1. food and drink
2. desserts and baking

angela day
16
MONDAY MARCH 31 2008
The Star
STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO
BUTTERMILK SCONES
Basic scone dough
Makes 12
FRUIT SCONES
Freshly baked scones and muffins are a favourite
tea-time treat. In the second of a four-part baking
series, Angela Day shows you how easily they are made.
1 quantity basic
scone dough
5ml cinnamon
125ml raisins
THE JOY OF BAKING
PART TWO
Sift the cinnamon in
with the dry ingredients.
Stir raisins in at the
same time as the sugar.
Proceed as for basic
scone method.
CHEESE SCONES
1 quantity basic scone dough
10ml dry mustard powder
375ml grated Cheddar
cheese
Omit sugar and stir in
cheese and mustard
powder before adding
the buttermilk. serve
with butter and grated
cheese.
CARAMEL APPLE SCONES
SCONES & MUFFINS
PICTURES:
ANTOINE
DE RAS
Makes 12-18
1 quantity basic
scone dough
50ml brown sugar
410g can pie apples,
chopped
5ml cinnamon
50g pecan nuts,
toasted and chopped
Caramel:
125ml cream
30g butter
125ml brown sugar
On a lightly-floured
surface, roll dough out to
a 45 x 20cm rectangle.
Sprinkle sugar over it
and top with apples and
cinnamon.
Roll up dough like a
Swiss roll. Using a sharp
knife, cut the roll into
3cm slices. Place each
slice cut-side down in
greased muffin pans.
Bake at 180°C for 15 to
20 minutes. Stand a few
minutes before turning
onto a cooling rack.
Serve drizzled with
caramel and sprinkled
with pecan nuts.
Caramel: Combine
all ingredients in a small
saucepan. Heat over
medium heat, stirring
constantly, until sugar
dissolves. Simmer for
five minutes until
slightly thickened.
Is it necessary to line
the muffin pan with
paper cases?
What can I do if I have
run out of yoghurt or
buttermilk?
They have a dual purpose
– to keep muffins from
drying out too quickly, and
to make it easier to wash
the muffin pan.
Yoghurt or buttermilk
gives muffins a good crust
and soft texture. To
achieve the same effect,
you can sour your own
milk by adding a few
drops of lemon juice or
vinegar.
The batter was overmanipulated, the raising
agent was not equally
distributed or the oven
was too hot. Mixing is
best done by hand with a
wooden spoon.
Why do muffins have a
mushroom-shaped
top?
You put too much dough
in the muffin pan, which
should be just ¾ filled.
How long can muffins
be kept successfully?
They are best eaten on the
day they are made. To
refresh, microwave for 20
seconds before serving.
They do freeze well but
should be warmed at
160°C, for 10 minutes.
If my recipe calls for
self-raising flour, and I
only have cake flour,
what should I do?
Add 15ml baking powder
for every 500ml flour
called for in the recipe.
Can I treble muffin
recipes?
It is not advisable to make
more than a double
mixture at a time.
What has made my
muffins heavy?
This could be caused by
insufficient raising agent,
or an ingredient has been
left out. Before you begin
baking, check that you
have all ingredients
assembled and correctly
weighed out.
CHEESE AND HAM MUFFINS
Makes 12
1 basic muffin mixture
100g cooked ham, chopped
250ml grated Cheddar
cheese
Worcestershire sauce
extra grated Cheddar cheese
A CHOCOLATE
CHUNK MUFFIN
Omit sugar and lemon
rind from basic mixture.
Stir ham and cheese
into flour mixture before
The difference between an ordinary scone and an
exceptional one is the way the ingredients are
worked together. The key is in handling the dough
quickly and lightly, and baking in a hot oven. A
perfect scone is evenly risen, has a soft crust and soft
texture inside, and is light golden in colour.
SCONES Q&A
Why do scones turn
out flat and heavy?
hot oven for best results.
The more you handle the
dough, the tougher they
will be. Work as quickly as
possible and knead the
dough as little as possible.
Can scones be frozen?
Why are the bottom of
my scones burnt?
MUFFIN Q&A
What causes muffins
to be misshapen with
tunnels and holes?
PERFECTING THE SCONE
adding liquid
ingredients. Proceed as
for basic muffin method.
Five minutes before
the muffins are ready,
remove from oven and
splash each with
Worcestershire sauce
and top with grated
cheese. Return to oven
for the remaining five
minutes.
