I am getting a lot of questions about substituting currants with other stuff. That won't work. It's not those types of scones :) If I remember correctly, The Bread Bible gives a few other flavor alternatives, like lemon poppyseeds, but I didn't like it. that didn't give the scones little bursts of sweetness and moisture that the currants gave. Anything big or fresh won't work at all because it would get in the way of laminating the dough.
I love orange in my scones- not as a substitute for currants but as an addition. I replace about a 1/4 of my cream with orange juice and mix in orange zest at the same time I add my cream!
Here in the U.K., Helen, where scones originated, there are some places which do wonderful varieties. Cheese scones can be great. Lavender scones are worth trying. But you need to be careful with the raisins, cheese, lavender seeds or whatever other flavouring you use - it always needs to be a subtle background flavour or little bursts of sweetness or savoury and not overwhelm the product. The texture of the flour and butter mix is always the critical thing which should dominate - not greasy and not too dry. Most recipes here don’t use cream, they use milk instead, and they don’t involve lots of rolling and folding (which looks hard work in this video - as if you were making puff pastry). Instead the butter is rubbed with flour to a breadcrumb texture with a little milk and a pinch of salt and that’s it. And a good scone is soft and crumbly and delicious hot or cold. I adore your videos but I think this recipe needs readdressing as the end result seems greasy. If you have to serve the scone hot to be good there’s something wrong. In fact the best scones over here are almost always served cold.
for those of you who have opinions about what a scone should or shouldn't be but haven't tried this recipe, you are missing out. i've made a lot of scones but this takes scones out of being a quickbread and into being a pastry confection. i served these with assam tea w/ milk&sugar and nothing to put on the still-warm scones to several guests today who are familiar with scones. i followed helen's 7min cooling and serving suggestion and the reaction was uniformly 'wow' i did make a couple small changes: 1) i included 20% bolted (with #50 mesh sieve) whole wheat flour in the flour mix, which gave these a nice nutty note and satisfying texture, 2) i substituted cranberries for currants because that's what i had in the fridge, and 3) my cream had gone off and seriously clotted and separated, so i added that with the separated milky whey without attempting to remix them at all, and i feel this added to the layered flakiness. in its accidental clotted form the coagulated cream was so delicious if i'd had extra i might have served that and only that as a spread helen, this is a minor criticism of an excellent recipe, execution, and wonderfully clear video. when i watched your video there were two things i didn't like about the handling of the currants. the first was the one you explained, that they were too soft. the second is i felt they were added too early, so they ended up getting worked with the dough and cut with the pastry knife multiple times. to mitigate this i sprinkled them on top 2/3 of the penultimate rolled out dough. when i cut it into thirds, one third with the fruit stayed on the bottom, the other third with the fruit went on top of that, and the third with no fruit on it went on top, leaving two layers of cranberries. after this was rolled out and shaped the cranberries were evenly distributed and were more intact than they would have been had i added them earlier thank you for all your great videos and cooking techniques
I made these today and they were dangerously delicious. I received "The Bread Bible" as a gift years ago, and the scones were one of the first recipes I tried. Your recipe modification (all-purpose and cake flour) made a huge difference. I really dislike when someone says... "I substituted...", but I have to be one of "those people". I used Golden Inca berries, because I didn't have currents. The golden berries are dried and a little large, so I had to chop them into smaller pieces. Just the right amount of tart and sweet. Thank you again, and sorry for my substitution, but it worked.
Helen has got to be one of my favorite teachers. How she explains things in detail and yet not overstated, and even shares her mistakes - her voice is pleasant to listen to. It’s an encouraging and reassuring voice/tone that makes you really want to just go out and try her recipes. Even the ones you feel you can’t. And I have. Thank you, Helen. I’ll definitely let you know how this recipe turns out on my next baking day. (I’m on a carnivore/keto diet for health reasons-but that’s no reason not to bake for friends and family.) Cheers!
I haven’t had a good scone since I worked at a bagel shop in college. We had a super-hot steaming machine which we would use to heat them up and add some moisture immediately before serving. I don’t think the scones were anything special, but adding the moisture and heat made them incredible. Seems your ideas support my memories... so, feeling slightly validated about my personal version of the perfect scone. Thanks, as always, for your great videos.
I love The Bread Bible. I make my bagels and sandwich breads using those recipes. I always grate cold butter, for biscuits and scones. It helps to avoid overworking the dough.
A nearby coffee shop (kitchen house coffee in STL) makes a roast red pepper and herb scone that is an obsession of mine. It is soooo good! I just moved further away, but I still make time to go grab one.
This method is a slightly more labor-intensive version of Cooks' Illustrated "blueberry scones" recipe from August 2007. They grate a frozen stick of butter to develop the layers, which is a lot easier to do than the cube squishing method. Also, they are a bit more meticulous about keeping the dough cold, sending it back into the freezer between folds. Also, you didn't mention it in this video, but the brown exterior of your scones look like they might have a beautiful crispiness to them. The Cooks' version Is crispy on the outside, almost cookie-like well the interior remains soft, layered and steamy. They're really wonderful. I agree with you completely, by the way. I now look at those sad, underbaked, mealy things in the Starbucks case and give them a pass every time.
Many years ago I had the most beautiful flaky, crispy, delicious scone, that had beautiful layers. I have never had another one like it, until now. This recipe and the instructional video helped me make the best scone I had ever tasted. Thank you Helen!
Helen, thanks so much for giving the ingredient quantity in weight. I am an amateur bread baker with 30 years of experience. Since the pandemic, I'm attempting to branch out into other baked products and get out of my comfort zone when I have to measure by volume. I enjoyed this video and I'm excited to give it a try.
Had some Zante currants on hand so made 16 beautiful scones this morning with ‘00’ Sonora (10.8% protein) and Kerrygold. Amazing result. I’ve never laminated such large pieces of butter into a biscuit or scone dough but I will be trying this technique elsewhere for sure. Thanks for sharing!
