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Scotch Scones
Make the preceding mixture for tea cakes, but shape with a small, round cookie-cutter. Bake on a griddle, turning on both sides until a delicate brown. Lay a napkin on a plate, arrange the scones on it and fold the corners of the napkin over them. Split and butter while hot.
A griddle scone rather than an oven one, so the hinge is heat control: the pan must be moderate enough that the centre cooks through before the outside colours.
- The base doughThe recipe leans on the tea cake mixture printed just above it in the book, a plain baking-powder dough. Look to that entry for the exact proportions before starting.
- Griddle heatKeep it moderate rather than hot; a heavy cast-iron pan given a few minutes to settle is easier to control. A hot griddle scorches the crust while the centre stays raw and gummy.
- Grease or notA well-seasoned iron griddle needs nothing; a thin film of butter wiped on and then wiped off is enough for anything else. Excess fat fries the surface and gives a spotty, blistered crust rather than the even "delicate brown" called for.
- Thickness and cutterRoll or pat to about half an inch and cut with a 2-inch cutter. Thicker than that and the outside is done long before the middle; much thinner and you get a hard biscuit.
- TimingGive them several minutes on the first side and rather less on the second. They are done when the sides look dry and set and a scone feels light for its size; if in doubt, split one.
- The napkinNot decoration. Folding a cloth over hot griddle breads traps steam and keeps them soft while the rest of the batch cooks. A clean towel in a covered basket does the same work.
- YieldHow many you get depends on the tea cake quantity and the size of the cutter. They are at their best within twenty minutes of leaving the griddle.