Recipe for Real English Scones

Dec 17th, 2007 by Karen

cream scones I ask you, what does it take to get a real English Scone in this country? Those hockey pucks that our stores and eateries have masquerading as scones are an insult.

Okay, I know. I’m sounding like a bit of a snob. And while there isn’t another snobby bone in my body– when it comes to scones, I just want the real thing.

Why? You ask.

Well, long long ago and far far away, back when I lived in England, I worked in an English Tea Room. I made scones all day long, so as to have the bulk of them ready to serve by 4 pm for Afternoon Tea. (High Tea or “meat tea” is actually dinner.)

And they were petite little wonders. Heavenly. Light. Delicate. Sumptuous.
In other words, the opposite of hockey pucks.

So, when I get homesick for a Belinda’s Tea Room scone, I whip up a batch of these.

Ingredients:

2 cups Flour (preferably cake flour)
2 Tsp Baking Powder
½ Tsp Salt
4 Tbs cold Butter
1/4 cup Sugar (1/3 cup Sugar if you don’t plan on eating them with jam and cream)
1/2 cup Milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl.
Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar and enough milk to mix to a soft dough (but not wet or overly sticky).
Turn onto a floured surface, knead lightly (don’t over mix) and roll out to a 1 1/2-inch thickness. Cut into 2-inch rounds and place on the prepared baking sheet. (You may also just gently form some balls in your hands and place on baking sheet, like drop biscuits.)
Position rack high in the oven and Bake at 425 degrees F (220 degrees C) for 10-15 minutes then cool on a wire rack.

Break open, spread on some clotted cream, and add a dab of jam on top. (If you don’t feel like making clotted cream, just whip some heavy cream until thick.)

Serve on pretty china, with a strong cup of tea. Add milk (not half & half) and sugar to taste. The only thing left to do is sit down and enjoy your real English Afternoon Tea. Pinky sticking out is optional. :)

Posted in My Garden / Recipes

21 Responses to “Recipe for Real English Scones”

on 17 Dec 2007 at 3:34 am1Caffienated Cowgirl

I do so miss English scones. We had a great little bakery in our village that made fabulous scones…one variety was savory with English cheddar and oregano. And when I couldn’t get those, I would pick up some from Marks & Spencer. Oh how I miss those here…I’m going to have to use your recipe!
on 17 Dec 2007 at 7:04 am2Lynn Sinclair

When I was young, I read Agatha Christie. Her characters would eat scones, and I always wondered what they were. Later, I had one. It must have been of the hockey puck variety. One day, I’ll visit a real English tea room and order a real scone. They sound scrumptious.
on 17 Dec 2007 at 8:03 am3Education information » Real English Scones

[...] Original post by Karen [...]
on 17 Dec 2007 at 8:18 am4Mrs. G.

Oh, these babies look good enough to eat. May I?

AM, you are so civilized!
on 17 Dec 2007 at 8:39 am5Prof. J.

Oh, thank you for the recipe! I love scones.
on 17 Dec 2007 at 9:22 am6Fuzzy Logic

You know what will make them REALLY good? After you rub in the butter, stick it in the freezer for a bit before adding the milk.

This keeps the butter nice and cold while you are rolling it out… makes for some really nice layers.

I’ve been known to make up everything but with powdered milk and store it in the freezer… instant scone mix.. just add water.
on 17 Dec 2007 at 10:17 am7Karen

Caffienated Cowgirl, I feel your pain. :)

Lynn, oh yes, if you had a real scone, you’d know it. Nothing like the hockey puck variety at all.

Mrs. G., please, help yourself!

Prof J, you’re very welcome.

Fuzzy Logic, thanks for the great freezer tip. I really like the idea of making your own mixes and storing them. Brilliant!
on 17 Dec 2007 at 11:34 pm8Jen M

Seriously, you are a goddess for the picture AND the recipe.