Omg so excited to try - this recipe takes scones to another level. This year I have been using various recipes to make ‘Birthday’ scones for friends and family to help start their special day. My birthday is coming and I think this recipe will be the best. I’ll report back:0
I know you are the expert and I love all that you show us. I made numerous batches of scones.My favorite was the ones made quickly and lightly with shaved frozen butter
I like your teaching video, you provide lots of knowledge we mostly don't know or not aware of the reason why. You are like a professional teaching chef.
She is one of those ladies w/ a really musical voice. We have a reporter, Drea Humphries, for Rebel News in Canada, also one of those naturally musical voices.
These don't resemble the scones here in Australia, it more resembles a rock cake, maybe this is an American version of a scone. A scone is a dense cakey bread, never flaky and or crumbly and are usually round and have a cylindrical shape once risen. They are usually sliced in half topped with jam and cream, fruit or spread with some butter or other spread.
Kiwi scones aren’t made this way either. Best scones are made with a ‘light’ touch. Mine are made in about 20 minutes all up. These look interesting but too much phaff for me!
I have had excellent success with Julia Child's recipe from her Baking With Julia book. I get similar flakiness without so many folds and chilling - this makes it much easier to bake them for breakfast quickly. I have not had problems adding currants, cheese and herbs, or fresh (or frozen) cranberries with orange zest and juice as part of the buttermilk measure. One technique I use is to grate the cold butter on the large holes of a box grater, tossing the shreds with the flour as I go so they don't stick together. Your method makes a beautiful scone!!
First time watching a video of yours. Wow!! That’s all I have!! I’ve been baking scones all my life (I’m 47 and English) and I’ve never seen your method before and I think it’s genius 🥰
Been making my own lately, they turn out pretty well with the flaky and layered structure and texture complete with that rich and satisfying butter taste.
@@SomethinAintRightHere Then, PLEASE, what is the secret? I can make British scones, but they don't quite taste like a British scone. And, while they are light, the texture is also a bit off....
@@thehadster7043 this is the recipe I use, they turn out perfect every time. i will say that the ratios can slightly vary depending on the water/fat content of your butter, and how hard/soft your flour is, like when Helen mentioned the protein content. if you’re using a food processor it’s pretty effortless, just need to make sure the volume is big enough to hold this much dough or it becomes pasty and the texture is completely off. if you do it by hand, just make sure your butter is cold so you can crumb it nicely into the flour. Bake @ 190C - 375F for 15-20mins depending on size. 500g plain flour (plus extra for work rolling out) 2 rounded tbsp baking powder 2 rounded tbsp of sugar 1 tsp salt 110g (1 stick) chopped cold unsalted butter 300ml full fat milk 1 egg
@@SomethinAintRightHere You failed to mention using clotted cream "whey" in the dough. That's the only way to get it truly tasting right. Very easy to follow recipe here. Be sure to use the best quality local cream you can find to make this, and use the liquid part in place of milk in your scones. www.allrecipes.com/recipe/257734/chef-johns-clotted-cream/
from what I understand a British scone is more like a biscuit in the US. The American scone is more sweet. I make my scones with chocolate chips and sometimes I do a more hearty scone with jalapeno and cheese..
Make just 4 scones Who has room in their freezer for 12 to 14 scones if you only want two or three right then?? This recipe makes 16 scones and in my household probably 14 of them would have to be frozen. And I don’t have room in my freezer for that amount! Years ago I used to make scones based off the Cordon Bleu recipe which also made about 8 to 10 scones. But I reduced the recipe down to the smallest amount where I was only making enough for 2 scones which came together really quickly and I could cook them in my toaster oven. I could make them from scratch and give them to my son before he went to school piping hot in just a few minutes. Well now I have a real oven but I still only want to make a few. I have made 1/4 of this recipe. And I get 4 scones about the size in the video. I do all the rolling and turning as in the recipe. In fact, I didn’t feel like getting my rolling pin out for that small amount and using my knife to cut the dough into thirds, I was rolling it out with my hands by pressing. Quite well. Here is the recipe in grams that will make 4 scones of the size she recommends. Just because I could, I added more currents and I also added pecan nuts chopped small. But here’s the recipe as she showed divided down for just for scones. The scones were crispy on the outside and nice and soft on the inside and I gobbled up two of them. I did wrap two of them and put them in the chilled area of my refrigerator where they will freeze slightly. -4 scones- 60 g butter 150 g flour 25 g sugar 1/2 t or 2.5 g baking powder 0.6 g baking Soda 0.7 g salt 120 g cream 35 g currents You will need a high precision scale to accurately measure the baking soda and salt ( which I have). Roll out to 7.5cm x 5 cm Cut into thirds 3 times and pile the 3 layers in top of each other. Roll out to the describe the size 3 times for a total of 4 letter folds like in the main recipe. Cut in half and then cut each half in a diagonal for four pieces. Preheat your oven to 200°C which is about 400° please the scones on parchment paper and then into a small metal tray to bake in the oven. Bake them as prescribed about eight or nine minutes on one side and then take them out and turn them around for another eight or nine minutes.
Great recipe, Helen! The first thing I ever learned to bake was cream scones like this as well. They were cranberry and orange and they were delicious. Yours came out way more flaky than mine did though- I cut the butter in with a food processor and added cream until it just came together, pressed into a springform and chilled before baking. Very tasty but definitely a denser texture than yours; I think it was closer to a British scone. I'll have to break out my pastry knife and do some folds next time!
You will always get a dense scone by using a food processor. I like the British method. It's so easy that using a food processor is really more work in the end. Getting it all in, getting it all out, and then cleaning the darn thing. There's very little mixing and shaping to a British scone.
These are fantastic with chopped nuts, and if you freeze them, then reheat a scone in one of the larger toaster ovens, they are divine even days later.
