SCONES

Basic, 'must have' recipe for every cook, and every kitchen!

Ingredients:

2 cups SR Flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
3/4 cup to 1 cup Milk

Method:

1. Rub Butter into flour & salt mixture
2. Make well in centre & pour in the Milk
3. Using a Knife, very lightly mix the milk in, making a soft dough.
4. Tip dough out onto a lightly floured bench or pastry sheet
5. Without handling much, slightly flatten out.
6. Cut out rounds using Scone Cutter & place on tray
7. Brush top of each scone with Milk
8. Bake 10-15 minutes at 220 degrees Celsius until Golden on top


Variations:

Cheese Bacon & Chives Scones
Add about 1/2 cup grated cheese, 1/4 cup chopped bacon pieces and 1-2 tablespoons of finely chopped chives to the flour & butter mix just before you add the milk.

Cheese & Corn Scones
Add 1/2 cup grated cheese and 1/2 cup corn before you add milk.

Sweet Scones
Add 1/2 cup sultana's and 1/4 cup sugar before milk.


Meg's notes:

Do NOT over handle scones as you are mixing them as it will make them tough.
Good rule of thumb with scones is barely touch the mix. Mix it quick & get them in the oven quick. I use a chefs tool to rub butter into flour, and then use a wide blade knife with a round end (one of the old style ivory handle butter knives) to chop through the dough as I'm mixing the Milk in. I do this very quickly, and barely touch the dough after that other than to cut and brush before putting in the over. Do NOT under any circumstances think that it is a good idea to knead the dough! Leave that for the bread-makers! If you do this I can almost guarantee that your scones will come out like hard little rocks, and you might as well give them to the kids to play soccer with!