I’ve been meaning to make some scones for a while – in fact, ever since coming back from our holiday in Wells-Next-the-Sea. While we were there, I spent a sunny afternoon at Wiveton Hall Fruit Farm picking strawberries. I filled this massive punnet with sweet, fat, fragrant strawberries – specimens such as I’d never tasted before!
Those that didn’t get eaten there & then returned home with us and made into a massive pan of strawberry conserve. We gave lots away to friends & family and kept a couple of jars for ourselves. We’ve had it on toast & croissants, some was used as sponge cake filling, but you can’t beat it on warm, freshly baked scones!
To make the scones, I once again used a recipe from The Great Big Cookie Book by Hilaire Walden. Here it is:
Afternoon scones
Ingredients
- 225 g/8oz/2 cups plain flour
- pinch of salt
- 2.5 ml/½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 5 ml/1 tsp cream of tartar
- 25 g/1oz/2 tbs butter
- 150 ml/¼ pint/? cup milk or buttermilk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/Gas mark 7. Flour a baking sheet. Sift the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda and cream of tartar into a bowl. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Gradually stir in just enough milk to make a light, spongy dough.
- Turn the dough on to a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. Roll to 2½cm/1in thick. Cut into rounds with a floured 5cm/2in cutter.
- Place the scones on the prepared baking sheet and brush the tops with milk.
- Bake for 7-10 minutes until the scones are well risen and golden brown.
PS – We usually buy Rodda’s clotted cream which is delicious – but don’t you just love the folk artsy packaging too?!