How funny - I made scones from Weekend Bakery last night with fresh cranberries and apples. Definitely good, but since I'm not a scone connoisseur in any way, it was hard to know if I was getting the scones perfect. Of course, I wondered if they were something you had ever tried making and here we are! I will definitely try your (Rose Levy Beranbaum's?) dough recipe, though likely with the cranberries and apples again. Thank you for making detailed videos showing each step. Text is certainly necessary, but it's always nice to get a visualisation to be sure I understood the steps correctly. Have a great day!
Hope this recipe works for you. Just to let you know. I've tired substituting currents for other things. It never works for me. I think this recipe is only good as is. Of course, maybe there is some flavor I haven't tried. Just before you try other things, I would try it as is. I can't imagine fresh cranberries and apples would still allow you to laminate the dough properly.
@@helenrennie I ended up making scones shortly after I made my comment and before I saw this, sorry about that... Just to make a comment about my results for anyone reading: moisture was way higher than expected, my guess from the cranberries and apples, which already meant something had gone wrong. I would say I was able to laminate the dough somewhat, but definitely the larger pieces of fruit meant it didn't work out as well as it could have. Finally, when baking, a lot of the butter leaked everywhere, due to inferior laminating likely. I'll have to try the currant version to be sure it really was the fruit, but if Helen is recommending against the big pieces of fresh fruit, I wouldn't mess around too much.
These were delicious. A different way to make them for sure. The dough was dense and crumbly to start with but after a few folds, it came together nicely. You really have to put some muscle into it! My currants were hard also, but after baking they softened right up. Thanks for sharing another great recipe.
This technique of rolling into a rectangle for cutting into Triangles eliminates the leftover fragments which circular, round "biscuit cutters" produce. No need to reincorporate "waste" morsels and tidbits back into latter phases of the dough.
when Helen says "the size of a printer page", that's 8.5x11", 216x279mm To my knowledge that size is standard in the US because 3x4 feet/36x48" is a standard size for parent sheets (similar to A0). 12x18" is that size cut in half 3 times (called tabloid extra). If you want to print a magazine with color all the way to the edge, the best way is to use a bigger sheet of paper than you need, print wider than you need, and cut off the extra, so the next size down is 11x17" tabloid (tabloid extra with 1/2" cut off all sides). Last, if you fold an 11x17 in half, you get a normal magazine, or cut it instead to get 8.5x11" letter paper.
I made these scones a few days ago following this video and really loved how they turned out. Dry, flakey, very buttery, lovely with clotted cream and tea. I think we have similar taste in baked goods - we like buttery, have a relatively high tolerance for dry, and a relatively low tolerance for sweet. I followed your advice to heat them before eating, and they were perfect that way, completely worth the minor hassle. I didn't have currants, so I used dried cranberries, which I thought might be similar, but I think cranberries are much larger, and as they soaked up some moisture and expanded, the ones on the outside burned a bit or popped out of the dough and rolled away. I'll try them with chopped up cranberries next time, or find a way to prevent any cranberry from peeking out on the outside of the scone. I might also reduce the sugar a little bit but add chunky sugar to the outside. Thanks for the recipe and the book recommendation!
@HJC Don't know if you've tried this, but when I add dried bits of fruit to my baked goods I like rolling them in flour first, then dusting them of any excess. It seems to help them suspend in the bread or whatever I'm making. Including cake. I've not had issues with olives popping out of my rosemary and olive loaves, or raisins from my spice and raisin bread. I hope it helps you.
When I was in college I used to get the best scones very early in the morning from a classical music store/coffee shop by campus. I've never had a good scone from a bakery since, and now I just don't try. I prefer simple scones, not the fancy ones with chocolate and other flavors. I was in college a couple decades ago, and I still remember those scones. Yours look very similar, so I am definitely going to give this a try.
I personally find scones the British way, using soured liquids, like buttermilk, yoghurt or gone off milk do get a better texture, but will likely not have the same rich flavours
I tried making these scones a few days ago. They were delicious! BUT...When I baked them, the butter started pooling around the scones, so I had to put them on a wire rack to finish baking so that they wouldn't burn on the bottom. Also, they took a lot longer to bake (yes I preheated properly), and even when I left them in too long and they got a little too dark.... they were still moist inside. I followed the recipe exactly, except for using 100% AP flour instead of the mix you talked about. But since you mentioned it was ok, I don't think it would make that much of a difference.
How does the temperature of the butter as it's being squished impact the result? Is there a reason we want to squish the butter while it's cold instead of warm and easier to squish? I thought with croissants, we want the butter cold so it doesn't get incorporated into the dough but this seems a bit different.
I guess you can squish slightly warm butter, and then put it in the fridge for a few hours. Warm butter might stick to your hands, so I am not sure it's a great idea. This works, so why make the process longer and take the risk of the butter and flour incorporating too much.
This looks amazing! How would you use this recipe/method to make blueberry scones? I have to imagine with all of that squeezing and folding that the blueberries would break.
I've made great blueberry scones before but not using the same method as Helen, with the folds. The hardest thing to manage is all the extra moisture from the berries; I've had some turn out so wet. I wonder if you could add a little extra cream into the mix then fold in dried or freeze-dried blueberries, then let the dough rest before baking to let them re-hydrate a bit. That way you could keep some whole blueberry pockets without so much moisture.
Similar to Welsh cakes, only those are cooked on a griddle or, more traditionally, a stone. Welsh cakes are wonderful warm, but still damn good at room temperature. Going to try this soon!
Scones are simply biscuits! I’m American. Loved in UK. They don’t make scones shaped like this. They make them like biscuits are made in the southern US states. Varying recipes…but exactly the same.
