Prep: 45 mins
Cook: 10 mins (plus 1 hr macerating)
Difficulty: Easy
Makes: 8
Ingredients
300g self-raising flour
½ tsp baking powder
70g cold butter, cut into small cubes
30g golden caster sugar
zest 2 lemons
150ml buttermilk
2 tbsp full-fat milk
For the fruit
3 tbsp Pimm’s
1 tbsp golden caster sugar
300g pack strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 large orange, cut into cubes
handful mint, leaves picked
For the cream
300ml double cream
2 tbsp icing sugar
50ml Pimm’s
Method
- Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7.
- Cover a baking sheet with baking parchment.
- Put the flour and baking powder in a large bowl, add a pinch of salt, then rub in the butter with your fingertips until it is mostly incorporated – unlike pastry, you don’t need to worry about rubbing the butter in too finely.
- Stir in the sugar and lemon zest.
- In a jug, mix the buttermilk with the milk.
- Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture, then pour in the liquid.
- Use a knife to bring the dough together.
- Tip out onto a clean work surface and bring together with your hands. Patting is better than rolling so that you don’t overwork the dough.
- Stamp out eight scones with a 7cm fluted cutter – you’ll need to reshape the dough once from the trimmings.
- Put the scones on the baking sheet and bake on the top shelf for 10 mins until risen and the tops are golden. Cool on a wire rack.
- Mix the Pimm’s and caster sugar in a bowl.
- Stir in the fruit, cover and infuse in the fridge for 1 hr, then stir in the mint leaves.
In a large bowl, whisk the cream, icing sugar and Pimm’s until the mix just holds its shape.
Halve the cooled scones. Top the bottom half with a spoonful of cream and a spoonful of fruit, drizzle over some of the syrup, then sandwich with the top half.
Recipe from Good Food magazine, July 2016
Image from: bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/pimms-scones
