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Scones
Scones are British single-serving cakes or quick-bread. They are made with either wheat, barley or oatmeal and baking powder. They are usually lightly sweetened with sugar, cinnamon or honey - or a mixture of each - and may contain fruit such as raisins or cherries. Sometimes they are glazed with icing. They are often eaten by the British with tea and cream. Their popularity was spread throughout the globe via the British Empire. Scones are not to be confused with tea cakes or sweet buns, which are entirely different British cakes.
158 Questions
How will a Fan assisted oven effect baking cakes and scones?
I find that whenever i bake with the fan on my cakes end up too done on the outside and not done enough inside. Dont know if its just me, but i always always always cook without the fan now, keep cakes in the bottom half of the oven and they always turn out lovely. I think if you dont have the option and have to use the fan just make sure you lower the temperature as the fan disperses the heat throughout the oven so it is consistently hot throuought.
A scone usually looks pretty much like a biscuit, sometimes a smaller type of biscuit.
Preheat oven to 220°C. Measure all your ingredients. Combine the self-raising flour and caster sugar in a medium bowl. Use your fingertips to rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. To help incorporate some air into the mixture, keep the palms of your hands face-up as you lift the flour to rub in the butter. This will help make the scones lighter in texture. I have found that room-temperature butter gives a better result than chilled butter in scones. It is also easier to incorporate into the flour when at room temperature. Butter helps give the scones a tender texture as well as adding flavour.
Add the milk all at once. Use a round- bladed knife to mix together using a cutting motion until evenly incorporated and the mixture begins to hold together. Do not over mix. Again, I have found that room-temperature milk is better to use in scones than milk straight from the fridge. The flour mixture needs less mixing to incorporate the room-temperature milk evenly, resulting in a lighter texture. The dough should be soft but not sticky. If it is a little dry, simply add a little more milk. Then bring dough together with your hands.
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently about 4-5 times with your hands, by pressing and then turning, until the dough is just smooth. It is important that you knead gently and don't handle the dough too much. If it is overworked, gluten in the flour will develop which will cause the scones to be tough in texture and heavy.
Use a lightly floured rolling pin to roll out the dough until about 2cm thick. (Alternatively, you can flatten the dough with the palm of your hand). Then use a round 5cm pastry cutter to cut out the scones. Dip the cutter into the extra flour before cutting out each scone. Use a straight-down motion to cut out the scones. Do not twist the cutter as this will cause the scones to rise unevenly during cooking. You can re-roll any scraps and cut more scones; however, these will be slightly less tender than the scones cut from the original dough and will rise less evenly.
As you cut out the scones, place them on a baking tray about 1cm apart. Placing them this close together will also help them rise evenly. I have found there is no need to grease or flour the tray. Sprinkle the tops of the scones with a little extra flour. Bake in preheated oven for 10-12 minutes or until golden and cooked through. The best way to tell if the scones are cooked is to tap the top of one with your fingertips - if it sounds hollow when tapped, they are ready. Alternatively, insert a skewer into a scone - if it comes out clean, they are ready.
Remove the scones from the oven and immediately wrap them in a clean tea towel. Wrapping the scones will keep them warm and will give them a soft crust. Serve warm with lashings of butter or with jam and whipped or thick cream.
Variations:
Wholemeal scones: Replace 150g (1 cup) of the self-raising flour with 160g (1 cup) wholemeal self-raising flour and add an extra tbs of milk. Continue as in the basic recipe.
Herb scones: Add 2 tbs chopped fresh continental parsley, 2 tbs chopped fresh chives and 4 chopped green shallots to the flour mixture before adding the milk. Continue as in the basic recipe.
Buttermilk brown sugar scones: Replace the caster sugar with brown sugar and replace the milk with buttermilk. Sprinkle the scones with a little extra brown sugar instead of the flour before baking. Continue as in the basic recipe.
Cheddar scones: Leave out the caster sugar. Add 55g (1/2 cup) coarsely grated cheddar and 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper to the flour mixture before adding the milk. Sprinkle the scones with 25g (1/4 cup) extra grated cheddar instead of the flour before baking. Continue as in the basic recipe.
Spiced currant scones: Combine 75g (1/2 cup) currants and 60mls (1/4 cup) water in a small saucepan and cook over low heat for 5 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed. Set aside to cool for 5 minutes. Add 1 1/2 tsp mixed spice to the flour mixture before rubbing in the butter. Add the currants to the flour mixtue before adding the milk. Sprinkle the scones with a little sugar instead of flour before baking. Continue as in the basic recipe.
With autumn upon us at Taste.com.au, we're turning to autumn recipes, savoury pie recipes and curry recipes.
When making scones with wholemeal flour would you need to add less or more liquid?
It will require more liquid because wholemeal flower is heavier and denser than normal flour.
