The first time I ever tasted the sweet, biscuit-like treat that is a staple in the United Kingdom was at Cambridge University in the 1980s. I was hooked. I have been making all sorts of versions of them, some served with the traditional clotted cream or lemon curd, and others with jam – or simply with a glaze, such as this recipe. It was a prize winner in Saturday’s Kitchen Sink-hosted scone competition celebrating and supporting Tartan Day in Franklin.
SCOTTISH SCONES with ORANGE GLAZE
- 2 cups all-purpose flour; or 1 cup all-purpose and 1 cup wheat flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/3 cup butter, cut up into chunks
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- ½ cup currants
- Zest of one orange
- Juice of the orange
- 1 cup – plus more if needed – of powdered sugar
Combine first five ingredients; cut in butter with a pastry cutter until crumbly. Add buttermilk and egg, stirring until moist. Add currants and orange zest.
Flour hands and turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead a few times until smooth. Divide dough in half and roll out each portion into about a six-inch circle. Cut each circle like a pie into four wedges. Place the eight wedges one inch apart on a lightly greased baking sheet or on parchment paper.
Bake at 425 degrees F. for 12-15 minutes – until only slightly brown.
Let cool completely. Mix the juice of the orange with the powdered sugar. Add more powdered sugar if the glaze is too watery. Spread the glaze over the top of each of the cooled scones.