SORRY, SISTER...:

How to make the perfect scone: It's a quintessential part of the British way of life, and it's under threat. Felicity Cloake sets out in search of the perfect scone recipe. Join the cause, for if it vanishes, it's scone forever ... (Felicity Cloake, 4/22/10, The Guardian)

Ah, the great British scone. Such an innocuous looking little thing – plain really, in comparison with the overblown cupcake, or the gaudy macaron – yet how much more precious than these more fashionable baked goods? The honest scone has no sugary icing or exotically-perfumed ganache to hide behind – it stands or falls on its absolute freshness, which is why it's impossible (and please correct me if I'm wrong) to purchase a good example on the high street.

Twee tearooms are similarly unreliable, because scones should be enjoyed straight from the oven, with only the briefest of pauses for the requisite toppings (at the risk of losing a few of you right here, I'll admit now that I'm a clotted cream denier) – making them ideal fodder for home bakers. The problem is that sub-standard scones can be disappointing indeed – dense little curling stones barely worth the effort of buttering – yet without our support, the brave wee thing is in danger of extinction. The following findings are my own humble contribution to the cause of their conservation.

Every scone maker aspires to the towering triumphs of the soufflé – the miraculous transformation of lumpen flour and fat into a billowing cloud of fluffy dough – but all too often ends up with stubbornly flat biscuits instead. The raising agent is clearly all-important, yet cookbook writers are divided over which gives the best results. I've always used baking soda, but I find recipes calling for baking powder, self-raising flour, cream of tartar – and a combination of all of the above.

...but you're not going to beat these.

Posted by Orrin Judd at April 22, 2010 5:50 AM