Buttermilk Scones

These pale golden Buttermilk Scones are from a traditional recipe from Ireland and can be baked on a traditional baking plate (see our shop). With the buttermilk and added bicarbonate of soda these have a little more acidic tang to them than traditional English scones, but they go just as well with butter and jam for tea.

Buttermilk Scones Recipe

When working with bicarbonate of soda you need to move quickly, so that the agent can make the dough rise before baking, and it is best to follow the directions and dissolve it first before adding.

Makes a bakers dozen (13)

Recipe Ingredients:

• 300ml buttermilk
• 2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 280g plain flour
• pinch of salt

Recipe Method:

Dissolve the bicarbonate of soda in two tablespoons of buttermilk, then mix it into a bowl with the flour, adding the rest of the buttermilk until a soft dough is formed. Add a good pinch of salt and mix very well. The dough should be stiff, (dry and silky) but still elastic, add more flour if needed. This is where you need to strike a balance, too much flour, and too much over-working, will make the scones chewy.

Preheat the oven to 200C | Or Heat Your Griddle / Bakestone

Turn the dough out on to a floured board or table, roll it out lightly, to about 3 cm thick, and cut into 6cm rounds with a pastry cutter, making 12 or 13 scones. Regather the pastry, re-roll, and cut out more scones until all the dough is used.

Put them on to a lightly greased baking sheet, spaced apart, and bake in a hot oven at 200C for 12 to 15 minutes. Pull them out of the oven once pale-golden and risen.
Or place them on your lightly greased bakestone or griddle and bake off and turn once they are golden, bake on the other side until done.

Remove them to a wire wrack to cool and when still warm split the buttermilk scones in half and serve hot with butter (home-made butter) and jam (jam recipes).