Daring Bakers – January 2012 – Scones!

With a new year comes a new spark and new motivation to cook! I can’t wait to get right back in to the swing of the Daring Chefs/Bakers! So excitedly I went as fast as my googlefingers could take me and have taken up the challenges already. This month? SCONES!

Audax Artifex was our January 2012 Daring Bakers’ host. Aud worked tirelessly to master light and fluffy scones (a/k/a biscuits) to help us create delicious and perfect batches in our own kitchens! The challenge scone (biscuit) recipe has been especially formulated by Audax Artifex after a large amount of research and experimentation. It is designed to help you master the techniques involved in making scones (biscuits) exactly the way you like them.

I found this note on the instructions to be very interesting. Who knew? Well Audax did, and now I do too!

Chemical raising agents – always use fresh raising agents, baking powder deteriorates within two months once the jar is opened, the recommended dose is about 2 teaspoons per cup of flour. Baking powder nowadays is double action – there is an initial release of gas once the dry and wet ingredients are combined and there is another release of gas from the high heat of the oven. If you are using acidic ingredients (such as buttermilk, soured milk, cream, honey, cheese, tomato sauce etc) then use an additional ¼ teaspoon of baking soda per cup of liquid to help neutralise the acid and make the final baked product raise correctly. Baking soda is four times stronger in raising power than baking powder. You can make you own single action baking powder by triple sifting together one part baking soda and two parts cream of tartar store in an airtight container.

Well, enough talk, I chose to make the variation with cream.  I love cream.

Cream Scones

• 1 cup  plain (all-purpose) flour
• 2 and 1/4 teaspoons  fresh baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons frozen grated butter (or a combination of lard and butter)
• ½ cup Cream
• optional 1 tablespoon cream, for glazing the tops of the scones

Preheat oven to very hot 475°F.  I was actually a little scared about doing this. My stove is very old, half the lights don’t work, and its never been taken to 475 before.  I wonder why canadian ovens are in fahrenheit.

A labour of love. Sift dry ingredients.. THREE times. Without a sifter? I must mean business.

grate your butter in with the sifted stuff and rub/cut it til it has the texture of beach sand*

*need an example of beach sand?

add the cream. All of it.

on a floured surface, flour the top of the scones too, and kneed them. Cut them with a biscuit cutter OR just slice them in triangles

Bake for 10 minutes at 475. Check them at 8 to make sure they're not burnt. Place on cooling rack.

Top appropriately. Mmmm Jammm. Serve them warm!

Kid approved!