Authentic scones a treat from home

ASSOCIATED PRESS

DUBLIN, Ireland — Don’t be fooled by those crumbly pastries masquerading as scones at American coffee shops.

They might be a tasty complement to your morning cup, but they bear about as much resemblance to the real thing as margarine does to the clotted cream that so often tops scones in Britain and Ireland.

Authentic scones, recipes for which date back centuries and may be either sweet or savory, are more like an American biscuit — a simple flaky, cakelike bread leavened with baking powder and best eaten warm (and often with butter and jam).

Of course, getting the real thing in the United States may mean baking up a batch yourself.

To do that, you’ll need to know the basic ingredients and simple (yet vital) methods that mean the difference between stunning scones and coffee shop impostors.

Here’s the breakdown:

MILK

The best variety of milk for scones is hotly debated in baking circles. This is partly because the most traditional option, buttermilk, is used so infrequently by modern cooks, especially home cooks. As a result, many bakers now use whole milk or half-and-half.

For authenticity, buttermilk, which has a thick consistency and tangy flavor, is best. Not only is the slightly sour taste key for traditional flavor, but buttermilk also acts as a binder, says Michelle Moore, a bread researcher in the Food and Nutritional Sciences Department at Ireland’s University College Cork. “It gives it the added flavor, and it probably gives it the softness, as well,” she says.

Historically, buttermilk was made from the liquid left behind when butter was churned. Today, it is made by adding friendly bacteria to nonfat or low-fat milk. It is widely available in the dairy case at most grocers and also can be purchased as a powder.

Thickness is key. If your buttermilk isn’t thick (many powdered versions aren’t), Derek O’Brien, the head of the National Bakery School at the Dublin Institute of Technology, suggests whisking a bit of yogurt into it before adding it to the other ingredients.

SUGAR

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