Ginger Scones

If you mention a scone to an englishman he will immediately envisage a traditional round scone, topped with clotted cream and home made strawberry jam.

However in the States scones are different beasts. Usually triangular in shape and served up for breakfast.

If you fancy offering your B&B guests a bit more variety they are a great option as you can make them the night before, keep them in the fridge and then guests can come down to the smell of fresh baked scones in the morning. You can even freeze them and cook them straight from the freezer.

When we stayed in Maine in October we had ginger scones. I prefer them hot from the oven as they can get a bit brick like if they hang around too long!

This recipe is from an Anerican Cookbook I have, adapted to be a bit more english friendly!

Ginger Scones

2.25 cups of plain flour

1 tablespoon of baking powder

2 teaspoons of ground ginger

170g cold butter from the fridge

0.75 cup of double cream plus 1 tablespoon extra

0.5 cup of crysallized stem ginger chopped up very small in a food processor

Heat a fan oven to 180 degrees

Put the flour, baking powder and ginger in a food processor and whiz till mixed.

Chop the butter into cubes, add to the dry ingredients in teh food processor and process until you have a breadcrumb consistency.

Pour in the cream and pulse until it is all combined.

Being careful not to overwork the dough, roll it out onto a floured surface. Put the stem ginger on top and then fold the dough in half, rolling it out. Do this about 6 times until you have a soft dough and all the ginger is mixed in.

You'll probably need to add more flour as it can get sticky.

Cut the dough in half. Roll out each half into a circle and cut each one into 6 triangular pieces.

Put on a baking tray, brush with cream, then cook for 15-20 minutes until puffed up and brown.