For many of us, making scones and rock cakes was an introduction to home economics lessons, mostly because the basic dough gives a variety of options for more elaborate bakes.

Scones and rock cakes have been enjoyed with a traditional English afternoon tea for many years. The scone originated on a griddle in Scotland in the form of a large round cake known as bannock. It was served cut up into triangles. In the US, scones are known as biscuits.

Making them is simple and economical. Homemade is always best, as you can eliminate the use of excess fats and sugars and adjust the recipe to cater for intolerances. The secret of light scones and rock cakes is not to over-mix or over-knead.

If you choose to cut triangular scones instead of round ones, reduce the temperature by 10⁰C to prevent the pointed edges from becoming too crusty. Try to get as many scones as you can during your first cut of dough. The less the dough is handled, the lighter the scones.

For gluten-free recipes, use ready-made self-raising gluten-free flour.

Sweet Potato Scones

You will need:
250g self-raising flour
250g sweet potatoes
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp stevia
1 tbsp honey or agave
40g butter
1/2 tsp cinnamon
a pinch of nutmeg
a few drops of vanilla extract
a pinch of salt

Cook the sweet potatoes with skin on in the microwave and allow to cool completely. Peel them and then mash the flesh with a fork. The sweet potato gives the scones a natural caramelised flavour and attractive yellow colour.

Preheat the oven to 200⁰C.

Sift the flour twice into a large bowl. Cut up the butter into small pieces and add to the flour. Use your finger tips to rub the butter into the flour until the mixture looks consistent.

Add the salt, baking powder, stevia, vanilla extract, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix, then add the mashed sweet potato. Flour your hands and bring the mixture together to form a dough. Do not knead the dough. The dough is so soft that you do not even need to use a rolling pin. Place on a clean surface lightly dusted with flour. Pat the dough using flat fingertips until the dough is around 3cm thick.

Use a pastry cutter and cut the scones without twisting the cutter. Place the scones on a greased baking sheet and brush with a beaten egg.

Bake in a preheated oven for 20 minutes.

Rock Cakes with no butter and no refined sugars

You will need:
350g self-raising flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
Stevia, the equivalent of 100g in sugar of stevia
3tbsp honey or agave for mixture plus 1tbsp for glazing the surface after baking
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp mixed spice
200g ricotta
150g mixed fruit of your choice
3 eggs

Enough water to achieve a dropping consistency.

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder. Crumble the ricotta and add to the soft flour mixture. Rub in the ricotta using your fingertips in the same way as you would rub in flour. Add the salt, then the spices and stevia.

Beat the eggs and mix in the honey. Add to the flour mixture and fold in using a large metal spoon. Add some water if needed to achieve dropping consistency (a spoonful at a time).

Prepare a baking dish with non-stick baking spray. Use 2 forks to form irregular heaps of the dough on the baking sheet.

Bake on the centre shelf of the oven for 18 minutes or until golden. Before the rock cakes cool, lightly coat the surface with some warmed up honey or agave using a baking brush.

For Jamaican-style rock cakes, replace 100g of self-raising flour with coconut and add ½ teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda.

Orange and Ricotta Scones

You will need:
400g self-raising flour
200g ricotta
Grated zest of 2 oranges
Juice of 1 orange
2 tbsp honey or agave
2 eggs
Preheat the oven to 160⁰C.

Sift the flour twice into a large bowl. Crumble the ricotta and add to the flour mixture. Rub the ricotta into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the honey, grated orange rind, eggs and orange juice and bring together to make a dough. For perfect scones, bake them as soon as possible as the raising agents start to work as soon as they come into contact with the liquid ingredients

Roll out the pasty onto a lightly floured surface. The thickness should be about 3 cm. Cut straight through the dough using a cutter. Do not move the cutter around with the pastry still inside as it will result in uneven scones. Place the scones on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Brush with a beaten egg and bake at for 25 minutes. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

Hanging Cup Scones with Crushed Coriander Seeds

You will need:
40g mascarpone
225g self-raising flour
Pinch of salt
110ml milk
3 tbsp grated Parmesan
1 tbsp crushed Baie Rose Peppercorns
1 tbsp crushed coriander seeds

These hanging cup scones with coriander seeds are an excellent accompaniment to winter soups. Use hanging cup cutters to allow the scones to hang on to a bowl of soup.

Preheat the oven to 180°C

Sieve the flour twice.

Rub in the mascarpone using your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

Add the salt, baie rose peppercorns and parmesan.

Use a knife to mix in the milk little by little. Knead the mixture to a soft dough

Add a free more drops of milk if the mixture is too dry.It is very important not to overwork the dough.

Place the dough on a floured pastry board and use a rolling pin to lightly roll it out to a thickness of about 3cm.

Cut the scones using a hanging cup cutter or a knife to cut into triangles. Cut them with one sharp tap so that the scones do not twist or shrink unevenly while baking.

Place the scones on a baking sheet. Top each scone with a mix of crushed rose peppercorns and coriander seeds and bake on the top shelf for 15 minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool on a wire rack. Hang the scones on soup bowls and serve.

Lea’s Good Food Everyday is aired in English on Fridays at 4.10pm and 9pm on Smash TV. You can follow her blog on www.goodfoodeveryday.wordpress.com and find more of her recipes on www.timesofmalta.com.

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