Scones

[astartenyny]

Mine never rise to more than about 4/5cm but I was in a tea-shop in Cambridge where the scones were breadlike and high as Chihiran has mentioned. They were much taller in fact, about 8 or 9cm high.

Any tips?

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a few tips for getting height in your scones

1) make sure your oven is hot. i preheat my fan assisted gas oven to 200C before starting the mix.

2) as soon as you combine the wet and dry ingredients and are about to start cutting work FAST

3) when you use the cutter don't twist it.

4)make sure when you brush the tops with milk it doesn't run down the sides

i'll post my recipe tomorrow (don't have it to hand right now. but after a few failed attempts got the proportions right. it's down to a combination of self-raising flour AND baking powder.

[alito]

Ok thanks, I look forward to seeing you recipe; tonight, I'll try it with a little baking powder too then, 1/2 tsp to start. I too use a fan assisted oven, and for this recipe at least I set it to 220*C (actually, by trial and error I've found it needs 10-20*C more [235*C here] because the seal is broken).

Yeah... I don't usually take too long from mixing wet & dry ingredients to having them in the oven but I'll try to be quicker. I also noticed that the BBC recipe made a specific mention of not twisting the cutter. I do a little, I'll make sure to avoid that. The milky advice is good. I'll take more care with that!

[gethin]

I also noticed that the BBC recipe made a specific mention of not twisting the cutter. I do a little, I'll make sure to avoid that. The milky advice is good. I'll take more care with that!

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The scones in your pic do look a little mis shapen - more like rock cakes than scones . Apart from making sure you get a nice clean cut with the cutter it may be that your dough is a little too wet.

Sour milk and a good pinch of baking powder produces the best results.

gethin

[astartenyny]

preheat oven to 220C/fan200C

dry ingredients (mix together):

450g flour

1 tsp salt

4 tsp baking powder

rub together with 100g butter until it resembles bread crumbs (or use food processor)

mix together: 50g caster sugar and 150 g dried fruit (sultanas, raisins, currants)

in a measuring jug beat 2 eggs with a fork and add enough milk to make it up to 1/2 pint.

mix the sugar and dried fruit with the dried mix.

stir in the egg/milk mix with the dry mix using a table knife until just combined

pat out on work surface until 3/4" thick and use a 2" pastry cutter to cut out scones.

brush the tops with milk.

bake in preheated oven (fan200C) for 10 minutes or until the tops are golden.

[alito]

Yeah, that's unusual gethin; I've never done it with sour cream. I'll try that next time I've got some, and astartenyny I've just given it a go and the recipe comes out delicious. Actually, I halved it all because otherwise I'd get a lot more than I could eat

They did rise higher and I noticed the quantities are a little different, particularly the amount of baking powder. Anyway, thanks again and I'll post some photos next time I make them.

[Beth Wilson]

I have tried making scones a few times and I just can't get them right.

I find the ones in the stores are usually rock hard so I thought I would try making fresh ones at home. Recipe is pretty simple, but I seem to be doing something wrong.

They seem to crumble too much and you end up eating them with a fork or spoon. I do love the flavour of the homemade ones so I think I must be doing something wrong in my technique.

1 cup all purpose flour

1 tbsp baking powder

pinch of salt

1/4 cup cold butter, cut in pieces

1/4 cup raisins

1/2 cup whipping cream

2 - 3 tbsp sugar

Sift flour, salt, baking powder. Rub in butter with fingers until texture is sandy in texture. Stir in raisins and make a well in the centre. Stir sugar into cream until dissolved, pour into well. Incorporate mixing lightly. Brush top with egg wash.

Then I place on a baking sheet forming it into a round flat shape and bake at 350 for 13 minutes.

I have tried mixing them more, mixing them less and they always crumble far too much. There must be something that holds them together like a biscuit? These things just pile into crumbs - which taste great, so it must be my technique.

Any scone experts out there that have a tip or two to help keep these things together or do you have a similar recipe that works out everytime?

Thanks for helping me out!

[andiesenji]

I've had very good luck with these.

KENSINGTON PALACE SCONES

This scone recipe is said to have graced Queen Victoria’s tea table.

Preheat oven to 415 degrees F.

2 cups all purpose flour

2 TBSP. sugar (may add more or less if you prefer)

3/4 teasp. salt

1 TBSP. baking powder

1/3 cup Crisco

1/3 cup butter

1/3 cup milk

1 beaten egg

Sift dry ingredients together, mix with shortening using pastry cutter

or food processor.

