Comforting Homemade Scones - Ashley Leong

Just like how kaya toast is a classic Singaporean breakfast, and banana bread is in Sydney, scones were my go-to snack while I was living in Auckland. And what do all three have in common? They are best eaten warm and with a brick of butter.

In Auckland, you can find scones in just about every cafe and bakery you go into because it goes perfectly with a cup of tea on a cold winter's day. I enjoyed scones so much I tried baking it once when I was young… but it came out like rocks. Ever since that incident, I stopped baking them.

However, ever since I moved away from Auckland, I have always craved to relive that childhood memory of mine. There is something so comforting about biting into a warm scone with cold clotted cream and jam, and washing it down with your favourite hot cup of tea. 

So, if you are looking for some quick and easy (and very delicious) for your next girls gathering or if you're simply needing a treat, go ahead and whip up these scones! It also makes a perfect snack for the kids and freezes well too.   

Ingredients:

350g self-raising flour

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

3 tbsp caster sugar

85g butter, cold and cut into cubes

175ml milk with a squeeze of lemon juice (approx. 1 tbsp)

1 tsp vanilla extract 

1 beaten egg, to glaze

Jam, clotted cream, and/or butter to serve

You will also need a 6.5cm round cutter

Method:

1. Heat oven to 200ºC

2. Line your baking tray with a baking sheet 

3. Squeeze your lemon juice and add the vanilla extract into the milk and set aside. 

4. Sift flour into a large mixing bowl and mix in the salt and baking powder.

5. Add butter cubes to the dry flour mixture and rub them in with your fingers until it resembles fine crumbs

6. Stir in caster sugar.

7. Make a well in the dry mixture, then pour in the milk you set aside earlier. Mix in quickly with a cutlery knife until just combined - it will be pretty wet but it's ok.

8. Scatter a little flour onto your work surface and tip the dough out, then fold the dough over 2-3 times until it is a little smoother. Using your hands, pat the dough into a round, approximately 3cm thick. It will still be a bit sticky at this point!

9. Dust some flour on your round cutter, and begin cutting away! Be sure to press firmly down without turning. You may want to flour your cutter again between each one to prevent sticking.

10. Place the scones slightly touching each other onto the baking tray. Gather the leftover dough and pat it out again to the same thickness, and continue cutting until you run out of dough! 

9. Brush the top of the scones with a beaten egg, so that they develop that beautiful warm colour as they bake.

10. Bake for around 12 -14 mins until risen and golden on the top. If you give the top of the scone a tap and it sounds hollow, it is done!

11. Serve them fresh out of the oven, with a generous amount of clotted cream or butter and your favourite jam.

 Tips:

- Use good quality ingredients, especially butter.

- Do not over-mix your dough - the less you handle it, the fluffier your scones will be

- Make sure the oven is fully preheated before baking the scones. I place my tray on the high level in the oven.  

- You can add some variety to your scones if you like. Feel free to throw in a half cup of dates, raisins, or chocolate chips!

- The scones are good to freeze for up to 3 months. Just cling-wrap each one and put in a plastic ziplock bag to freeze. When you want to eat them, take it out to thaw and heat sightly in the microwave for a quick snack. 

- You can use any size cutter, just adjust the cooking time accordingly – the larger the scones, the more time they need to spend in the oven.

Enjoy!

Written by Ashley Leong

Ashley is married to Marcus and they two daughters. They attend Kingdomcity in Singapore.