Buttermilk Scones

Baking scones - I though that seemed ridiculously easy as I have baked them many times but not until I have spoken to Mrs D who always baked good ones. I thought I knew how to but there certainly is quite a fair bit of knowledge to learn from her.

She swears by the use of buttermilk in her bakes and her "minimalism" in dough handling. She uses only self-raising flour with no other raising agents like baking powder or baking soda added as these sometimes leave an after-taste in the mouth if used overboard. Besides, there are a few criteria which she puts in use to get those tall, soft and fluffy scones. Adhere to these and you'll get the "ultimate scone" - according to Mrs D.

These are Mrs D's criteria which I put to use in this session of scones baking:

(a) Sieve the flour at least three times to aerate it.
(b) Do not rub the flour and butter in too much.
(c) Do not knead to mix the dough, mix it with a pair of chopsticks.
(d) Do not roll the dough but pat it into shape.
(e) Maximum thickness of dough should be 2cm and not more.
(f) Use a floured 5.5cm cutter to cut the dough out. Do not twist the cutter.
(g) Bake on high temperature of 225C for less than 15 minutes.

** Best to stick to the dimensions mentioned in (e) and (f), otherwise your scones might collapsed or become lop-sided during the baking process.

I did not use commercially made buttermilk as I couldn't find them in the supermarket nearby, hence I DIY my buttermilk by adding two teaspoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice to 150ml of full fat milk and let it stand for 30 minutes before using it.

These are my lovely scones which are tall, light and fluffy.






Ingredients:
200g self-raising flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
50g cold butter cut into small pieces
150ml buttermilk
Some milk for glacing

Method:
1. Make the buttermilk.
2. Sieve flour into a big mixing bowl, stir in the salt. Rub in the butter till crumbs-liked (do not over do this part). Stir in the sugar.
3. Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture, pour in the buttermilk, holding back a little just in case it is too much. Stir to mix with a pair of chopsticks. Dough should be sticky.
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured working surface. Pat dough into 2cm thick, I really did measure the dough to make sure it is 2cm thick and no more than that. When working on this, if dough is too dry, add in the buttermilk which is on hold from (3).
5. Cut dough with 5.5cm floured cutter. Pressed cutter firmly onto dough and do not twist or turn the cutter.
6. Glaze the surface of each scone with some milk. I used my finger to glaze them and smoothen the cracked surfaces along the way.
7. Bake on a lined tray in a preheated oven at 220 - 225C for 13 - 15 minutes.
8. Serve warm with whipped cream and strawberry jam.

The scones were real winners.
The use of buttermilk really did produce a winner as this acidic ingredient helps to tenderize the gluten formed in a batter.