Add milk and egg, mix lightly with fork until just barely mixed.

Turn on to floured board, knead 8-10times, flattening and folding over entirely onto itself at final kneading.

(Very important)Pat out gently to about 1/2 inch height and cut with

a biscuit cutter, going straight down and straight up. If you twist, scones will be lopsided when baked.

Bake at 415 for about 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

These may be coated with an egg wash of one egg beaten with a

couple TBSP. water before baking if you wish.

Notes:

Handle dough as little as possible. You will have to fold it together after the initial cutting to cut the rest, but be gentle.

These can also be cut with a 1 1/4" cutter for smaller scones, which are nice for children or if you are having many people to tea.

These can be made ahead, cut and frozen, then thawed and baked

if you prefer. They are best done with freshly made dough though.

The last folding is what gives them the place in the middle to

tear them apart after baking.

These are a flaky scone, not a cake-like one.

Edited May 10, 2009 by andiesenji (log)

[gfron1]

my base recipe is the monk dude who had the PBS tv show a few years back - from St. Louis I think. Anyway the two keys, I find, are not over work them and get the butter to the right size.

I also find most recipes start off too dry - might be a flour issue. I use Bob's Red Mill unbleached white. I add a bit more milk than the recipe calls for but it still doesn't seem like its going to pull together while mixing. Once everything is thoroughly combined I pull it out of the bowl, work it just a bit with my hands - melts the butter some and pulls it all together. Then I stop - just like biscuits - don't overwork. I then shape as gently as I can using my pastry scraper to form the sides while I gently press down.

The issue of butter - I put half of my flour in the food processor and add the butter cut into 1/2" cubes. I pulse until the butter is smaller than peas. Stop, then work through it with your hands to find any sizes that remain large and those I work through my fingers.

With that I always have scones that are just light enough to be enjoyably dense, moist enough to be enjoyably dry, and always hold together. You can find a couple of my recipes at the bottom of THIS page.

[andiesenji]

If you are going to use 100% butter, one easy way to get it just right is to freeze the stick (I keep butter in the freezer anyway) and GRATE it using the larger holes - just as you would use for medium-soft cheese.

You can then simply toss the grated butter in the dry ingredients until well blended and then add the liquid. You get a perfectly even distribution using this method.

[Emily_R]

I much prefer the texture of straight cream scones -- the kind that use heavy cream for all of their fat, so there is none of the cutting in of butter or shortening. Here's a link to my favorite cream scone recipe, one with dried apricots from Sara Moulton...

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sara-mo...cipe/index.html

[emmalish]

I've always had great results with Ina Garten's scone recipes. She has several recipes listed here on the food network site. I haven't tried them all, but I've made both the cheddar-dill ones and the cranberry-orange ones (without the glaze) several times. I always halve the recipes and get eight good-sized scones. Always light and fluffy, yet decadently buttery rich, especially fresh from the oven.

[Beth Wilson]

Thanks guys!

Gfron - I always wondered about the batter as it does seem a bit dry when I mix it and a bit of unmixed flour is always left behind in the bowl. Will play with that a bit more. I think I will try them in the food processor next time too before mixing by hand. Thanks for the tips.

andiesenji - That will be the next scone recipe to try! It seems like it would make a bit more than my recipe and I was thinking of keeping these on hand as a quick breakfast item or afternoon tea. Thanks for the suggestion of the grated butter. Will try that next time I do it by hand.

I was trying to not play with the mixing too much so I was worried that I wasn't doing it enough but I think it will be a trial and error process. Colder butter and add a bit more liquid.

I have lots of new ones to try now! Thanks everyone!

b

[dougal]

I'd profess just a slight scepticism that Queen Victoria's kitchen was ever graced by Crisco!

You need to mix your dough lightly, roll it to about half to three quarters of an inch thick, and cut the scones out. I delight in a hexagonal cutter - which means minimal scraps to be re-amalgamated and recut.

Regarding the recipe, it needs acid. Cream of tarter is 'traditional'. I like using yoghurt.

The acid helps the chemistry of rising and adds the necessary 'tang'. Even for sweet scones. But savoury ones are very good ...

Rubbing in the fat by hand is the proper way, followed by gentle hand mixing to barely incorporate the liquid.

Those stages are very significant in getting the right texture.

I must try andisenji's suggestion of grating frozen butter - I've never tried that, but have a vague memory of seeing something similar somewhere, maybe in Nigella. Sounds very useful for larger-than-domestic quantities!

