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Scones


Gemonimo
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Does anyone have a good, tried and tested scone recipe for me using french flour. I'm pretty much a disaster in the baking department but want to make scones for my 98yr old aunt who is coming to tea with me next week. She has been talking about them for weeks and I don't want her to be disappointed. I have all week to practice[:D]

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Bog standard recipe 8oz flour (I use the orange Francine gateau type) to 3oz butter or marge rubbed in and 1oz sugar added to that before binding with milk or milk and beaten egg. The secret with french flour is to roll out TWICE the thickness you would with UK SR flour, hence do a big batch at once and freeze scones, so they rise up. There are loads of recipes for ones using plain flour and baking powder or bicarb but to me they have a peculiar taste. I also add sometimes, a teaspoon of yoghurt to the binding liquid. Bake very hot oven for about ten mins until brown. You can add dried fruit or I do one with minced up onion and grated cheese with garlic and herbs for a savoury treat. Using the basic recipe you can experiment.

I then use Mascapone cheese with the jam to make a cream tea treat.
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Thanks Val.. I'll try your recipe this afternoon and test them on my son. I don't have any mascapone cheese but do have home made apricot jam. I just wasn't sure about the baking powder proportions and thought french flour might work as I agree about the taste.  Merci.

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My English recipe says 2 teaspoons baking powder to 8 oz SR flour (Yes agree Francine Gateau is fine). I then use egg and milk and roll out as I would have done in Uk and they are fine and do not taste of baking powder.

Made some this morning. A tip I read on the BBC food site recently site says put them close together on a tin - so that they rise vertically and  flour the cutter between each one cut for the same reason.

Mrs H

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Another recipe for you to try ...

8oz  SR flour ( Francine Gateau is fine )

2oz butter

1oz castor sugar

1 level tspn baking powder

1 pinch of salt

1/4 pt buttermilk/ lait ribot ( 1 or two more tbspns if you need it )

Plus 2oz of sultanas if you want fruit scones.

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Well I made Val's recipe this afternoon and son and heir said they were good - he doesn't normally like sweet stuff.  I liked them too. 

If an egg is mixed into the flour, don't they become a bit 'cakey'?

I'll try Jay Jay's recipe next. I'm going to be all sconed out by Saturday[:D]

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[quote user="JayJay"]

 It's just a shame clotted cream isn't readily available here.

[/quote]

Well I found clotted cream in Bordeaux at Christmas for the mince pies.  I bought it at the Comptoir Irelandais and was not bad. It wasn't fresh, of course but in a sterilised pot but certainly did the trick. Alternatively there is creme d'isigny or as Val mentioned, mascarpone.

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Talking of cream, my daughter brought a couple of pots over last visit to us called Elmlea and it is good for about two months or more kept in the fridge and is a false cream product which did not taste too bad especially with jam as well.
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Well, I practiced all week and today made some fabulous scones for  aunt Mavis's 98th birthday. Insofar as she has a problem swallowing lumps, the recipe I used had an egg beaten into the basic dough and it made the dough more crumbly. Aunt Mavis was as happy as Larry having been in France since the second world war and really enjoyed the scones and shortbread - her first 'tea' for sixtyfive years. The only problem was the heat and in spite of sitting underneath a sprawling erable we still had to fan her constantly.  Where are those Egyption slaves with a huge palm frond when you need them[:D]

Thanks to everyone for their recipes.... I enjoyed tasting every one of them[:D][:D]

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[quote user="JayJay"]

I hope your top taster & of course you, enjoy them. It's just a shame clotted cream isn't readily available here.

[/quote]

You can get clotted cream delivered from:

http://www.epiceriebarenton.com/Cheese-Cream_B24EPU.aspx

I have no connection with them other than we visit regularly to stock up with their delicious bangers, meat etc. However, you may find their delivery charge a bit steep if you only wanted a couple of jars of cream, but for a really special treat it might be worth considering and probably cheaper than taking the troops out to a patisserie for a cake treat

Chris
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