I am wanting those Right. Now.
on 17 Dec 2007 at 11:58 pm9Deb

Well, I don’t know a thing about scones except what other people say about them. But it probably take the same thing to get decent scones here as it takes to get real croissants. So sorry but poppin’ fresh crescents do not come close nor do the lard laden fakes at the in-store bakery. I will have to get brave, and some extra time wouldn’t hurt, and try these though.
on 18 Dec 2007 at 2:20 am10Ginaagain

Oh so yummy! I love real scones.

You have been tagged.. I hope you will play along.
on 18 Dec 2007 at 10:48 pm11Karen

Jen M, I always wanted to be a goddess. That’s even better than being King. :)

Deb, I’m so with you on the croissants too.

Ginaagain, thanks for including me.
on 20 Dec 2007 at 2:59 am12edj

Ooh lovely. My Mum’s British and your recipe is almost identical my grandmother’s recipe, the one I use all the time. The only diff is that hers has slightly more sugar. I also like mine with currants.
I think I will need to make myself a batch. I got some PG Tips at a local store–no really I’m amazed too, plus we’ve just gotten our stuff out of storage in a friend’s garage so I’ve got china to drink it in. Great post.
on 20 Dec 2007 at 5:22 pm13Karen

edj, this is the recipe from the Tea Room I worked in. I also add a little more sugar because I don’t usually have clotted cream hanging around. A 1/3 cup of sugar adds just the right amount of sweetness for me.

Linda, oh yes, tea cups with saucers definitely! :)
on 20 Dec 2007 at 4:23 pm14Linda

I’m making these and they’ll be great but it’s the pretty china that they get served on that really does the trick. Teacups with saucers too.
on 21 Dec 2007 at 10:32 am15Mountain Dweller

I agree with you that it is absolutely impossible to find decent scones anywhere other than an English tea room – preferably one in Devon or Cornwall. Clotted cream and homemade jam – full of calories but totally wonderful! I’ll give your recipe a go!
on 11 Nov 2008 at 3:58 pm16Nick

I always wanted a good scone recipe! These look fantastic.

It’s almost like a classic Southern biscuit recipe. In fact, looking at it again, I’m not really sure what the difference is. I think biscuits use more butter…

Thanks for the recipe!
Nick
http://www.macheesmo.com
on 13 Nov 2008 at 12:13 pm17Chef Tom

Those look really good! Definitely going to make these after work!

Chef Tom’s last blog post..5 Reasons To Sign Up For My Recipe Newsletter
on 01 Dec 2008 at 11:45 am18carol

I just read your post about scones. Yumm.. I’ve been trying to
solve a problem for quite a while and I’ve always come up without a solution. My Grandma lived in far Northeast England, near the Scottish border. She made a bread she called “tea cake”. I have found many recipes for tea cakes, but none for the bread that Grandma called tea cake. The recipe made 2 loaves, shaped round. Had currents in them. A bit more sweet than regular bread, not near as sweet as a sweetroll. I’ve been searching for years for something like this. Unfortunately, when Grandma made teacake, I was too young to realize I should write the recipe down. As I got older, Grandma had forgotten the recipe. I had always wanted to find a recipe before my Dad died, but never did find the right one. Dad remembers Grandma using a milk wash on the crust before baking. Hope someone can please help me.

Happy holidays to all

carol ô¿ô
on 09 Jan 2009 at 6:53 pm19Cameron

Hello,
I can see that you really like dogs considering your blog title is Author Mom and DOGS. And also my friend has a king charles and she said it can pick out a red ball out of a bunch of different colored balls. It is amazing!
-Cameron

Cameron’s last blog post..The Question That Will Get You Thinking
on 21 Jun 2009 at 4:52 pm20Fuzzy Logic

Old post, but I remembered it.. thank goodness because I just made rose petal jelly and lemon balm jelly and darn it, I wanted a scone! So I’m making these tonight.

Thanks Karen!
on 22 Jun 2009 at 8:56 am21Karen

Now that’s some good memory! Enjoy.