The Best Scones Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into a large bowl. Cut in butter using a pastry blender or rubbing between your fingers until it is in pea sized lumps. Stir in the currants. Mix together 1/2 cup milk and sour cream in a measuring cup. Pour all at once into the dry ingredients, and stir gently until well blended. Overworking the dough results in terrible scones!
• With floured hands, pat scone dough into balls 2 to 3 inches across, depending on what size you want. Place onto a greased baking sheet, and flatten lightly. Let the scones barely touch each other. Whisk together the egg and 1 tablespoon of milk. Brush the tops of the scones with the egg wash. Let them rest for about 10 minutes.
• Bake for 10 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until the tops are golden brown, not deep brown. Break each scone apart, or slice in half. Serve with butter or clotted cream and a selection of jams - or even plain.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 220°C Sift flour and salt . Add butter and rub using your fingertips.
• Combine milk and water. Make a well in the center of the flour. Pour liquid all at once. Mix quickly to a soft dough.
• Knead lightly. Press or roll out to form a round about 2 cm thick.
• Cut using a round cutter and place on a greased oven tray and glaze with milk.
• Bake for 10-12 min or until scones sound hollow when tapped.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Whisk flour, white sugar, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl. Cut in butter with a knife or pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
• Stir together 1/2 cup milk, sour cream, and currants in a small bowl; stir into flour mixture with a fork until just moistened and holding together.
• Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and pat into rectangle.
• Fold the rectangle in thirds. Turn dough a half turn, gather any crumbs, flatten back into a rectangle, and repeat. Cut into eight pieces and place each scone on a silicone baking mat.
• Whisk egg and 1 tablespoon milk together in a small bowl; brush mixture on top of each scone.
• Bake scones in the preheated oven until risen and golden brown, about 15 minutes. Remove and transfer to cooling rack.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 220C/gas 7/fan 200C and lightly butter a baking sheet (unless you're using a non-stick sheet). Tip the flour into a mixing bowl with the salt. Shoot in the butter, then rub together with your fingers to make a reasonably fine crumbed mixture, lifting to aerate the mixture as you go. Try not to overrub, as the mixture will be lighter if it's a little bit flaky. Now stir in the sugar.
• Measure the buttermilk, then mix in the milk to slacken it. Make a bit of a well in the middle of the flour mixture with a round-bladed knife, then pour in most of this buttermilk mixture, holding a little bit back in case it's not needed. Using the knife, gently work the mixture together until it forms a soft, almost sticky, dough. Work in any loose dry bits of mixture with the rest of the buttermilk. Don't overwork at this point or you will toughen the dough.
• Lift the ball of soft dough out of the bowl and put it on to a very lightly floured surface. Knead the mixture just 3-4 times to get rid of the cracks.
• Pat the dough gently with your hands to a thickness of no less than 2cm and no more than 2.5cm. Dip a 5.5cm round fluted cutter into a bowl of flour - this helps to stop the dough sticking to it, then cut out the scones by pushing down quickly and firmly on the cutter with the palm of your hand - don't twist it.You will hear the dough give a big sigh as the cutter goes in. Gather the trimmings lightly then pat and cut out a couple more scones.
• Place on the baking sheet and sift over a light dusting of flour or glaze if you wish. Bake for 10-12 minutes until risen and golden. Cool on a wire rack, uncovered if you prefer crisp tops, or covered loosely with a cloth for soft ones.
• Serve with strawberry jam and a generous mound of clotted cream (Cornish people put jam first, then cream, Devonians the other way round). Eat them as fresh as you can.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400°F
• Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt.
• Using a box grater, grate the butter into the flour mixture.
• Break the shortening into little pieces and add to the mixture.
• With your fingertips, work the flour, butter and shortening together until it resembles a coarse, oatmeal-like mixture.
• Add the currants and lemon zest and stir.
• Add the cream and mix gently until a ball forms.
• Turn the dough onto a floured work surface and either pat the dough or roll it out into a 1/2-inch circle.
• Using a 2-inch cutter, cut the dough into rounds.
• Transfer the rounds to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush the rounds with a bit of heavy cream and sprinkle with granulated sugar.
• Reroll the scraps and cut out more scones. If scraps are too small to roll out then pat them into circles of 1-inch thickness.
• Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until the scones have risen and are golden.
• Enjoy!

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Sift all dry ingredients in a large bowl.
• Cut in butter. Before you add the berries - mix in the buttermilk. Add berries.
• Knead to form dough. Form dough into 3-4 inch balls.
• Place on lightly greased cookie sheet and flatten slightly.
• Bake 15 - 20 minutes.
• Remove to rakes to cool. Best served warm.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C) and place rack in middle of oven.
• Butter or line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
• Cut the butter into small pieces and blend into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives. The mixture should look like coarse crumbs.
• Stir in the cranberries and mixed fruit peel, making sure not to crush the berries.
• Add the milk and stir until just combined. Do not over mix.
• Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface. Roll or pat the dough into a circle that is 8 inches (20cm) round and about 11/2 inches (3.75 cm) thick.
• Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and then brush the scone with milk. Using a sharp knife, score the top of the scone into eight triangles and then sprinkle with the sliced almonds.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into the center of the scone comes out clean.
• Remove from oven and then turn your broiler on a high setting. Sift icing sugar over the top of the scone and place under the broiler.
• Broil for just a few seconds, until the sugar has melted and turns golden brown. Make sure to watch the scone carefully as the sugar will burn very quickly!
• Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
• Enjoy!