Recipe: Butter-Me-Up Scones

Sometimes plain and simple is just what the doctor ordered. Though I doubt any doctor would encourage consuming massive quantities of these buttery goodness morsels, therapists definitely would. What could be a better mood elevator than one of these crunchy, fluffy, creamy, butter scones topped with a sweet red fruit preserve and thick clotted cream?

Answer: Nothing. Duh.

Most scones I make have heavy whipping cream as their liquid base, but these scones use butter and sour cream to give them that slightly salty tang that sets them apart. Their tops get a little brown and crunchy (which can be enhanced with an optional egg wash that I chose to forego) and just beg for a topping. They may be simple, but I prefer to call them classic. They rise quite a bit, like a solid scone should, and have a pretty amazingly light crumb interior.

These are great scones to taste test jams and curds on because their flavor is not overwhelming but rather complementary to anything you put on it. The slight amount of salt will really enhance any spread’s sweetness, all the more reason to try some lemon curd on these wonders!

Butter-Me-Up Scones

Butter-Me-Up Scones

Butter-Me-Up Crunchy Butter Scones

Ingredients

  • 200 g all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsps baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 70 g unsalted butter, softened and cubed
  • 50 g ultrafine baking sugar
  • 50 g sour cream
  • 70-90 mL whole milk

Preheat oven to 220°C (450°F). Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium mixing bowl. Rub in the butter until it resembles fine breadcrumbs in texture (this may take awhile). Add in sugar and sour cream, then the milk–enough to form a dough. Knead until almost smooth.
Place on a floured surface and pat down to desired thickness (1 cm). Use a biscuit cutter to cut out scones of desired width (5 cm). Place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Let rest for 10 minutes.
Bake for about 8 minutes, until browned on the edges.
Serve with strawberry jam or lemon curd. Or eat plain 😉