I am sure that these are very nice, Helen is a great cook. But perhaps like others hailing from the UK and Ireland, where scones originated, watching this video, I can't help but think 'That isn't a scone' and wonder what a proper scone is called in the US... However, if that is what Americans call a scone, fair enough. Why not have a go at the traditional recipes? Part of the attraction of scones (the original version, as eaten in the UK and Ireland) is their utter simplicity... quick and easy to make. Much like Irish soda bread, actually. However, I may try to make these pastries myself. Sorry, I mean 'American scones' :) I'm sure they'll be delicious! PS on this side of the pond, scones are usually served with butter and jam (and clotted cream in the south west of England). Jam and cream marry well with our scones in the same way that jam and cream marry so well with sponge (aka Victoria sponge). Hang on, don't tell me that in the US sponge is a pastry!!
I wonder what would happen if you took these dry, old, dried fruits and simply poured some boiling water over them so that you could knock them apart and then pat them dry and set them out on a cookie tray until the next day? Just a thought. I can't help but wonder do you play like everquest or wow?
Just made them and they came out delicious, even though I did not have bleached flour. One question on salt sifting: any way you can add salt later? My salt granules did not go through the sifter and shot left and right. I understand that salt has to be evenly mixed, but maybe adding and mixing it after sifting could work as well? Otherwise, these scones are a pure treat!
I know you've already commented on this but to be more specific: What about Raisins (unsoaked, as you mentioned soaking stops the layers laminating properly) or Sultanas? Basically currants are kind of the bottom of those three things amongst all the people who bake a lot I know but it might just be some fad/fashion thing to stop using your regular currant.
What currants have going for them is the size. They don't interfere with layering. You can certainly try other raisins, but I haven't tried that so don't know how that would work.
These scones turned out perfect for me almost a dozen times, and suddenly they're giving me trouble: the dough feels "weepier" than usual during the laminating process and the butter leaks out of the scones in the first few minutes of baking. I'm in a new apartment, using a new oven, and it's summer - could one of those things be the cause? I suppose I'm also using a different brand of butter, too. Any suggestions for undoing this curse? Longer in the fridge pre-baking? Higher oven temp? Lower oven temp? Less heavy cream? Smaller butter bits?
I don't like my baked goods warm! I know, I am in the minority haha! When I see a steaming biscuit, I think, "that would be good about 20 minutes from now when it's dried out a bit"
Almost all baked goods a far superior once they have cooled. It can be enticing for many yo dig in while it's hot, but in most cases patience is greatly rewarded.
Helen, I am very curious about this recipe and would love to try it but I'm worried because I have a gas oven that doesn't have adjustable setting, only on-hotter-off. Do you have any advice? Many things tend to burn at the bottom for me, as the flames come from down
I am getting a lot of questions about substituting currants with other stuff. That won't work. It's not those types of scones :) If I remember correctly, The Bread Bible gives a few other flavor alternatives, like lemon poppyseeds, but I didn't like it. that didn't give the scones little bursts of sweetness and moisture that the currants gave. Anything big or fresh won't work at all because it would get in the way of laminating the dough.
I love orange in my scones- not as a substitute for currants but as an addition. I replace about a 1/4 of my cream with orange juice and mix in orange zest at the same time I add my cream!
Certainly raisins would work well.
How about cranberries and orange zest ❤️
Ok, I'm not a huge fan of currants, but I eat them if they're in something, because they're good for you.
Here in the U.K., Helen, where scones originated, there are some places which do wonderful varieties. Cheese scones can be great. Lavender scones are worth trying. But you need to be careful with the raisins, cheese, lavender seeds or whatever other flavouring you use - it always needs to be a subtle background flavour or little bursts of sweetness or savoury and not overwhelm the product. The texture of the flour and butter mix is always the critical thing which should dominate - not greasy and not too dry. Most recipes here don’t use cream, they use milk instead, and they don’t involve lots of rolling and folding (which looks hard work in this video - as if you were making puff pastry). Instead the butter is rubbed with flour to a breadcrumb texture with a little milk and a pinch of salt and that’s it. And a good scone is soft and crumbly and delicious hot or cold. I adore your videos but I think this recipe needs readdressing as the end result seems greasy. If you have to serve the scone hot to be good there’s something wrong. In fact the best scones over here are almost always served cold.
for those of you who have opinions about what a scone should or shouldn't be but haven't tried this recipe, you are missing out. i've made a lot of scones but this takes scones out of being a quickbread and into being a pastry confection. i served these with assam tea w/ milk&sugar and nothing to put on the still-warm scones to several guests today who are familiar with scones. i followed helen's 7min cooling and serving suggestion and the reaction was uniformly 'wow'
i did make a couple small changes: 1) i included 20% bolted (with #50 mesh sieve) whole wheat flour in the flour mix, which gave these a nice nutty note and satisfying texture, 2) i substituted cranberries for currants because that's what i had in the fridge, and 3) my cream had gone off and seriously clotted and separated, so i added that with the separated milky whey without attempting to remix them at all, and i feel this added to the layered flakiness. in its accidental clotted form the coagulated cream was so delicious if i'd had extra i might have served that and only that as a spread
helen, this is a minor criticism of an excellent recipe, execution, and wonderfully clear video. when i watched your video there were two things i didn't like about the handling of the currants. the first was the one you explained, that they were too soft. the second is i felt they were added too early, so they ended up getting worked with the dough and cut with the pastry knife multiple times. to mitigate this i sprinkled them on top 2/3 of the penultimate rolled out dough. when i cut it into thirds, one third with the fruit stayed on the bottom, the other third with the fruit went on top of that, and the third with no fruit on it went on top, leaving two layers of cranberries. after this was rolled out and shaped the cranberries were evenly distributed and were more intact than they would have been had i added them earlier
thank you for all your great videos and cooking techniques
so glad your scones came out well. great tip on how to add the fruit to keep it more intact.
Most recipes seem to not bother with the trifold. But I think it’s an important step in order to get those nice, easily separated layers. Great video.
