Friday 17 October 2008

It's Always Tea-Time!

'I know this one! Slaying entails certain sacrifices, blah, blah,biddie blah, I'm so stuffy, give me a scone.' -- Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Back in the day (ie, April), I wrote about my friends and my ill-fated plans for a period style teaparty outdoors, but it was only last month that the weather actually stayed nice long enough for us to pull it off (it was a dismal summer, okay? Eventually we got desperate and said we'd do it outdoors unless it bucketed it down with rain, when we'd go to someone's house; on the morning, my friend Boy texted in bewilderment, 'bright but moist?! What do we do?', haha. The trials and tribulations we endured...)

The short notice meant that the British-themed blog post I'd had in the back of my mind never really came off, and I was baking scones and shortbread the night before with no time for a morning photo shoot (they're divas, those baked goods; the light has to be just so).


I had a load of yoghurt left over from... something or other... taking up precious fridge room (with one fridge between seven hungry students, you understand why I couldn't just leave it to ferment), so when I came across a scone recipe which used yoghurt rather than egg (I have a moral dilemna over eggs at the moment; free-range cost nearly £1 more, and I can't bring myself to spend it, but at the same time I can't bring myself to knowingly buy battery eggs. I'm solving this currently by just not using eggs, but I sort of recognise that this isn't much of a long-term solution) and which involved very little butter and only a tablespoon of sugar!- I don't take much convincing for these sorts of things.


And, of course, it meant that I finally got to post a scone recipe up on Happy Love Strawberry. It may not be my gran's recipe, and it may not be the one I made for our tea-party, and it may even be the first time I've made scones without a cutter, by shaping it into a square and cutting it into nine -- I don't know why I'm saying 'may' anymore. I don't have a circle cutter, it's the tragedy of my life -- but the point is, we British never say no to a scone, whatever the situation XD.

(Incidentally! I've found another Queen fan -no, new readers, I don't mean the Freddie Mercury type Queen, I mean, The Queen - here at uni; we have matching union flag cushions! It's meant to be).


Yoghurt Scones
Recipe found here
Makes 9 small scones

50g butter, chopped into cubes and softened
280g (2 c.) plain flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 Tbs baking powder
1 Tbs sugar
120ml (1/2 c.) thick yoghurt
(I used lowfat) and 60-120ml (1/4c - 1/2 c.) water (start with 1/4c), mixed together

Preheat Oven to 220C or 440F

1. Sift dry ingredients onto softened butter, and mush together with your fingers until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs. Pour in the sugar, yoghurt mix, and quickly mix to form a soft dough. Add more water if the mixture appears dry and the dough feels tough.

2. Dust an oven tray with flour, and roll the dough out into a 20cm square. Cut into thirds horizontally and vertically so you end up with 9 scones, but DON'T separate. (I did, because I'm an idiot, but then I realised and pushed them back together again. My cunning knows no bounds).

3. Bake for about 10 minutes in center rack of your oven until tops are pale golden, then divide them up. Serve hot/warm - once cool, these taste better microwaved for 10 seconds.


These have a great texture, but like all scones, aren't very sweet, so they do need jam. Whipped or clotted cream would be perfect too, but I had cream cheese in the fridge so I ate some with that.

When I say 'ate some', I mean, 'had three for lunch', obviously. Ah, the student lifestyle. Who needs nutrition?


29 comments:

Anonymous said...

It took me a while to get used to the cost of free-range, farm-fresh eggs, but now that I've only bought them for about a year, it seems like a good deal. I mean 12 eggs for $4.00 US, that's really not much per egg. I guess it's all about how you word it to yourself.

Your bite mark photo is sooooo drool-worthy!!

Abitofafoodie said...

I always have half-eaten yoghurt on the brink of fermentation in the back of my fridge, so I shall save this recipe for future use!

They look divine, round or not.

Clumbsy Cookie said...

I love scones and the ones made with yougurt are actually my favourites! Yummy, yummy!

Y said...

