Light-as-air Raisin and Lemon Scones
Try this easy recipe for light, delicious scones, made with juicy South African raisins and a hint of lemon zest, served with clotted cream and lemon curd. Yum!
Preparation 15 minutes
Cooking 18 minutes
Makes 12
Ingredients
450g self-raising flour
Pinch of salt
110g butter, chilled and diced
75g caster sugar
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
120g South African raisins
1 large egg
Approx. 280ml milk
Lemon curd and clotted cream, to serve
1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, fan oven 180°C, Gas Mark 6. Put a baking sheet into the oven to preheat. Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl and rub in the butter, using your fingertips, until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar, lemon zest and South African raisins.
2 Beat the egg in a measuring jug, then add milk to bring the liquid up to 300ml, mixing well. Add just enough of this to the rubbed-in mixture to make a soft (not sticky) dough - there will be a little liquid left. Bring the mixture together with a round-bladed knife.
3 Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly for a few moments. Roll out to about 3cm thick – it’s a mistake to roll the dough more thinly! Use a 5cm plain or fluted cutter to stamp out rounds. Avoid twisting the cutter - just press it straight through to help the scones rise evenly. Gather any trimmings, re-roll and cut out more scones.
4 Arrange the scones quickly onto the preheated baking sheet. Brush the tops with the remaining egg mixture. Immediately transfer to the oven and bake for 15-18min towards the top of the oven, until well-risen and golden brown. Cool for a few moments, then transfer to a wire cooling rack. Serve warm with lemon curd and clotted cream.
Cook’s tip: Preheating the baking sheet gives the scones extra lift.
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