I made these today and they were dangerously delicious. I received "The Bread Bible" as a gift years ago, and the scones were one of the first recipes I tried. Your recipe modification (all-purpose and cake flour) made a huge difference. I really dislike when someone says... "I substituted...", but I have to be one of "those people". I used Golden Inca berries, because I didn't have currents. The golden berries are dried and a little large, so I had to chop them into smaller pieces. Just the right amount of tart and sweet. Thank you again, and sorry for my substitution, but it worked.
Scones! I’ve been making scones for years, but this looks like the best recipe ever. Thank you!
Helen has got to be one of my favorite teachers. How she explains things in detail and yet not overstated, and even shares her mistakes - her voice is pleasant to listen to. It’s an encouraging and reassuring voice/tone that makes you really want to just go out and try her recipes. Even the ones you feel you can’t. And I have. Thank you, Helen. I’ll definitely let you know how this recipe turns out on my next baking day. (I’m on a carnivore/keto diet for health reasons-but that’s no reason not to bake for friends and family.) Cheers!
I haven’t had a good scone since I worked at a bagel shop in college. We had a super-hot steaming machine which we would use to heat them up and add some moisture immediately before serving. I don’t think the scones were anything special, but adding the moisture and heat made them incredible. Seems your ideas support my memories... so, feeling slightly validated about my personal version of the perfect scone. Thanks, as always, for your great videos.
Living in Zante was pleasantly surprised to see our dried black currants used on a recipe at the other side of the globe
we love em
Tried this recipe, turned out amazing! Thanks Helen!!!absolutely delicious!
So glad you enjoyed the scones!
I love The Bread Bible. I make my bagels and sandwich breads using those recipes. I always grate cold butter, for biscuits and scones. It helps to avoid overworking the dough.
Dear Helen! Your way of explaining a recipe and your voice are truly inspirational. thank you!
A nearby coffee shop (kitchen house coffee in STL) makes a roast red pepper and herb scone that is an obsession of mine. It is soooo good! I just moved further away, but I still make time to go grab one.
This method is a slightly more labor-intensive version of Cooks' Illustrated "blueberry scones" recipe from August 2007. They grate a frozen stick of butter to develop the layers, which is a lot easier to do than the cube squishing method. Also, they are a bit more meticulous about keeping the dough cold, sending it back into the freezer between folds.
Also, you didn't mention it in this video, but the brown exterior of your scones look like they might have a beautiful crispiness to them. The Cooks' version Is crispy on the outside, almost cookie-like well the interior remains soft, layered and steamy. They're really wonderful.
I agree with you completely, by the way. I now look at those sad, underbaked, mealy things in the Starbucks case and give them a pass every time.
Many years ago I had the most beautiful flaky, crispy, delicious scone, that had beautiful layers. I have never had another one like it, until now. This recipe and the instructional video helped me make the best scone I had ever tasted. Thank you Helen!
Helen, thanks so much for giving the ingredient quantity in weight. I am an amateur bread baker with 30 years of experience. Since the pandemic, I'm attempting to branch out into other baked products and get out of my comfort zone when I have to measure by volume. I enjoyed this video and I'm excited to give it a try.
If you have 30 years experience in something you ain't an amateur, you are just an expert without a degree
Had some Zante currants on hand so made 16 beautiful scones this morning with ‘00’ Sonora (10.8% protein) and Kerrygold. Amazing result. I’ve never laminated such large pieces of butter into a biscuit or scone dough but I will be trying this technique elsewhere for sure. Thanks for sharing!
so glad your enjoyed the scones :)
Your voice is so melodious and soothing. Great instructions!
Interesting version of scones. British way seems easier but you’re such a gem to watch i can overlook it
Omg so excited to try - this recipe takes scones to another level. This year I have been using various recipes to make ‘Birthday’ scones for friends and family to help start their special day. My birthday is coming and I think this recipe will be the best. I’ll report back:0
I know you are the expert and I love all that you show us. I made numerous batches of scones.My favorite was the ones made quickly and lightly with shaved frozen butter
I like your teaching video, you provide lots of knowledge we mostly don't know or not aware of the reason why. You are like a professional teaching chef.
You have a very good manner of teaching. I am very happy to have found your channel and have subscribed.
Your lovely voice is music to my ears😍😍😍
She is one of those ladies w/ a really musical voice. We have a reporter, Drea Humphries, for Rebel News in Canada, also one of those naturally musical voices.
"So now we aren't just laminating the dough, we are laminating the currants!" lol
These don't resemble the scones here in Australia, it more resembles a rock cake, maybe this is an American version of a scone.
A scone is a dense cakey bread, never flaky and or crumbly and are usually round and have a cylindrical shape once risen. They are usually sliced in half topped with jam and cream, fruit or spread with some butter or other spread.
Same in UK. This is the American version of scone that I saw on the recent series of Curb Your Enthusiasm that had me perplexed.
Kiwi scones aren’t made this way either. Best scones are made with a ‘light’ touch. Mine are made in about 20 minutes all up. These look interesting but too much phaff for me!
@smokengreen
Only when it rises it would be cylindrical. It's basically a flat circle when raw.
Or savory scones with cheddar cheese. Actually, even fairly sweet scones carb taste good with cheese.
@smokengreen GFYS
I have had excellent success with Julia Child's recipe from her Baking With Julia book. I get similar flakiness without so many folds and chilling - this makes it much easier to bake them for breakfast quickly. I have not had problems adding currants, cheese and herbs, or fresh (or frozen) cranberries with orange zest and juice as part of the buttermilk measure. One technique I use is to grate the cold butter on the large holes of a box grater, tossing the shreds with the flour as I go so they don't stick together. Your method makes a beautiful scone!!
First time watching a video of yours.
Wow!! That’s all I have!!