4 x 250ml cake flour
pinch salt
30ml baking powder
80g butter
50ml sugar
250ml buttermilk
1 egg, lightly beaten
125ml water
beaten egg to glaze
Brush off any excess flour
after cutting out the raw
scones. Residual flour is
inclined to burn.
How can I get rid of
that baking powder
taste in my scones?
Besides giving scones a
lighter texture, buttermilk
helps neutralise that
“soda” taste.
Which shelf in the
oven should I use?
Bake scones high up in a
Yes, to be defrosted when
required. But freshly
baked is best. Raw scones
must be well covered and
frozen, to be baked at a
later stage.
Why are my scones dry
and the crust so dark?
They have been overbaked. You should not
bake them for longer than
15 minutes. If you find
your oven is too hot,
lower the temperature by
10°C.
Strawberry jam is the most
popular. Add chopped
strawberries to the jam to
make it special.
Best made on the day of serving, muffins are
delicious, warm or cold, with or without butter. This
basic recipe can be adapted to suit many flavours.
BASIC MUFFINS
Sift the flour, salt and
baking powder together
into a mixing bowl. Stir
in the sugar and lemon
rind.
In a separate bowl,
combine egg, oil and
yoghurt and mix well.
Add this to the dry
Measuring carefully, sift the flour, salt and baking
powder into a large bowl. Cut the butter into
pieces and, using your fingertips, rub this into
the flour until the mixture resembles coarse
breadcrumbs. Next stir in the sugar.
What is the best jam to
use for scones?
PERFECTING THE MUFFIN
Makes 12
500ml flour
salt
15ml baking powder
125ml sugar
grated rind of one lemon
1 extra large egg
80ml oil
250ml plain yoghurt
milk to mix
Icing (optional)
250ml icing sugar
juice of 1 lemon
STEP 1:
ingredients and mix
until just combined,
adding a little milk if
necessary. The batter
should be of a stiff
dropping consistency.
Spoon mixture into
paper-lined or wellgreased muffin pans and
bake at 200° C for 20
minutes.
Remove muffins from
the oven and place on a
cooling rack. When
cooled, drizzle with a
little lemon glace icing if
desired.
To make the icing,
sift icing sugar into a
bowl and add freshly
squeezed lemon juice
until a thick pouring
consistency is reached.
STEP 2:
Lightly mix the buttermilk and beaten egg
together. Make a well in the centre of the dry
ingredients and pour in the buttermilk mixture
and mix with a round bladed knife, adding
enough water to make a soft but not sticky dough.
Dough should come together and leave the sides
of the bowl clean.
STEP 3:
Turn dough onto a lightly-floured surface and
knead gently until the mixture forms a ball.
Using lightly floured fingers, pat or lightly roll
dough to a 3cm thickness. Do not pat or roll
thinner – this is the secret of well-risen scones.
CHOCOLATE CHUNK MUFFINS
Makes12
1 basic muffin mixture
45ml cocoa powder
50g milk chocolate, chopped
into chunks
50g dark chocolate,
chopped into chunks
50g white chocolate,
chopped into chunks
To decorate:
2 x chocolate Crunchie bars
50g white chocolate, melted
Prepare one basic
muffin mixture but omit
the lemon rind.
Sift 45ml cocoa
powder in with the flour.
Stir in chocolate chunks
and proceed as for basic
muffin method.
Once baked, top with
chopped Crunchie bars
and drizzle with melted
white chocolate.
Note: Because our
chocolate muffins are
generously packed with
chocolate, they may
stick to the pans when
they first come out the
oven. Leave the muffins
to cool a little first. Then
loosen each one with a
round-bladed knife to
help them come out of
the muffin pans a little
easier.
STEP 4:
Push 5cm metal scone cutter down sharply into
dough – don’t twist – and then lift cutter and push
scone out. Gather up any trimmings and knead
together gently and pat out until you can cut out
the last scone. Place scones on a greased baking
sheet. Brush each scone with a little egg glaze.
Bake at 220°C for 12-15 minutes or until scones
are golden brown. Cooked scones should sound
hollow when tapped on the underside.
Place on a cooling rack. Serve with strawberry jam and whipped cream.
BREAKFAST ON
THE RUN MUFFIN
Serves 12
1 basic muffin mixture
50g pecan nuts, chopped
100g dates, chopped
125ml grated carrot
1 small apple, peeled, cored
and grated
Add above ingredients
to the basic muffin
mixture at the same
time as the sugar and
lemon rind. Proceed as
for the basic muffin
recipe.
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