I felt like having a scone today with my mid-morning break. Call it a late brunch as you will, as I didn't really have time for breakfast this morning and I was famished.
I didn't necessarily want to bake a full batch of scones, however. Especially where there is just me in the house.
Oh, I know you can always freeze the extras. I am a fan of fresh scones, but not so much frozen thawed out scones. You cannot beat fresh when it comes to baked goods.
I really love cream scones best of all. There is no having to cut or rub in butter. You just stir in the cream and go. Easy peasy.
I found a recipe for a small batch of cream scones on One Dish Kitchen. It looked quite reasonable and so I decided to adapt it with a few ideas of my own.
First of all I don't think vanilla has a place in scones, not cream scones anyways, so I left that out completely. I also didn't feel like raisin/sultana scones.
I did, however, have a nice fresh bag of Zante currants and so I decided to go with them. I also decided that nothing goes better with currants than orange zest and so I added some freshly grated orange zest.
I also decided to cut my scones into squares, rather than use a biscuit cutter to cut them into rounds. I like square scones. There is no re-patting of the dough or waste. You just pat them once into a square and cut.
I pat the dough into an even square and then trim the edges slightly with a sharp knife and then use that same sharp knife to cut the square into evenly sized scones. Press straight down and up for a nice straight rise and even rise. No slanted lop-sides.
I also think a good scone deserves a bit of a glaze, especially a cream scone. I added a brush of cream on top of the scones prior to baking and a tiny sprinkle of coarse Demerara sugar to give it just a bit of a sweet crust on top.
It really makes a nice finish. You could use milk as well, or even a beaten egg yolk, but I already had the cream out, so I went with the cream.
Yummy!
Look at how nice and tall they rose. This is largely due to making sure my egg and my cream were both very cold, as well as cutting them straight.
Also, I like to handle the dough as little as possible. Over-handling the dough makes for a tough scone that doesn't rise as high.
Just stir your ingredients together to form a slightly tacky dough, dump onto a lightly floured surface. Knead gently 2 or 3 times and then lightly pat into your square shape.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE ORANGE AND CURRANT CREAM SCONES
One thing I love about these is that you need only a very few ingredients.
- 1 cup (140g) all-purpose plain flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp finely grated orange zest
- ½ cup (120ml) heavy cream
- 1 large free-range egg yolk
- ¼ cup (40g) dried currants
- more cream to brush on top
- Demerara (turbinado) sugar to sprinkle on top
Orange zest really helps to bring out the sweetness of the dried currants. In the U.K. I had my own currant bush and would dry my own currants in my dehydrator.
Today I used Zante Currants that I had bought from Amazon. I buy a lot of my things like that on Amazon. The prices are usually quite reasonable in price, and they come right to my door.
HOW TO MAKE ORANGE AND CURRANT CREAM SCONES
Remember a light touch is key to getting a perfect result!!
Preheat oven to 425* F /220* C/ gas mark 7. Line a quarter sheet pan with parchment paper or use a silicone liner.In a medium sized mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, orange zest and salt. Stir in the dried currants.In a separate small bowl, whisk together cream, and egg yolk. Pour into the flour mixture and stir together until combined. You should have a soft slightly tacky dough.Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead very lightly a few times and then shape into a 4-inch square 1-inch thick.
Using a sharp knife, cut into 4 even squares and place on the baking sheet. Brush the tops lightly with cream and sprinkle with some demerara (turbinado) sugar.
Bake 12-14 minutes until golden brown.Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely, about 20 minutes. Serve with butter, jam, and clotted cream, if you have it.
Boy oh boy do I ever miss clotted cream. I have never tried to make any here at home. When you have had the real thing, nothing else quite comes up to it.
These scones were lovely split and spread with some softened butter and strawberry jam. I was really pleased with the end result. Flaky and light. Little bits of sticky sweet currant, a slight hint of orange and then the butter and the jam.
Washed down with a hot cup of herbal tea. This was the perfect mid-morning treat! Simply lovely.
If you are a fan of the scone, you are in for a real treat. I have loads of scone recipes here on The English Kitchen. Here are just a few of my favorites!
CARROT CAKE DROP SCONES - These are everything a great drop scone should be. Light and fluffy, no fuss, no muss. Simply mix and drop. Filled with sweet carrots, warm baking spices and sticky raisins. Sweetly glazed. These are a real favorite. MAPLE GLAZED BLACK PEPPER SCONES - This is a small batch recipe which makes two very large scones. They have that sweet and savory thing going on. Short and buttery, studded with the heat of black pepper and sweetly glazed. Who know that maple and pepper got along so well! Simply fabulous.
½¼½¼Yield: 4Author: Marie Rayner
Small Batch Orange and Currant Cream Scones
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 14 MinTotal time: 24 MinTender and Flaky, these lovely scones are flavored with zingy orange zest and studded with plenty of dried currants.Ingredients
- 1 cup (140g) all-purpose plain flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp finely grated orange zest
- ½ cup (120ml) heavy cream
- 1 large free-range egg yolk
- ¼ cup (40g) dried currants
- more cream to brush on top
- Demerara (turbinado) sugar to sprinkle on top
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425* F /220* C/ gas mark 7. Line a quarter sheet pan with parchment paper or use a silicone liner.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, orange zest and salt. Stir in the dried currants.
- In a separate small bowl, whisk together cream, and egg yolk. Pour into the flour mixture and stir together until combined. You should have a soft slightly tacky dough.
- Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead very lightly a few times and then shape into a 4-inch square 1-inch thick.
- Using a sharp knife, cut into 4 even squares and place on the baking sheet.
- Brush the tops lightly with cream and sprinkle with some demerara (turbinado) sugar.
- Bake 12-14 minutes until golden brown.
- Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely, about 20 minutes.
- Serve with butter, jam, and clotted cream, if you have it.
Notes
One of the secrets to flaky scones with a high rise is to make sure your cream and egg are cold. Also try not to handle the dough overly much as this will toughen the dough.
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