Scones, Simply Whey Too Easy

My Mother-in-law was the Julia Childs of Karoo Kwezeen (Cuisine).  We were a good combination on the food front, she cooked it and I ate it, until I became quite poorly from over indulgence. Although very kind and patient I doubt she thought I had any mentionable talents and definitely not in the kitchen.  On Sundays she baked Scones.  Beautiful, light, fluffy, perfect little morsels, sometimes she’d add a cup of Cheddar cheese or biltong to the dough; when they were served with tea they were plain.

As a young bride I was eager to follow family traditions and with enthusiasm set to bake a batch of scones one Sunday afternoon.  My hand was too heavy and too hot.  I overworked the dough, the butter softened and the flour heated up.  I couldn’t even sell them as Rock Buns.  My husband, with his Mel Gibson eyes, took one look at them, sniffed, did me the honour of nibbling on one crusty flake and declared “These don’t taste at all like my Mom’s scones”.  He pushed his plate aside and had a slice of Sasco bread.  I was hurt and discouraged. Only years later, did I try my hand at baking scones again.  I had learnt by then what the rules were.  Technique. Baking is a science; although easy, it takes practice and a willingness to learn and master the finer details.

Last night I used the buttermilk harvested from my butter making to bake my perfect scones.  Ironically I still use my Mother-in-law’s cookie cutter for the job. Today it’s all buckled and bent but a gentle reminder of my youth, my enthusiasm to learn and serve the best food I possibly could.

She would be proud of the scones I served last night, they were feathery light and golden, she would not have been as long suffering about my store bought Strawberry Jam though.

As customary Butch finely chopped and shredded his delicious biltong, I served the savoury scones with Cream Cheese, he had his with Bovril I think, but then again, he’s a man who’d have Marmite and Banana on a roll. That’s my last word on that.  We both had delicious mouthfuls with thick cream and Strawberry Jam.  Yes, we do our cream first and top it all off with a generous spoon of jam.

I made my scones using ½ cake flour and ½ Gluten Free flour.  My courage deceived me and I couldn’t do those 100% Gluten Free.  Maybe next time.

Here is my recipe:

 

 

Watch my short video for a tip or two.

Every time I bring a pot of jam to the boil it reminds me of my mother-in-law who sat me down with a huge basket of gooseberries, presented me with a darning needle and instructed me to pierce the tiny golden marbles exactly 7 times.  It took me all day, while she prepared and boiled the syrup and watched counting every jab.

My Quick Strawberry Jam

Bon Appetito amigo!