It’s New Year’s Eve today and I’d like to finish this year on something positive. It’s been a very tough year. I think it’s safe to say that it was the most difficult year for me and I’m glad to leave it behind. And what’s more positive than husband making me scones for breakfast because I was feeling sick and whiney?

He got me a food processor for Christmas, so when he offered to make scones, I figured it would be easy for him to do and I already had a perfect recipe. Once he measured all the dry ingredients into the food processor bowl and tried to give it a mix, it turned out that this new gadget was broken. We tried a few outlets, assembled and disassembled the machine a few times, but no luck. Unfortunately, we’ll need to exchange it next week.

Still, A. was able to make beautiful scones (under my direct supervision) using just a pastry knife and his hands. They turned out exactly like when I make them and even feeling sick, I could not pass the opportunity to take pictures.

I got this recipe from a free Betty Crocker app three years ago when I first got my iPhone and kept downloading anything free I could find. Since then I changed my phone and stopped hoarding applications, but this one survived the purge. It’s a beautiful little collection of recipes with pictures and easy steps. It uses a lot of brand-specific ingredients, but I just substitute them for their generic counterparts.

for 8 scones

All-purpose flour – 1 3/4 cups

Sugar – 3 tablespoons

Baking powder – 2 1/2 teaspoons

Salt – 1/2 teaspoon

Butter, cold – 1/3 cups (5 tablespoons)

Egg – 1 large

Plain yogurt or milk or whipping cream – 4 to 6 tablespoons (see comments)

Additional milk or cream for brushing the scones

Preheat the oven to 400F (200C).

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder an salt.

Cut in the butter, using a pastry knife or a fork, until mixture looks like fine crumbs.

In a small bowl, beat the egg with a fork until the egg is mixed. *I usually mix it into the flour directly omitting this step and having one less dish dirty.

Using a fork, stir the egg and just enough of 4 to 6 tablespoons of yogurt (or milk or cream) into the flour mixture until it forms a soft dough and leaves the side of the bowl.

Lightly sprinkle flour over a countertop or a cutting board.

Place dough on the floured surface, gently roll in the flour to coat, so that it wouldn’t stick.

Now for an interesting part: fold the dough toward you, flatten it a little bit with your hands, move the dough quarter turn and fold again. Repeat 10 times. This will make the scones appear slightly flakey and easy to separate in half for jam.

Place the dough on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.

Pat the dough into an 8-inch circle.

Dip a sharp knife in flour and cut the dough round into 8 wedges, but do not separate them.

Brush cream or milk over the dough.

Bake for 20 minutes *Important: they never ever are baked through after 20 minutes in my oven. I have to bake them for about 40 minutes, so please check the scones and bake them according to your oven.

Comments:

Original recipe calls for 4 to 6 tablespoons of whipping cream. I have made these scones with whipping cream, milk, plain yogurt, sour cream and buttermilk. Pretty much any dairy liquid will do. I must admit that whipping cream makes the best scones, but the difference in taste is so small, that I now usually make them with yogurt. I don’t measure the liquid, I just add as much as needed to make a soft dough that comes together.

I also think that baking for 40 minutes might be a bit too much, but my husband and I like harder scones. They are still unbaked after 20 minutes, but I think 30 minutes would definitely suffice.

Happy New Year!! Happy Baking! Happy Cooking! All the best and all the health to everyone!