Raspberry Almond Scones Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to making good scones? ›

"Once you've shaped your scones, chill them before baking," Youngman says. "You can use that time to preheat the oven so the kitchen doesn't heat up while you make the dough. The final chill relaxes the gluten which yields a tender texture.

Why are my scones not light and fluffy? The trick to getting beautiful light and fluffy scones is to handle the dough as little as possible. So when scones don't rise or aren't fluffy, it could be because the dough was over mixed or over kneaded, which makes them more dense.

Use all-purpose flour for a higher rising scone that holds its shape nicely, both in and out of the oven. To make more delicate, lower-rising, cake-like scones, substitute cake flour for all-purpose flour.

For example, if you substitute oil for butter or margarine, you can significantly reduce the amount of saturated fat in your baked goods. This streamlined recipe for Light Scones uses just 3 tablespoons of canola oil, which contains a fraction of the saturated fat found in butter or margarine.

They are typically extremely high in calories from the heavy butter and cream. And, although scones with fruit might seem healthier, most are even higher in calories and still high in saturated fat. Steer clear of scones.

Form the dough into a ball and cover with clingfilm and rest for 30-60 minutes. This rest period relaxes the dough so that when you roll and cut out the scones the mixture doesn't spring back.

To ensure taller scones, start with a thicker dough disc and place the scones on a tray with sides, allowing them to slightly touch one another. This arrangement encourages the scones to push against the pan and each other, promoting height.

American scones use much more butter than British scones, and they usually have quite a bit more sugar. The extra butter is what makes them so much denser. This is not really a good or bad thing, as British scones pile on plenty of sugar (in the form of preserves/jam) and butter or clotted cream as toppings.

Why do you put eggs in scones? ›

Sweet scones and cheese scones have an egg added to enrich them. Both will rise but whatever scone you make its important that they are handled lightly and not rolled too thinly. If you haven't seen it, we show them being made in the cookery school.

Lauren Chattman, author of The Baking Answers Book, says the point in using chilled butter is so that it doesn't melt during dough assembly. Let the butter melt in the oven, not on your kitchen counter.

The mix should be moist, and while it should come out of the mixing bowl clean, expect it to leave your fingers a little sticky. Scone mix is far wetter than a dough – it's somewhere between a batter and a dough. Only lightly flour your work surface to avoid incorporating extra flour into the dough.

The less you knead the mix, the less the gluten will tighten up – which means your scones will stay loose and crumbly, rather than tight and springy.

Handle scone dough gently: “Overmixing leads to too much gluten development, which leads to tough, dense scones, instead of flaky, moist ones,” says Bethany. Once you've added the liquid in your recipe, mix the dough gently until just combined — and no more.

How to make scones rise high? Once you've cut out your scone shapes, flip them over and place upside down on the baking tray. This will help them rise evenly and counteract any 'squashing' that happened when you cut out the dough. Perfect scones should rise to about 2 inches high.

As well as the raising agent in the flour, baking powder adds a bit of lift to scones. Baking powder is a convenient choice as it is a ready-mixed leavening agent, generally made of bicarbonate of soda and cream of tartar (usually some cornflour too).

My scones have spread and lost their shape

The mixture may have been too wet or the baking tray might have been too heavily greased. Twisting the cutter when cutting the scones can also have this effect.