It’s tempting to give the dough a good workout, but the secret to good scones is lightness of handling. They're also best made and eaten on the same day
Makes: 12-14
Ingredients:
480g (4 cups) cake flour
Pinch of salt
30ml (2 tbsp) baking powder
125g butter, cubed
85ml (⅓ cup) sugar
250ml (1 cup) buttermilk
1 extra-large egg
60-80ml water, as needed
Beaten egg, for glazing
Topping:
Butter and/or whipped cream
Jam of your choice
Method:
1) Sift the flour, salt and baking powder into a large bowl. Lightly rub in the butter with your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Mix in the sugar.
2) In a separate bowl, combine the buttermilk and egg and, using a round-bladed knife, stir this into the flour mixture with enough water to make a soft — but not too sticky — dough. The dough should come together and leave the sides of the bowl clean.
3) Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead very lightly until it forms a ball.
4) Using lightly floured fingers, pat the dough down to about 3cm thick. Cut out scones using a 7cm-diameter cutter and place on a greased or sprayed baking sheet.
5) Lightly knead together the trimmings and cut out a last scone.
6) Brush each scone with a little beaten egg and bake in a preheated oven at 220°C for 12-15 minutes. Allow to cool and serves with butter, cream or jam — or a combination of these, or all three.