Those scones look so light and tasty! I think I'll have to treat myself one day.. preferably before it gets too hot here to contemplate baking.

Pea and Pear said...

Oh Lordy that first photo is really something else (bless foodgawker.)I am finding more and more scone recipes to kick me out of my scone funk, but this recipe and those photos have finally done the trick!! Scones this afternoon!

steph- whisk/spoon said...

i have never seen a yogurt scone recipe before--looks good. when you are forced to buy eggs, by the free range, damn it! :)

Cakelaw said...

I have never seen a recipe for yoghurt scones before - and I have a large pot of yoghurt idling away on my fridge. Thanks for sharing this!

grace said...

love the buffy shout-out and love the scones. :)

Emily Rose said...

I also have a bunch of yogurt in the fridge that will soon go bad- I will definitely try this out! I love scones- but as you can imagine- they are not nearly as popular in the US!

test it comm said...

Those scones look good! I like that first one the best.

Anonymous said...

they look amazinnnnnng =]

sending you a postcard!

x

Leonor de Sousa Bastos said...

Your yogurt scones are part of a perfect scenario...

They look so tasty... I'm hungry now!
:)

Zo said...

Twospoons here...I'm so excited that someone has actually posted about a recipe I posted lol...tbh i didn't even know scones used eggs, so I think you're ok.

Also, try a farmers market for free range eggs - they'll usually be cheaper. They're definitely worth it by the way, especially if they've had access to grass, because they'll be that much healthier.

Also, do try them with a bit of wholemeal flour one day - you will seriously not regret it, they're so much more flavoursome.

Andrew Abraham said...

These look so good...too good.. After I will make these.. it will be work out time...but it will be worth it... Thank you for sharing your baking recipe...

Andy
www.recipebuddys.com

Deborah said...

these look so good! And I just happen to have some yogurt in the fridge that I need to use!

Rachael Hutchings said...

These look fabulous! I just made some pumpkin scones yesterday that I'll be posting today. Mmmm, clotted cream is one of my all-time favorite scone accessories.

Anonymous said...

As a retired professor, I am still a student of the UK, where my wife and I visit several times a year (especially Scotland and Ireland).

Two things that ONLY the Brits can do properly is Fish&Chips and wonderful Scones.

Your yoghurt scones look heavenly.

Can't wait until our next trip.

Natasha said...

I tried making scones once, but wasn't impressed. Maybe I'll try your recipe to see if it can win me over ;)

Anonymous said...

I must try! Never tasted scones before and your photos are a good invitation...

Anonymous said...

Yoghurt scones? So intriguing, you must make me some!
Btw congrats on avoiding the pronunciation of "scone/scone" as in "bonne/bone" debate that arose every time they are mentioned... but not typed!

("SCONE" LIKE "BONNE" GODDAMMIT!)

Marysol said...

Oh, those scones looks so good! Any of those images would've lured me in.

Rosie said...

I remember you saying about a tea party and the weather was awful. great to read you at last managed it! Those scones look so good!

Rosie x

aforkfulofspaghetti said...

Oooh, fab. I suppose mixing yogurt with water gives you something much like buttermilk, which is perfect for scone-making.

Anonymous said...

Any post that begins with a Buffy quote is tops in my book!!!

Ingrid_3Bs said...

I want the one that has the melted butter soaked in, please!
~ingrid

Anonymous said...

Yum. You could try this recipe for scones if you're not using eggs - 3 cups SR flour, 1 cup thick cream and 1 cup lemonade. Sounds slightly odd but it works.

Nic said...

Great idea to sub yoghurt for the eggs, they look delicious!
PS. The shape is just perfect, but if you wanted, you could use a glass or jar to cut them into rounds.
Nice blog - I'm going to have a great time browsing!!!

Hallie Fae said...

These look soo good, and not at all dry like some scones can be. Yum!

Anonymous said...

I've never made scones with eggs. Or tasted them to my knowledge.

My standby recipe is this one http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/kiwi_kitchen/103203/2 minus the cheese

flour, butter, salt, baking powder and milk