I’ve been baking scones all my life (I’m 47 and English) and I’ve never seen your method before and I think it’s genius 🥰
I had my doubts tbh, but these scones are outstanding..... Thank you
You are a brilliant cook and your advice and insight into food is incredible.
This lady is AWESOME! I am so happy to have stumbled across her channel and if I ever get to Boston I would love to attend a class of hers.
Looks delicious and easy. I will give this a try! Thank you, Helen!
Been making my own lately, they turn out pretty well with the flaky and layered structure and texture complete with that rich and satisfying butter taste.
As always, very nice job Helen.
Now, if you could please demystify the British scone, that would be great! I love Rose Levy Bernabaum. Her Cake Bible turned me into a baker.
Funny you mention this . I also commented about British scones. They’re hardly mystical. Much easier than this
@@SomethinAintRightHere Then, PLEASE, what is the secret? I can make British scones, but they don't quite taste like a British scone. And, while they are light, the texture is also a bit off....
@@thehadster7043 this is the recipe I use, they turn out perfect every time. i will say that the ratios can slightly vary depending on the water/fat content of your butter, and how hard/soft your flour is, like when Helen mentioned the protein content.
if you’re using a food processor it’s pretty effortless, just need to make sure the volume is big enough to hold this much dough or it becomes pasty and the texture is completely off. if you do it by hand, just make sure your butter is cold so you can crumb it nicely into the flour.
Bake @ 190C - 375F for 15-20mins depending on size.
500g plain flour (plus extra for work rolling out)
2 rounded tbsp baking powder
2 rounded tbsp of sugar
1 tsp salt
110g (1 stick) chopped cold unsalted butter
300ml full fat milk
1 egg
@@SomethinAintRightHere You failed to mention using clotted cream "whey" in the dough. That's the only way to get it truly tasting right.
Very easy to follow recipe here. Be sure to use the best quality local cream you can find to make this, and use the liquid part in place of milk in your scones.
www.allrecipes.com/recipe/257734/chef-johns-clotted-cream/
from what I understand a British scone is more like a biscuit in the US. The American scone is more sweet. I make my scones with chocolate chips and sometimes I do a more hearty scone with jalapeno and cheese..
Your scones look superb. Many thanks. I have all of Rose's books.
Make just 4 scones
Who has room in their freezer for 12 to 14 scones if you only want two or three right then?? This recipe makes 16 scones and in my household probably 14 of them would have to be frozen. And I don’t have room in my freezer for that amount!
Years ago I used to make scones based off the Cordon Bleu recipe which also made about 8 to 10 scones. But I reduced the recipe down to the smallest amount where I was only making enough for 2 scones which came together really quickly and I could cook them in my toaster oven. I could make them from scratch and give them to my son before he went to school piping hot in just a few minutes.
Well now I have a real oven but I still only want to make a few.
I have made 1/4 of this recipe. And I get 4 scones about the size in the video. I do all the rolling and turning as in the recipe. In fact, I didn’t feel like getting my rolling pin out for that small amount and using my knife to cut the dough into thirds, I was rolling it out with my hands by pressing. Quite well.
Here is the recipe in grams that will make 4 scones of the size she recommends. Just because I could, I added more currents and I also added pecan nuts chopped small. But here’s the recipe as she showed divided down for just for scones.
The scones were crispy on the outside and nice and soft on the inside and I gobbled up two of them. I did wrap two of them and put them in the chilled area of my refrigerator where they will freeze slightly.
-4 scones-
60 g butter
150 g flour
25 g sugar
1/2 t or 2.5 g baking powder
0.6 g baking Soda
0.7 g salt
120 g cream
35 g currents
You will need a high precision scale to accurately measure the baking soda and salt ( which I have).
Roll out to 7.5cm x 5 cm
Cut into thirds 3 times and pile the 3 layers in top of each other. Roll out to the describe the size 3 times for a total of 4 letter folds like in the main recipe.
Cut in half and then cut each half in a diagonal for four pieces.
Preheat your oven to 200°C which is about 400° please the scones on parchment paper and then into a small metal tray to bake in the oven. Bake them as prescribed about eight or nine minutes on one side and then take them out and turn them around for another eight or nine minutes.
Can we please have the measurement in cups as well if possible? Searching for the conversions is a bit troublesome. Just love your presentations.
Great recipe, Helen! The first thing I ever learned to bake was cream scones like this as well. They were cranberry and orange and they were delicious. Yours came out way more flaky than mine did though- I cut the butter in with a food processor and added cream until it just came together, pressed into a springform and chilled before baking. Very tasty but definitely a denser texture than yours; I think it was closer to a British scone. I'll have to break out my pastry knife and do some folds next time!
You will always get a dense scone by using a food processor. I like the British method. It's so easy that using a food processor is really more work in the end. Getting it all in, getting it all out, and then cleaning the darn thing. There's very little mixing and shaping to a British scone.
These are fantastic with chopped nuts, and if you freeze them, then reheat a scone in one of the larger toaster ovens, they are divine even days later.
Yea I sift my dry ingredients for anything I bake ❤️ glad to see someone else who is important do this 👍 I just did it, no one ever told me to.
Wow!! Great recipe, super clear and well explained! Thank you for aniticipating our questions 😁
Hi Helen. I love your videos. Those scones look amazing. Thank you for sharing!
So being in Europe would it be OK if I rolled out to paper size A4 instead of Letter? 😋😉
No
They are easy to make and they have a much nicer texture when made at home.
How funny - I made scones from Weekend Bakery last night with fresh cranberries and apples. Definitely good, but since I'm not a scone connoisseur in any way, it was hard to know if I was getting the scones perfect. Of course, I wondered if they were something you had ever tried making and here we are! I will definitely try your (Rose Levy Beranbaum's?) dough recipe, though likely with the cranberries and apples again. Thank you for making detailed videos showing each step. Text is certainly necessary, but it's always nice to get a visualisation to be sure I understood the steps correctly.
