My very first attempt at making cheese scones was aged 11 in our school home economics class, and I’ve loved them ever since! The recipe I am using here bears no relation to that original one, apart from one very exotic ingredient she introduced us to – celery salt! None of us had ever heard of such a thing then but it’s now an everyday ingredient in my kitchen. The inclusion of sundried tomatoes would have been a step too far then of course. Times have certainly changed!
The quantities I use here would make 8-10 scones:
450g of self raising flour
150g of cold butter, cut into pieces
2 medium free range eggs + enough milk to measure 9 fluid ounces
1 teaspoon of mustard powder
a generous ½ teaspoon of celery salt
a pinch of sea salt
¼ teaspoon of white pepper
100g of grated cheddar cheese + a bit extra for the tops of the scones
50g of sundried tomatoes, snipped into pieces
Method:
Preheat the oven to 210°C and grease one or two baking sheets.
- measure the flour into a large mixing bowl, add the butter and then rub the butter into the flour
- stir in all the other dry ingredients – mustard powder, celery salt, salt & pepper, cheese and tomatoes
- make a well in the centre of the bowl of dry ingredients
- whisk the eggs and milk together lightly with a fork and then pour most of this into the dry ingredients. Keep back about a tablespoon of this egg and milk mixture to brush onto the top of the scones before they go into the oven
- using a fork, mix everything together. As the ingredients start to come together, use your hands to finish off the mixing and draw the mixture into a ball of dough
- tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead it gently for a minute or two until the texture is smooth
- roll the dough out to a thickness of about 2cm and cut out as many scones as you are able to, either freehand or using a cutter. Gather the scraps of dough together, re-roll them and cut out more scones. Repeat this process until the dough is used up
- place the scones onto the baking sheet
- brush the tops of the scones with some of the remaining egg and milk mixture and then sprinkle the top of each with a bit of grated cheese
- bake the scones for about 15 minutes, or until they are golden brown
The scones are delicious served straight from the oven with a generous spread of butter, but if possible leave them to cool on a wire rack for a while
One of my favourite ways to serve cheese scones is instead of bread with a bowl of soup
Cakes, Bakes and Simple Suppers 