Worth a look -

http://www.danlepard.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1705

[tsquare]

If you like short scones rather than cream scones, the recipe I have has 3 cups flour to 1 cup butter, plus 1/2 cup milk and 1 egg. Just for proportions sake. From this book:

Bread Alone (the novel)

[K8memphis]

I have tried making scones a few times and I just can't get them right.

I find the ones in the stores are usually rock hard so I thought I would try making fresh ones at home.  Recipe is pretty simple, but I seem to be doing something wrong.

They seem to crumble too much and you end up eating them with a fork or spoon.  I do love the flavour of the homemade ones so I think I must be doing something wrong in my technique.

1 cup all purpose flour

1 tbsp baking powder

pinch of salt

1/4 cup cold butter, cut in pieces

1/4 cup raisins

1/2 cup whipping cream

2 - 3 tbsp sugar

Sift flour, salt, baking powder.  Rub in butter with fingers until texture is sandy in texture.  Stir in raisins and make a well in the centre.  Stir sugar into cream until dissolved, pour into well.  Incorporate mixing lightly.  Brush top with egg wash.

Then I place on a baking sheet forming it into a round flat shape and bake at 350 for 13 minutes.

I have tried mixing them more, mixing them less and they always crumble far too much.  There must be something that holds them together like a biscuit?  These things just pile into crumbs - which taste great, so it must be my technique.

Any scone experts out there that have a tip or two to help keep these things together or do you have a similar recipe that works out everytime?

Thanks for helping me out!

←

Beth, I think one tablespoon of baking powder is too much to one cup of flour--that may be why they are 'spoon fed' scones.

A hint I learned (probably on here) was that if you want your scones/biscuits to rise better use a sharp cutter.

I use self rising flour

[Beth Wilson]

Would you eliminate the baking powder for the self rising flour?

[ruthcooks]

Shirley Corriher does not care for scones, and gives only one recipe in her baking book which she says is light, moist and sweet. She gives a few tips:

1. use low protein flour like White Lily (although the consensus is it ain't what it used to be before they moved the plant)

2. eggs make the scones dry, as does using all cream

3. The wetter the dough, the lighter the scone

Her recipe contains buttermilk, heavy cream and 1/4 cup shortening. (It's a variation on her "Touch of Grace" biscuits.) She flavors the dough with orange zest, white chocolate chips and fresh raspberries. and gives an optional icing.

I'm with Shirley, I've never met a scone I didn't think was too dry to eat, but I might try this one.

[andiesenji]

I'd profess just a slight scepticism that Queen Victoria's kitchen was ever graced by Crisco! 

I found the site where I originally found the recipe: Elmwood Inn

I thought it was a bit odd but then many of my recipes are made with lard and I have one that specifies rendered kidney suet. Needless to say, I substitute for the latter.

On another note:

I have recently been trying some scone mixes - comparing King Arthur, Sticky Fingers and Ivy Cottage for a friend who plans to use one or more of them in gift baskets. (She lives in a studio apartment with no oven so I sort of volunteered to help out. )

These mixes are wetter/sticker than my home-made ones and really not suitable for patting out and cutting (without adding extra flour, which I think is unwise) so I have been scooping then with a disher then flattening them with a silicone spatula dipped in water.

So far I like some of the King Arthur, some of the Sticky Fingers and none of the Ivy Cottage.

My friend is leaning toward the Sticky Fingers because they don't require as many added ingredients.

This morning I prepared KA's "French Toast" scones and they were very good. The Cinnamon Pecan Whole Grain are too sweet for me. Of the savory ones, the KA's are too salty by far.

Edited May 11, 2009 by andiesenji (log)

[stuartlikesstrudel]

I haven't really tried perfecting a scone recipe, because i prefer many other baked goods to them, but this one works pretty well in a pinch - VERY simple, and decent, I think. They need to be eaten in the same day, preferably in a few hours.

3 cups self-raising flour

1 cup cream

1 cup lemonade (maybe not American lemonade... the clear, bubbly one, so 7up type of thing)

Salt to taste, I guess.

mix, cut, cook!

Apparently you can use soda water for some/all of the lemonade if you don't want it as sweet.

Edited May 11, 2009 by stuartlikesstrudel (log)

[dougal]

I'd profess just a slight scepticism that Queen Victoria's kitchen was ever graced by Crisco! 

I found the site where I originally found the recipe: Elmwood Inn

I thought it was a bit odd but then ...

←

Queen Victoria, Empress of India, etc, died 1901.

Crisco introduced 1911. Ten years after her death.

