I am about to let you in on the biggest secret I have. Thats right, I have discovered THE recipe for scones with Jam and Cream. I know what you all are thinking, how everyone raves that they have the best concotion to create the greatest scones, but, after 26 months of scone hunting and 26 months of reading and testing all their crappy recipes, I think I have a right to claim this and I have found THE BEST!!
It was in fact the scones that led me on this whole foodie hunt blog in the beginning. They were my first ever hunt and now that ive found the treasure, the pot of scone gold at the end of the rainbow, i want to find the gold of everything!
I had always enjoyed a good scone but knew they could be better than the spongy cakes i had tried. And, i was right, this sacred recipe delivers crunchy crust and soft scone interior and they wont give your teeth that strange floury taste. The recipe is the result of my own researching and testing based along the guidelines of a recipe passed onto me by a woman who works in counselling. Every afternoon before counselling services they would have warm scones and a cuppa.
No, she didnt give it to me while i was being counselled by her, i am perfectly sane, she is just a friend.
Just thinking about them is making my mouth water. Served warm with homemade fresh and sweet raspberry jam (the quality of jam is very important, there is no point whatsoever in making these if your going to eat them with cottees strawberry jam which is more like watery jelly really) and a thick dollop of fresh whipped cream, these babys have caused me to gain a considerable amount of puppy fat.
Risking sounding like every other scone recipe out there, try these, because mate you will not be disapointed I PROMISE.
FRESHLY BAKED SCONES WITH RASPBERRY JAM AND THICK CREAM
Important pieces of information you must soak up before beginning:
In order for the scones to have a crispy outer, you have three options.
1. A pizza stone which is what I use, can be purchased from a kitchen supplies store for around 10 bucks ( in fact i have even seen them advertised in the catalogue for the reject shop) These stones are the best investment you will ever make, they bring scones and homemade pizzas to a whole new level.
2. When we were renovating our home and were without a kitchen, I learnt how fantastic the BBQ is for cooking, I swear you can cook just about anything on those things! (of course im talking a BBQ with a big pulldown lid thingy, not just an average hotplate, you need the whole oven thing happening) So, you can place your scones in foil and put them straight on the hot plate.
3. Or, Build yourself a massive woodoven in your backyard, this is the ultimate although only worth the trouble if your a serious scone cooker haha.
Dont knead or play with the dough too much, you dont need to know why, just dont do it! DO NOT roll the dough out with a rolling pin, just pull it out a bit with your hands.
Make sure the oven has been preheated and HOT so that when entering, the scones get a great surprise and theyll PUFF up!!
Good luck!
Ingrediants:
2 cups Self Raising Flour or 2 cups plain flour with 4tsp baking powder
30g Butter
3/4cup milk with a squeeze of lemon in it
sprinkle of sugar
Method:
1. Lightly sieve or if too lazy like me, just put flour and powder in a bowl. Rub in butter till the mix resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add a sprinkle of sugar and also optional, some like to add some finely grated lemon zest which they think adds a freshness to the scones, i dont but try it if you like.
2. Add milk with lemon in it and combine with your hand till just combined and mix is soft. Turn onto a floured board, pat out to about 1.5 inches thick, do not roll out, do not knead. Cut into rounds using a twisting motion with the cutter.
3. Place on preheated pizza stone in a hot preheated oven with sides of scones only just touching that way the sides will be crisp also. Glaze the tops with a little milk. Bake in a very hot oven 220 degrees for 12-15mins till golden. Serve warm with homemade jam (remember the quality of jam is so important i can not stress to you anymore this vital point) and fresh whipped cream....oh they are so good!
