Scones - One Of The Best Scottish Inventions
Dear Diary,
They are quintessential British.
They are the star of every afternoon tea (in my opinion).
They are not quite a biscuit, not quite a cake or pastry. They are, well just unique.
And it’s a shame that you only get them on the island. Europe, you’re missing out!
I immediately fell in love the first time I tasted them during one of our Scotland holidays.
…. Scones!
The perfect scone has to have a crumbly and buttery, yet light texture. Melt in your mouth. Topped with clotted cream and jam.
Usually, it’s served with strawberry jam but my favourite is raspberry.
A Short Scone History
Guess where the scone first appeared?
Aye, Scotland of course!
The earliest references go back to the 1500s. Much longer than I thought.
But it wasn’t until around 1840 that the scone finally gained popularity and became an afternoon tea staple.
The Big Scone Debate
The biggest question of all regarding scones: Jam or cream first?
So, there are two teams: Cornwall with jam first and Devon with cream first.
In my opinion, there’s only one right way. Clotted cream first, jam on top.
Mostly due to practical reasons. It’s far easier to spread the runny jam on the cream than the other way around.
I mean you wouldn’t put jam on your toast first followed by butter, right?
Second, I like to have the jam taste more prevalent in my mouth. I’ve got a sweet tooth.
But each to their own.
How Do You Pronounce it?
The second big question surrounding scones is how to pronounce them.
Before I moved to Eastbourne I thought there was only one way.
I was wrong. It turned out my flatmate had a totally different way to pronounce it.
Here are your two options:
Scone to rhyme with ‘cone’ - softer sound.
Scone to rhyme with ‘gone’ - harder sound.
I used to go with option one. Now it’s definitely the second, thanks to my flatmate.
Again, it largely depends on the region. So either way, both options are correct.
Check out this pretty slick scone map below.
Last Question: How to Make the Perfect Scone?
The recipe as such is pretty simple.
But there’re some essential things to keep in mind.
Use self-raising flour when possible.
Use cold butter.
Don’t overhandle the dough. Work quickly or it will lose its crumbly texture and become a bit tight.
Don’t add too much flour to the surface when rolling out.
To get deep scones the dough should be about 2cm thick.
Don’t twist the cutter when cutting them out to make sure they rise evenly.
Mary Berry’s Plain Scone Recipe
Here’s the recipe I use, adapted from Mary Berry’s book ‘100 Cakes and Bakes’.
Ingredients
450g self-raising flour
2 tsp baking powder
50g sugar
75g cold butter, cut into pieces
2 eggs
about 225ml milk
Method
Preheat the oven to 200 degree (fan) and line two baking trays.
Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl.
Rub in the butter using your finger tips until you get a crumbly texture.
In a measuring jar, crack the eggs and fill up with the milk until you reach about 300ml.
Stir the egg mixture into the dry ingredients. You want a sticky dough and might not need the whole liquid.
Turn out on a lightly floured surface and quickly roll out to a rectangle about 2cm thick.
Use a 5cm fluted round cookie cutter to cut them out and place on the baking trays.
Brush the tops with a little milk or the leftover egg and milk mixture.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until well risen and golden brown.
Transfer on a wire rack. Scones taste best when still slightly warm!
Makes about 10 large scones.
You will also quite often find fruit scones, using sultanas, cherries or any other dried fruit.