Cooking with Catherine: English Scones

English scones are a wonderful treat, and they are unabashedly British. Tea seems incomplete without the little pastries covered in Devon cream and strawberry jam. Kate surely enjoys them at Her Majesty’s Garden Party, afternoon teas with friends, or with her morning cup of coffee.

The English scone is nothing like the American scone you pick up at Starbucks. The pasty, chewy, dry blueberry things Americans consider a scone is an insult to the flaky, buttery wonder of an English scone. Along with being delectable, they aren’t too difficult to make. If you don’t have a pastry cutter, you can try to use a fork, but it might be better to invest the $8.

We took this recipe from Pippa’s book Celebrate, which has gotten plenty of use throughout this series!

English Scones Recipe

INGREDIENTS

•  2 cups self-rising flour
• 3 tablespoons of butter
• 2 tablespoons of superfine sugar
• 3 tablespoons of milk
• 1/4 cup of water
• Beaten egg yolk
• Turbinado sugar
• Pinch of salt

PROCEDURE

1.  Preheat the oven to 400F.
2. In a bowl, mix together the flour and a pinch of salt, then rub in the 3 tablespoons of butter, cut into cubes.
3. Stir in 2 tablespoons of superfine sugar, then slowly add the milk and water until you have a soft dough.
4. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead gentle. Do not overwork.
5. Pat out the dough to 3/4 inch thickness, and cut 2-inch circles using a cookie cutter. Place on baking sheet.
6. Brush the tops with beaten egg yolk and sprinkle with Turbinado sugar
7. Bake for 15 minutes until risen and golden brown.