Ode to Clotted Cream (A very lucky scone)

It's absolute crap outside.  What to do?

Bake yourself a batch of scones!  It makes everything better.  

Let's talk for a minute about clotted cream.  It was one of those things I would read about in Anglo-centric stories growing up and go, "ew, gross, what on earth are the Brits eating anyway?"  Clots are for blood, not for food.  Call anything "clotted" and you just don't have an appetite for it.

Don't let the name throw you.  This stuff is luxe, a true delight.  I found a brand called Rodda's which is excellent.  There is also some farmhouse stuff I get in my vege box from time to time that is quite good.  It's a specialty of the South West- Cornwall and Devon- and it is sometimes called Devonshire cream or Cornish cream.  

It's a richy fatty buttery cream spread.  The closest thing I could thing of would be Italian Marscapone cheese, but with a buttery crust.  

Traditionally, you serve it at tea time with scones for a classic "Cream Tea".  There is nothing better than slathering it on thick and topping with jam.  Or, if you are in Cornwall, you mangle this and put the jam on first and top it with the cream.  Either way, it is fantastically good.  English comfort food at its best.  

Scones are also one of those things that are super easy to throw together.  I usually make a batch for when we have guests, and pop them in the toaster whole to warm them up on demand.  I am a fan of berry scones, but it's still a little early in the season to go nuts and start baking with fresh berries.  What to do?  I used dried ones, reconstituted in hot water.  For this batch, I used a combination of strawberries and morello cherries.  You could go super-brit and use currants, or substitute frozen berries.  

Scones are not tricky, but working the dough as little as possible is key.  You don't want to kneed it like bread, but persuade it with the palm of your hand to hold together until it is just barely cohesive and not a moment more.  This will yield lovely airy flaky tender scones.  Work the dough too much and you'll get a lead puck.  

Recipe: Fruit Scones
yield: about 16 scones

150 g (3/4 cup) dried fruit
150 g (3/4 cup) butter, cold
500 g (2 cups) self-raising flour (or make it yourself with regular flour)
2 t baking powder
2 T sugar
pinch of salt
2 large eggs
4 T milk

If you are using dried fruit, soak the fruit in hot water to cover.  If using fresh, carry on!

Preheat the oven to 200c/400f.

Put the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in a bowl and whisk together with a spoon or a pastry blender.  Cube the cold butter and add to the flour; mix with your hands or the blender until it is crumbly in texture. 

In a small bowl, break the eggs and beat until blended.  Add the milk and beat until incorporated.  In the bowl with the flour, make a well in the centre and pour the egg mixture and begin to gently stir with a spatula, folding the drier outside edges in.  Drain the berries and add those once it starts to become cohesive, but its very important not to overmix.  If its looking very dry, add a splash more of milk.  

Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface.  Pat it into an evenly thick mass, about 3/4 inch thick.  Use a biscuit cutter or a floured glass to cut perfect rounds out of the dough and place the scones on a baking sheet.  Now gather the cut-up dough, form another mass of even thickness and cut again.  Keep doing this until you have no more dough, or one giant lumpy misshaped scone at the end.  

Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the tops are golden and the perfume of baked goods lies heavy in the air.  

Serve while warm with clotted cream and jam or lemon curd and a pot of good tea.