Cheese scones

I just love cheese scones, but had this idea that they were dreadfully difficult to get right. I finally decided to give them a go because I happened to have all the ingredients loitering in the kitchen, and a Sunday in springtime just cries out for scones. It turns out they’re easy. (Incidentally, I found myself in the heat of the old argument about how to pronounce ‘scone’ last Friday. The subject seems to rouse people into an indignant wrath usually associated with politics and religion. I pronounce it to rhyme with ‘stone’, and so do all my family, so maybe that’s the Westcountry way? I also say ‘bath’ to rhyme with… well but I digress.) This recipe makes nine scones, though of course you can make more smaller ones.

Ingredients

• 225g plain flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• A few good grinds of pepper (I used green pepper to try it out)
• 55g unsalted butter (it doesn’t matter that it’s unsalted)
• 80g hard cheese (I used a mixture of manchego and smoked applewood, to use them up. The manchego gave a sweetness that was lovely.)
• 150ml milk (I used skimmed milk)
• Pinch of paprika

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 230°C / gas mark 4.
2. Mix together the flour, baking powder, pepper and salt, then sift them into a mixing bowl.
3. Cut the butter into little bits, add them to the bowl and rub them into the flour until there are no buttery lumps.
4. Grate the cheese and mix it in, reserving some to sprinkle on top of the scones.
5. Add the milk, and using a knife fold the mixture into a soft dough.
6. Put the ball of dough onto a floured surface and pat it flat, until it’s about 1cm thick all over. Don’t squash it too hard. Cut it into nine pieces.
7. Grease a baking tray and put the scones on it. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top, and dust each scone with a pinch of paprika.
8. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes until risen and browned. Eat them warm with butter.