Friday, April 29, 2011

In Celebration of The Royal Wedding: Jamie Oliver's Fruit Scones

 
Did everyone set their alarms this morning?  I must admit that I've been rather excited about The Royal Wedding and happily set my alarm for 4am so that I could watch it live.  I thought the wedding, and everything about it, was beautiful.  

I wanted to make something special in celebration of The Royal Wedding and went back and forth about which recipe to choose.  I looked at recipes for Eton Mess, Toad in the Hole, and various others before finally settling on Jamie Oliver's Fruit Scones.  As Kate was kissing her prince on the balcony of Buckingham Palace I was rolling out scone dough in my pajamas. 



Jamie says "This is a cracking recipe for scones which uses dried cherries as well as the more traditional raisins.  However, feel free to substitute any other dried fruit you like.  Scones freeze really well, so you can make a batch of them, pop some into the freezer, and that way, if you have any unexpected visitors, you can always put them straight into the oven from frozen as a quick and delicious treat.  Spread with jam and serve with clotted cream- nothing else will do!"


Fruit Scones

Adapted from Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution
Makes 10
1 scant 1 cup mixture of dried cherries and/or raisins
Orange juice, for soaking
4 cups self-rising flour, plus a little extra for dusting
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup butter
2 large eggs
1/3 cup milk, plus a little extra for brushing
salt
good-quality jam
2/3 cup clotted cream or heavy cream, whipped

To make your dough:  Preheat the oven to 400F.  Soak the cherries and raisins in a little bowl with just enough orange juice to cover them.  While they're soaking, you can either pulse the flour, baking powder, and butter in a food processor just until the mixture starts to look like breadcrumbs (don't be tempted to over-pulse!), or you can blend them together by hand.  Transfer to a mixing bowl and make a well in the middle.  In another bowl, beat the eggs and milk with a fork.  Drain your cherries and raisins in a strainer and add them to the beaten eggs and milk with a good pinch of salt.  Then pour your beaten eggs, milk, cherries and raisins into the well of the flour mixture and stir well, adding a splash more milk if necessary, until you have a soft, dry dough.  If your dough feels a little dry and doesn't come together, add an extra splash of milk.

To make your scones: Dust a clean work surface and your rolling pin with flour.  Roll out the dough until it's 3/4 inch thick.  Using a 2-1/2 inch round biscuit cutter, or the rim of a glass, cut out 10 circles from the dough and place these on a non-stick cookie sheet (you may have to roll your dough out again in order to get all 10 rounds out of it, but try not to knead it too much, as you don't want to overwork it).  Dip a pastry brush into some milk and brush the top of each scone.  Bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, until risen and brown.  Take them out of the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool.

To serve your scones:  Cut each scone in half across the middle.  Spoon a dollop of jam on to the bottom half of each one, followed by a dollop of clotted (or whipped) cream, and put the tops back on.  Serve on a large plate in the middle of the table, or on individual plates - and don't forget a pot of tea!
Notes/Results:  Delicious served with cherry preserves and whipped cream.  A perfect breakfast to serve whilst watching The Royal Wedding!

23 comments:

  1. Great pick for the potluck. I had to laugh at you rolling out your dough while watching the wedding. You are too cute, Kim!

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  2. Wow, waking up at 4am is dedication! You couldn't get more traditionally English than scones daaaaahling, these look great.
    *kisses* HH

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  3. Unfortunately I did NOT wake up to watch the celebration but I look forward to watching the recaps! These scones look like the perfect way to celebrate!

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  4. I got up at my usual 6-6:30 a.m. and that worked out fine for me (or else I would be falling asleep in my dinner). You know, I thought about making scones today... and didn't. Looking at these luscious photos - I am wishing I did. But thanks to your inspiration - I will!

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  5. I must confess to watching the "reruns," but will agree that it was a beautiful ceremony. I'm watching the 20-20 coverage as I type this. Your scones look amazing. I have a container of dried cherries in the pantry, but the vacation "5" (pounds) must be gone before I make this yummy confection. I'm bookmarking it, though.

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  6. What a great recipe to celebrate the Royal Wedding today. I just love scones!

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  7. I'm in the middle of moving craziness and missed the wedding. Oops. ;)

    I love these scones and that jam with the checkered lid! I have yet to try clotted cream but I have a feeling I'd love it.

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  8. I made scones for the wedding too! I thought it was a wonderful way to celebrate.

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  9. I have a 8 weeks old baby...I was up all night :) Great wedding!!!!!Your scones look sooooo good!

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  10. I watched the Royal Wedding on TV with "On Demand" last night, while taking peeks at the clips at work. I was too tired, this yesterday morning, although I had good intentions. I think it was awesome to roll sconedough in your pajamas.

    I thought the wedding was beautiful. Diana would be proud.

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  11. the coverage started at 10 PM here and I admit to staying up late to watch.I made it through the entire wedding but couldn't stay awake for the kiss. But of course it repeated a bazillion times so that was OK. ;-)

    Your scones are picture-perfect. A fun pick!

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  12. Sounds super delicious! I adore scones, and these are definitely going on my "to do" list.

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  13. How wonderful kim ! I feel lucky I didn't have to set any alarm to watch it !

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  14. oh how fun! i love scones, and it's nice to know that they freeze well! i love that you made a treat to go along with the wedding, what a great tribute to the royal couple.

    i wish i could have gone to the wedding just so i could sport one of those awesome hats!

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  15. They look awesome! I didn't know you could freeze them. You freeze the dough or the scones once they are cooked?

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  16. I love scones too - perfect way to celebrate the wedding!

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  17. Sadly, I don't have cable hooked up yet since our move so I missed the Royal Wedding. I've seen photos of the dress though-beautiful.
    Your scones look so yummy.

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  22. Just made these for the first time and they are fabulous. Thank you for sharing the recipe. I have been to the UK several times and have searched for an authentic recipe but have not found a good one until yours!

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  23. Just made these and they are fabulous. I have been to the UK several times and love their scones and clotted cream with tea but have not found an authentic recipe until yours! Thank you so much for sharing.

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