However, maybe Kentucky has a different Queen Victoria ... ?

[andiesenji]

I'd profess just a slight scepticism that Queen Victoria's kitchen was ever graced by Crisco! 

I found the site where I originally found the recipe: Elmwood Inn

I thought it was a bit odd but then ...

←

Queen Victoria, Empress of India, etc, died 1901.

Crisco introduced 1911. Ten years after her death.

However, maybe Kentucky has a different Queen Victoria ... ?

←

Nope. No Q. Vicky in my KY. However, my great grandmother was presented at court in 1861 shortly before the death of Prince Albert. She was born in 1844, came to US with my grandpa in 1919 and died in 1949 when I was ten. Although she never did any cooking or baking herself, she was an avid collector of "receipts" and adept at coaxing my grandpa's cook into trying one of her obscure recipes. Even at 100+ years she was still interested in trying new foods. A true "foodie" of an earlier era.

Incidentally, I recently came across another "Kensington Palace Scone" recipe that called for "Flora" - which I think is another vegetable shortening.

In Jane Pettigrew's book: The National Trust Book of Tea-Time Recipes, she states the following under the heading: "Possible failures and solutions."

Scones-

If the scones are tough, there was probably too much kneading.

If the scones are hard and not spongy, there was too little liquid.

If the scones are soggy in the middle, the oven was too cold or they were too low in the oven.

If the scones have not risen, there was too little raising agent.

She did not add, but I will, if the scones blow up and collapse like a volcano, you have added a raising agent to self-raising flour............

One other thing. Recently Crisco has changed its formula to one with Zero trans fats. Unfortunately, it has also changed the way the fat works in some quick breads, including biscuits and scones, cakes and especially pie crust. Melinda Lee discussed this at length on her radio show a few weeks ago and several people called in to report that they had terrible results with long-trusted recipes.

In my opinion, Crisco is not what is was and I have stopped using it.

Edited May 11, 2009 by andiesenji (log)

[sng sling]

One other thing.  Recently Crisco has changed its formula to one with Zero trans fats.  Unfortunately, it has also changed the way the fat works in some quick breads, including biscuits and scones, cakes and especially pie crust.  Melinda Lee discussed this at length on her radio show a few weeks ago and several people called in to report that they had terrible results with long-trusted recipes.

In my opinion, Crisco is not what is was and I have stopped using it.

←

I still have an old pre-change can of Crisco in the fridge. I guess I better use it carefully. What are you using or thinking about as a replacement?

[CaliPoutine]

I've had people lined up, waiting to buy these scones as soon as they came out of the oven.

Cook's Illustrated Blueberry scones. They use a neat technique of folding the dough so it has lots of layers. They were seriously excellent scones. You could vary the fruit.

[andiesenji]

One other thing.  Recently Crisco has changed its formula to one with Zero trans fats.  Unfortunately, it has also changed the way the fat works in some quick breads, including biscuits and scones, cakes and especially pie crust.  Melinda Lee discussed this at length on her radio show a few weeks ago and several people called in to report that they had terrible results with long-trusted recipes.

In my opinion, Crisco is not what is was and I have stopped using it.

←

I still have an old pre-change can of Crisco in the fridge. I guess I better use it carefully. What are you using or thinking about as a replacement?

←

I'm experimenting with a combination of butter and coconut oil (solid at room temp and freezes nicely).

I've used a combination of the coconut oil and vegetable ghee (purchased at a middle eastern market) for baked goods I serve to my vegetarian friends. The results were okay but not as good as the butter/lard combo which is what most of my friends prefer.

Regarding the "lard" - I am not referring to the plastic commercial stuff but either lard I have rendered myself or the fresh bulk (non-hydrogenated) lard sold at Hispanic markets and carnicerias.

This product has to be kept refrigerated or frozen or will turn rancid fairly rapidly. Even refrigerated, it has a limited shelf life.

[dougal]

...

Incidentally, I recently came across another "Kensington Palace Scone" recipe that called for "Flora" - which I think is another vegetable shortening. 

...

←

Originally 'Flora' was a soft sunflower margarine "high in polyunsaturates". One of the very first - so the name became almost a generic term for that type of product.

But now Flora is a 'brand'. There are oils, yoghurts and a wide range of margarines - 'light' (and 'extra light') for the calorie conscious, white for baking, pro-active with sterols, 'buttery' with, you guessed, a more buttery flavour, etc ... and one called 'original'.

http://www.unilever.co.uk/ourbrands/foods/Flora.asp