Cooking with children
Home-Made Scones – plain, sweet or savoury and Home-Made Jam
- One recipe, endless possibilities. The same simple dough can be adapted for sweet or savoury scones
- Little hands can do real cooking. Rubbing butter into flour, mixing dough and pressing cutters are wonderful ways for children to develop coordination, confidence and practical kitchen skills.
- Make now, enjoy later. Scones are best enjoyed fresh but freeze well. Cool completely before freezing and defrost when needed.
These scones are really versatile and make a great addition to a lunch box. Slice, butter and use your favourite sandwich fillings as a change instead of bread. If using salted butter there’s no need to add salt to the dough-and if filling with jam or adding raisins you can leave out the extra sugar.
Toddlers and up. We made these with my two and a half year old granddaughter and she loved getting involved with every step! Weigh out the ingredients in advance if working with younger children and get stuck in!
Method
-
1
Adults
Pre heat the oven to 220c ordinary oven or 200c fan
Put some baking paper on a metal baking tray and lightly grease it.
-
2
Adults & Helpers
Sieve the flour into a large bowl. Add the salt if making savoury (and herbs). Add the sugar if making sweet. Add the butter straight from the fridge and cut into cubes with a dinner knife. Young helpers can get in practice safely using our child sized olive wood set with knive.
-
3
Adults & Helpers
Rub the butter and flour together using your fingertips until the butter has disappeared and the mix looks a bit like breadcrumbs. Add in the fruit if making sweet / Add in grated cheese etc if making savoury and stir through the mix (Save some cheese for the top).
-
4
Adults & Helpers
Add the milk gradually, stirring with the olive wood knife or dinner knife. Keep adding until you get a pliable (not sticky) dough.
-
5
Adults & Helpers
Flour the work surface and put the dough on it. Flour your hands and press the dough down with the flat of your hand until 3cm deep. No Need to use a rolling pin.
-
6
Adults & Helpers
Using a pastry cutter, push through the mix Without Twisting the cutter! This is very important as twisting the dough stops the dough rising properly – younger helpers can be shown how to use their hand flat over the top of the cutter to push down safely. Repeat with any remaining dough.
-
7
Adults & Helpers
Pick the scones up by sliding the dinner knife or palette knife under them and put them spaced out on the baking tray.
-
8
Adults & Helpers
Crack the egg into a small bowl and whisk. Brush the scones with beaten egg and sprinkle on cheese if making savoury. Wash hands and wipe down.
-
9
Adults
Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes until well risen and golden. (Tip them over carefully and tap the bottom – if it sounds hollow they are done).