Have a great day!
Hope this recipe works for you. Just to let you know. I've tired substituting currents for other things. It never works for me. I think this recipe is only good as is. Of course, maybe there is some flavor I haven't tried. Just before you try other things, I would try it as is. I can't imagine fresh cranberries and apples would still allow you to laminate the dough properly.
@@helenrennie I ended up making scones shortly after I made my comment and before I saw this, sorry about that... Just to make a comment about my results for anyone reading: moisture was way higher than expected, my guess from the cranberries and apples, which already meant something had gone wrong. I would say I was able to laminate the dough somewhat, but definitely the larger pieces of fruit meant it didn't work out as well as it could have. Finally, when baking, a lot of the butter leaked everywhere, due to inferior laminating likely. I'll have to try the currant version to be sure it really was the fruit, but if Helen is recommending against the big pieces of fresh fruit, I wouldn't mess around too much.
@@trumpeteralex You’d have to use dried apple cut up very small.
These were delicious. A different way to make them for sure. The dough was dense and crumbly to start with but after a few folds, it came together nicely. You really have to put some muscle into it! My currants were hard also, but after baking they softened right up. Thanks for sharing another great recipe.
so glad your scones came out well :)
You're always the best!
Love scones when they are cooked in a cornbread cast iron pan.
This technique of rolling into a rectangle for cutting into Triangles eliminates the leftover fragments which circular, round "biscuit cutters" produce. No need to reincorporate "waste" morsels and tidbits back into latter phases of the dough.
I've saved about every video you made to my "cooking" playlist by now
On my second video. Absolutely unique way of instruction and such exciting food. Love it!!!!!
Your videos are so well done - love watching your content
Can't wait to try these - they look absolutely delicious!
Absolutely love your videos, Helen. Thanks so much!
Can't wait to try this.
Although, I love a bakery scone, too.
Preach! Serve your biscuits and scones hot. Rewarm the the leftovers. You are speaking the truth.
Nice tribute, great tutorial.
when Helen says "the size of a printer page", that's 8.5x11", 216x279mm
To my knowledge that size is standard in the US because 3x4 feet/36x48" is a standard size for parent sheets (similar to A0). 12x18" is that size cut in half 3 times (called tabloid extra). If you want to print a magazine with color all the way to the edge, the best way is to use a bigger sheet of paper than you need, print wider than you need, and cut off the extra, so the next size down is 11x17" tabloid (tabloid extra with 1/2" cut off all sides). Last, if you fold an 11x17 in half, you get a normal magazine, or cut it instead to get 8.5x11" letter paper.
I made these scones a few days ago following this video and really loved how they turned out. Dry, flakey, very buttery, lovely with clotted cream and tea. I think we have similar taste in baked goods - we like buttery, have a relatively high tolerance for dry, and a relatively low tolerance for sweet. I followed your advice to heat them before eating, and they were perfect that way, completely worth the minor hassle. I didn't have currants, so I used dried cranberries, which I thought might be similar, but I think cranberries are much larger, and as they soaked up some moisture and expanded, the ones on the outside burned a bit or popped out of the dough and rolled away. I'll try them with chopped up cranberries next time, or find a way to prevent any cranberry from peeking out on the outside of the scone. I might also reduce the sugar a little bit but add chunky sugar to the outside. Thanks for the recipe and the book recommendation!
glad your scones came out well :)
@HJC Don't know if you've tried this, but when I add dried bits of fruit to my baked goods I like rolling them in flour first, then dusting them of any excess. It seems to help them suspend in the bread or whatever I'm making. Including cake. I've not had issues with olives popping out of my rosemary and olive loaves, or raisins from my spice and raisin bread. I hope it helps you.
@@iluminameluna Hadn't heard of that! I appreciate the tip. I'll try it next time I make more scones.
Nice that you shared which flour you're using but it would be awesome to share its specific protein percentage so we know what to target.
When I was in college I used to get the best scones very early in the morning from a classical music store/coffee shop by campus. I've never had a good scone from a bakery since, and now I just don't try. I prefer simple scones, not the fancy ones with chocolate and other flavors. I was in college a couple decades ago, and I still remember those scones. Yours look very similar, so I am definitely going to give this a try.
This lady tells the truth!
Helen I love your channel and plan to take one of your classes.🌸
Very sensible advice, Helen!
Thanks for this video.
I personally find scones the British way, using soured liquids, like buttermilk, yoghurt or gone off milk do get a better texture, but will likely not have the same rich flavours
Your scones look amazing.
I tried making these scones a few days ago. They were delicious! BUT...When I baked them, the butter started pooling around the scones, so I had to put them on a wire rack to finish baking so that they wouldn't burn on the bottom. Also, they took a lot longer to bake (yes I preheated properly), and even when I left them in too long and they got a little too dark.... they were still moist inside. I followed the recipe exactly, except for using 100% AP flour instead of the mix you talked about. But since you mentioned it was ok, I don't think it would make that much of a difference.
A far cry from the scones I ate and learned how to make in Ireland. Mind -blowing!
Question..can I make them , freeze them , bring them to room temperature and bake them??
Great video!! Looks so delicious!!
Any dryness in a skon will go unnoticed if you lather them generously with clotted cream and a wee bit of jam (the way they should always be eaten).
How does the temperature of the butter as it's being squished impact the result? Is there a reason we want to squish the butter while it's cold instead of warm and easier to squish? I thought with croissants, we want the butter cold so it doesn't get incorporated into the dough but this seems a bit different.
cold butter produces layers.I’ve tried using room temperature butter and the results are disappointing and not as flaky
@@ambershah5741 To clarify, why don't we squish warm butter then put it in the refrigerator to cool?
