Treacle scones

Aaannd, back to baking...

Following on from Saturday's breadfest, on Sunday I just felt like scones. Not a common feeling, but it was definitely scones I was wanting to make. So I turned to my new favourite cookbook for a recipe - it's called the Glasgow Cookery Book and it's gloriously no-nonsense. I like books with no pictures; just recipes. I love to read my penguin paperbacks of Rick Stein and Jane Grigson in bed - I like to imagine the recipes, rather than to look at impossibly perfect creations that I'll never quite create (though I do have some lovely books with pictures I'm fond of too).

The GCB takes the no-pictures approach to its limits, with virtually no descriptions either. It's all kind of: "mix ingredients, bake for 20 minutes" brief and to the point. A welcome change from some recipes which adjectivise every ingredient and interject with metaphors about the mixture and so on. It covers absolutely heaps from basics to some quite complex stuff. There's some quaintly old-fashioned stuff in there but some really interesting recipes too. And the baking section is top-notch.

So, I tried their treacle scones. Intriguing, I thought, I've never tried a treacle scone before. But treacle tastes a bit like sunshine or hugs I think. It's undeniably warm.

And they were lovely - soft, big crumb, nicely lightly spiced, warmly treacly and perfect with some raspberry jam.

RECIPE (for a small batch - just 4-8)
100 g self raising flour (or 100g plain flour plus 1/2 tsp bicarb and 1 tsp cream of tartar)
1 tsp mixed spice
salt
12.5g butter
1/2 tbsp treacle
milk, to mix

Mix dry ingredients. Rub in butter until it looks like fine breadcrumbs. Mix in treacle and milk until a smooth pliable dough is formed. Roll out (I did mine only about 1cm think, though it advised 2cm I think) and cut.

Place on a greased and floured tray and bake for about 10-12 minutes at 200C until browned on top.

Lovely.