Preparation Time

10 minutes

Cooking Time
10 minutes

Makes
about 15

Ingredients

Melted butter, for greasing Plain flour, for dusting 450g (3 cups) self-raising flour Pinch salt 1 tbs sugar 80g chilled butter, cubed 250mls (1 cup) milk Extra milk, for brushing Strawberry jam and thick cream, to serve

Method
1. Preheat oven to 230C. Lightly grease a baking tray with the melted butter and then dust with a little flour. Combine self-raising flour, salt and sugar in a large bowl. Rub in the butter with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the milk and stir with a round-bladed knife using a cutting motion until just combined. Lightly flour your hands and bring the mixture together to form a soft dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently with your fingertips 4-5 times. Flatten with the palm of your hand to about 2cm thick and then cut the dough into rounds using a 5cm cutter. Place the rounds about 1cm apart on the prepared baking tray and brush lightly with the extra milk. Dust with a little flour and bake in preheated oven for 10-12 minutes or until they're golden and sound hollow when tapped on the top. Serve warm with jam and cream.

2.

Notes

VARIATIONS: Wholemeal scones: Replace the 150g (1 cup) of the self-raiising flour with 160g (1 cup) wholemeal self-raising flour and add 1 tbs extra milk and continue as above. Date & orange scones: Add 160g (1 cup) chopped pitted dates and finely grated rind of 1 orange to the flour and butter mixture with the milk and continue as above. Herb scones: Reduce the sugar to 2 tsp. Add 2 tsp chopped fresh basil, 2 tsp chopped fresh parsley and 4 chopped green shallots to the four mixture before adding the milk and continue as above.