@@afiqazaibi3547 read this article under the subheading ‘rubbing the butter’ foodcrumbles.com/scone-dough-dos-donts/
I guess you can squish slightly warm butter, and then put it in the fridge for a few hours. Warm butter might stick to your hands, so I am not sure it's a great idea. This works, so why make the process longer and take the risk of the butter and flour incorporating too much.
Interesting. Until now I used this kind of dough only for cake foundation and crumble topping.
This recipe has baking soda but no acidic ingredient to activate. Am I missing something? Thanks!
This looks amazing! How would you use this recipe/method to make blueberry scones? I have to imagine with all of that squeezing and folding that the blueberries would break.
see the first pinned comment :) the short answer is that won't work.
I've made great blueberry scones before but not using the same method as Helen, with the folds. The hardest thing to manage is all the extra moisture from the berries; I've had some turn out so wet. I wonder if you could add a little extra cream into the mix then fold in dried or freeze-dried blueberries, then let the dough rest before baking to let them re-hydrate a bit. That way you could keep some whole blueberry pockets without so much moisture.
@@helenrennie what if they are dried blueberries? Dried cranberries? Other dried fruits?
Yes, dried blueberries, cranberries, etc. work fine. I've even done chocolate chip.
I have Rose's book.
Similar to Welsh cakes, only those are cooked on a griddle or, more traditionally, a stone. Welsh cakes are wonderful warm, but still damn good at room temperature. Going to try this soon!
Love welsh cakes,my gran used to make them!
thanks will try it
Scones are simply biscuits!
I’m American. Loved in UK. They don’t make scones shaped like this.
They make them like biscuits are made in the southern US states.
Varying recipes…but exactly the same.
Favorite cooking channel. Any chance you could do a chocolate babka video? I realize there are many others out there, but curious about your thoughts.
I am sure that these are very nice, Helen is a great cook. But perhaps like others hailing from the UK and Ireland, where scones originated, watching this video, I can't help but think 'That isn't a scone' and wonder what a proper scone is called in the US...
However, if that is what Americans call a scone, fair enough. Why not have a go at the traditional recipes?
Part of the attraction of scones (the original version, as eaten in the UK and Ireland) is their utter simplicity... quick and easy to make. Much like Irish soda bread, actually.
However, I may try to make these pastries myself. Sorry, I mean 'American scones' :) I'm sure they'll be delicious!
PS on this side of the pond, scones are usually served with butter and jam (and clotted cream in the south west of England). Jam and cream marry well with our scones in the same way that jam and cream marry so well with sponge (aka Victoria sponge).
Hang on, don't tell me that in the US sponge is a pastry!!
I wonder what would happen if you took these dry, old, dried fruits and simply poured some boiling water over them so that you could knock them apart and then pat them dry and set them out on a cookie tray until the next day? Just a thought. I can't help but wonder do you play like everquest or wow?
What is the benefit of using parchment paper over just placing them on a non-stick baking tray?
Thanks for the great video and nice recipe!
Very happy with this recipe! I have to freeze the spoon and the bowl haha
Didn't know I was capable of being this fast.
Guess I've been living in RUclips now
Is that good or bad?
@alwaysbored47
I feel you, I've been trying to CANCEL youtube cold turkey.....then Covid happened.
Just made them and they came out delicious, even though I did not have bleached flour. One question on salt sifting: any way you can add salt later? My salt granules did not go through the sifter and shot left and right. I understand that salt has to be evenly mixed, but maybe adding and mixing it after sifting could work as well? Otherwise, these scones are a pure treat!
congrats on your scones, yes, you can just stir the salt in.
I know you've already commented on this but to be more specific: What about Raisins (unsoaked, as you mentioned soaking stops the layers laminating properly) or Sultanas? Basically currants are kind of the bottom of those three things amongst all the people who bake a lot I know but it might just be some fad/fashion thing to stop using your regular currant.
What currants have going for them is the size. They don't interfere with layering. You can certainly try other raisins, but I haven't tried that so don't know how that would work.
I love scones but it’s been yrs since I’ve had a good one
These scones turned out perfect for me almost a dozen times, and suddenly they're giving me trouble: the dough feels "weepier" than usual during the laminating process and the butter leaks out of the scones in the first few minutes of baking. I'm in a new apartment, using a new oven, and it's summer - could one of those things be the cause? I suppose I'm also using a different brand of butter, too. Any suggestions for undoing this curse? Longer in the fridge pre-baking? Higher oven temp? Lower oven temp? Less heavy cream? Smaller butter bits?
--->>> Mouth watering! God i want a scone
Now I understand why scones can be a bit expensive.
These are fancier than most you will see ...
I don't like my baked goods warm! I know, I am in the minority haha! When I see a steaming biscuit, I think, "that would be good about 20 minutes from now when it's dried out a bit"
Almost all baked goods a far superior once they have cooled. It can be enticing for many yo dig in while it's hot, but in most cases patience is greatly rewarded.
I'm not big on scones, but I never tried making my own. _Maybe it's time to give them another chance!_ 🤔
Love your video’s!!
I live in Europe. Does it also work with European butter?
I haven't tested it with European butter, but given that it's a laminated dough, I am pretty sure European butter would work.
@@helenrennie thank you! That makes sense. I always try to compensate for European products (butter, flour, dairy).
What is the difference between European and US butter please ?
@@rosiedavies4477 the fat content. The European butter has around 81%. The American butter has less fat (around 73?)
These look amazing! Can the scones be wrapped and frozen before baking? That way I can bake 1 or two at a time?
I haven't tried this.
Why not use a pastry cutter to incorporate the butter with the flour before you add the currents?
you can certainly do that. I personally find fingers easier. I also get more controls of the size of the pieces.
Helen, I am very curious about this recipe and would love to try it but I'm worried because I have a gas oven that doesn't have adjustable setting, only on-hotter-off. Do you have any advice? Many things tend to burn at the bottom for me, as the flames come from down