The Best Scones by PaddyL

[cwcdesign]

Note from Paddy: They're called Butter Scones in the Best of Irish Breads and Baking by Georgina Campbell, and they are by far the best scones I have ever made, and I have made scads of scones in my years of baking.

1 lb/450g/4 cups flour (I weighed the flour and it came out to less than 4 cups)
good pinch of salt
1 level tsp/1 1/4 US tsp EACH baking soda and cream of tartar OR 1 heaped tsp/1 1/4 US tsp baking powder
6 oz/175g/1 1/2 sticks butter
2 oz/50g/2 US tbsp caster (superfine) sugar (I used plain old granulated sugar)
1/2 pint/300 ml/1 1/4 US cups buttermilk (approx)

Preheat oven to 425F/220C/gas 7.

Sift the flour, salt and raising agents into a mixing bowl. Cut in the butter and rub in lightly to make a crumbly texture. Add the sugar and mix well. Use a knife to mix in enough buttermilk to make a soft but not wet dough. (I used my hands) Turn out onto a floured work surface and knead very lightly. Roll out to 3/4" thick and cut into rounds with a fluted cutter. Lay on greased (or parchment-lined) baking sheet and brush the tops with a little buttermilk, if you like. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, until well risen and golden brown. Serve as fresh as possible with butter or cream and homemade jam, or toasted and buttered while piping hot.

I used the baking soda/cream of tartar because I like the flavor and the texture better than straight baking powder. I also used a fairly large cutter, about 2"or possibly a bit bigger, so I managed to make 12 good-sized scones; smaller cutter will obviously make more. Use one set of amounts; if you mix them you won't get a good even result. These are the best scones I have ever made, and you'll note they are round which is traditional in Ireland. The triangular scones produced over here must have come from the making of soda breads which were cut into fours, or falls. These are also good the next day, warmed or toasted with loads of butter. The best scones

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• This topic was modified 7 years, 10 months ago by htfoot.

[BakerAunt]

Thank you, Cwcdesign. These look perfect. I've copied the recipe and will report when I bake them.

[Mike Nolan]

As scones recipes go, this one is not very sweet. Other recipes may have as much as 1/3 cup of sugar to 2 cups of flour. (But Southern cornbread recipes have little or no sugar in them, so it may be a geographical thing.)

[Author]

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