Cream Scones

Scones... They conjure up images of ladies who lunch. Ahh... to be one of them. Anyway, getting back to reality, scones are wonderful British cakes typically consumed for tea. There are a variety of scones and they can be sweet or savoury.

The recipe I used here is adapted from the wonderful Joy of Baking. The scones are light with a crispy exterior. It has that texture which is between a biscuit and a cake which is utterly delightful.

This recipe yields 5 scones.

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tbsp white sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
3 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup whole milk
Cream for glazing

Instructions:
1) Preheat oven to 190C and place rack in the middle of the oven. Grease a cookie sheet.
2) In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Blend the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives. The mixture should look like coarse crumbs. In a small measuring cup, combine the milk, beaten egg and vanilla. Add this mixture to the flour mixture. Stir until just combined. Do not over-mix.
3) Knead dough gently on a lightly floured surface. Roll or pat dough into a circle that is about 3.5 inches (9cm) round. Then using a 2 1/2 inch (6.5 cm) round cookie cutter, cut the dough into rounds. Place the rounds on the prepared cookig sheet, spacing a few inches apart. Brush the tops of the scones with a little cream.
4) Bake for about 18 minutes or until nicely browned and a toothpick inserted into the center of a scone comes out clean. Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool. Serve with softly whipped cream and your favourite jam.

These scones freeze very well.