This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
When I think of home, the place I grew up, scones would feature high up in my foodie memories. They're the sort of bake you can throw together in a hurry – a recipe you can memorise and a recipe that won't let you down. It's one that's easy to pass on, too.
For Freya Moorcroft, in Cathy Bramley's new four-part series of eBooks called Appleby Farm, scones are the only bake she can create. She makes them in the cafe where she works, close to the Ivy Lane allotments, being careful not to over-mix them. It's her Auntie Sue's recipe. Her dear Auntie Sue lives with her husband, Freya's Uncle Arthur, in the Lake District on a farm called Appleby Farm. It is the place Freya calls home. And it is the place she is called to when there is a phone call, out of the blue, asking for help.
Appleby Farm features some of the characters from Ivy Lane, which is now out in paperback. Cathy has, once more, delivered an eBook installment that is just like these scones. Warm and delicious, leaving you desperate for the next one.
Cathy has also, very kindly, allowed me to reproduce her recipe for Scrumptious Scones from Appleby Farm: A Blessing in Disguise.
According to Auntie Sue, the secret to perfect scones is in the mixing: over-mix and you've got yourself a batch of primitive weapons …
You will need …
225g self-raising flour
Large pinch of salt
50g of slightly salted butter
25g caster sugar
125ml buttermilk
4 tablespoons of milk
Flour for dusting
Clotted cream and jam to serve
- Preheat the oven to 220C. Grease a large baking sheet (unless it's non-stick). Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and add the salt. Chop the butter into small cubes and add to the bowl. Rub the butter into the flour swiftly to make crumbs, lifting the mixture as you go to aerate it. Stir in the sugar.
- Add the milk to the buttermilk. Make a well in the centre of the mixing bowl and add nearly all of the milk mixture. Use a palette knife or spatula to gently work the milk into the mixture to form a soft dough. Add the rest of the milk if needed to draw in any dry bits. Don't over-work the dough or you'll end up with tough scones.
- Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and press it down with the palm of your hand to a thickness of 2.5cm. Dip a 5.5cm fluted cutter into the flour and cut out the scones by pressing firmly into the dough and not twisting. Gather the leftovers, pat them out again and cut out as many scones as you can. Arrange them on the baking sheet and sift a little flour* over the tops. Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden.
- Allow to cool on a wire rack and serve with jam and clotted cream straight from the fridge. Yum.
* I used a beaten egg, just because I had one of my own hen's eggs to use up – this accounts for their deep yellow tops in the photograph!