until they are somewhat evenly distributed.
Sprinkle some flour onto your working surface.
Roll out the dough onto the floured surface.
And gently knead a little, just folding it into itself on all sides until it firms up a little.
You can, if you like, roll them into small balls and flatten them, or shape them however you want. I chose to roll the whole dough until it was about 2 centimeters thick.
And then I basically cut out triangles and arranged them on a parchment-paper lined baking tray.
Allow them to rest for a few minutes and then pop them in the oven. 15 minutes of cooking time is a rough estimate, but it is going to depend a lot on your oven and the original temperature of the butter, amongst other things. It is best to keep your eye on them after 10 minutes.
And that is all there is to it! Best served with jam, for breakfast or afternoon tea, and can be kept sealed in an airtight container for a few days.
As with all the other recipes we put on this site, this is meant to be easy to follow. We are hobby chefs who love to cook, and we are always up for learning new techniques. If you know of anything in this recipe which can be done a different way, whether for increased ease of preparation or better taste, please add a comment below!
Whipped up by Shyamal Addanki
Whipped up by Shyamal Addanki
