Scones with jam and cream

Before coming to Australia, my life with scones was all wrong. For one, I was pronouncing it wrong, the Aussies are quick to tell me it is not skoan, as we would say it in Texas, it is skon (like rhymes with gone). Also, I thought scones were these little triangle things they had at coffee shops and the occasional bakery, but here (where I am told they are done correctly) they are round and look an awful lot like a southern biscuit, only lighter and a little fuller/richer tasting. They are very good and I reckon I will love them even more once I leave. (Aussies say reckon a lot, it is quite cute and reminds me of older generation Texan folks, like my grandparents).

Now, if you are going to serve scones, there are many different ways but the traditional way is with jam and cream. I have had them with Devonshire cream and whipped cream, both excellent. I especially like them with a strawberry jam. In general, my favorite jam (or jelly as the US folks might call it, which to Aussies is jello...I know, not confusing at all!) is grape...the traditional kind you see at every American grocery store in all shapes and sizes...which cannot be found here where I live in Oz, I have not seen a single grape jam/conserve/preserve in any of the stores and I have looked in all the ones I have been in. You can get all sorts of flavors...fig, boysenberry, blueberry, cherry, rhubarb, quince, persimmons, strawberry, cherry, passion fruit, etc...but no grape. These poor people have been deprived of grape jam...the poor dears.

So, I decided I would make some scones this morning and they turned out pretty good. I used a basic scones recipe I found online that had lots of good reviews. Now, the Aussies use good old cups and teaspoons and such for baking, the same as we do, however their measurements are different! A cup is not a cup the world around, so I will try to post the recipe below and then translate it to American cups and measures as well.

Basic Aussie Scones

Makes 16

Ingredients for Americans...

plain flour, for dusting
3.6 cups self-raising flour **
6 tablespoons butter, cubed
1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups milk
jam and whipped cream, to serve

Ingredients for Aussies...
plain flour, for dusting
3 cups self-raising flour **
80g butter, cubed
1 to 1 1/4 cups milk
jam and whipped cream, to serve

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 200°C or 385 °F. Lightly dust a flat baking tray with plain flour. Sift self-raising flour into a large bowl.

Using your fingertips, rub butter into flour until mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
Make a well in the centre. Add 1 cup of milk. Mix with a flat-bladed knife until mixture forms a soft dough, adding more milk if required. Turn onto a lightly floured surface. Knead gently until smooth (don't knead dough too much or scones will be tough).

Pat dough into a 2cm-(a little less than an inch) thick round. Using a 5cm or 2 inch (diameter) round cutter, cut out 12 rounds. Press dough together and cut out remaining 4 rounds. Place scones onto prepared baking tray, 1 inch apart. Sprinkle tops with a little plain flour. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden and well risen. Transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm with jam and cream.

** Note, if you do not have self rising flour, you can use all purpose flour, for every cup of self rising needed, use 1 cup of all purpose and add 1.5 teaspoons of cream of tartar and 1.5 teaspoons of bicarbonate soda/baking soda.


Here is what mine looked like after cutting them out and before baking.

And this is what they looked like after....yum!

And here is a picture of them with some jam and cream...please ignore that I didn't bother to take them off the plastic plate I had sitting there...how tacky of me!

They are delicious! I am a fan and will forever do my best to pronounce the name correctly and give them their just desserts! Plus, they make me feel all fancy when I eat them and say "I am having scones with jam and cream."

Ta Ta for now...

Heather