Photography: Richard Mortimer

Recipes by Suzanne Gibbs

Serving size: Serves 10 or more
Cuisine type: British/Scottish/Irish
Cooking time: Less than 60 minutes
Course: Breakfast, Snacks
Favourite flavours: Cakes/baking

Scones

INGREDIENTS

3 cups (450g) self-raising flour
60g butter, cubed (see tip)
1 ¼ cups (310ml) milk or buttermilk, plus extra milk to glaze
whipped cream, jam, to serve

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 230°C (210°C fan-forced). Lightly grease and flour a baking tray. Sift flour and ½ teaspoon salt into a bowl. Rub butter into flour using just your fingertips, until mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

2. Add milk all at once and mix in quickly with a knife, adding more milk if necessary to form a soft dough.

3. Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead by turning and pressing with heel of hand three or flour times.

4. Pat or gently roll out to a 2cm-thick round and cut into 4-5cm rounds with a floured cutter. Place on prepared tray and brush tops with extra milk. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until golden. Serve with jam and cream.

Tips:

• The butter can be rubbed in or melted and added with the milk to the flour. The liquid ingredients are best added all at once.




• If you like your scones sweet, stir through 2 teaspoons caster sugar before adding the milk.




• To make Fruit Scones, prepare as for Scones but add 1/2-3/4 cup of sultanas or chopped dates to the flour mixture before adding the milk.

Use our step-by-step guide to making perfect scones!