If there's not enough water to keep the dough together, it will fall apart too easily and it will be very hard to bring it all together. Also, it is important that you mix long enough for the ingredients to mix evenly.
The less you knead the mix, the less the gluten will tighten up – which means your scones will stay loose and crumbly, rather than tight and springy. Make sure you sieve the flour and baking powder into your bowl.
The mixture may have been too wet or the baking tray might have been too heavily greased. Twisting the cutter when cutting the scones can also have this effect.
I like to wait 2 to 3 minutes after removing scones from the oven before cutting them up.
Scones and biscuits both need a hot, quick bake. The high, quick heat is needed to turn that butter into nice steamy air pockets without leaving pools of butter on the cookie sheet.
Large Egg - The egg helps bind the ingredients together and increases the richness and flavour. Unsalted butter - Has to be cold to create flaky layers within the scone.
Don't forget to sift!
Be sure to double or even triple sift your flour, as it takes away the clumps in the flour allowing for more air pockets in the scone dough - the result being a fluffier and more crumbly scone.
Overworking the dough: when you overwork your dough, your scones can come out tough and chewy, rather than that desired light, crumbly texture. The trick is to use light pressure and only the work the dough until it just comes together.
Use all-purpose flour for a higher rising scone that holds its shape nicely, both in and out of the oven. To make more delicate, lower-rising, cake-like scones, substitute cake flour for all-purpose flour.
The explanation is simple: As with other doughs, including pizza dough, resting lets scone dough's gluten relax completely, so that it doesn't snap back during shaping or baking.
Pastry Blender or Pastry Cutter– this is the tool to make fluffy scones. When a recipe calls for pieces of butter to be cut into dry ingredients, this is what you want to use.
The texture of scone dough should be quite wet and sticky as this loose texture really helps to produce the lightest, fluffiest texture once baked. The drier your dough is, the less ability the dough has to rise in the oven and the denser your scones will be.
Scone Thickness
The thickness of your scone dough is all important. Shape a small rectangle at least 2.5 cm thick with your hands. No need to use a rolling pin. Don't press it down hard!
Keep scone dough as cold as possible. To avoid over-spreading, I recommend chilling the shaped scones for at least 15 minutes in the refrigerator before baking. In fact, you can even refrigerate overnight for a quick breakfast in the morning! Bake until golden brown.
When mixed in with a flat-bladed knife, it adds lightness to the dough. 6. Anneka also suggests using your fingertips rather than your whole hands to mix the dough, as the palms are the warmest part of our hands.
Baking soda is alkali and mixing it with acid causes a reaction which releases carbon dioxide which adds the bubbles in cakes, pancakes and, of course, scones.
Not sure whether to use baking soda or baking powder? You can use baking soda if you've added an acidic ingredient to the dough (e.g. buttermilk, vinegar, lemon juice). Use baking powder if you have not added anything acidic.
Make scones the day you need them and wrap them in a clean tea towel straight from the oven, wrapping in a cloth helps to trap steam and keeps the scones lovely and soft.
“Make sure your butter or fat is as cold as possible when you add it into the flour. Cool temperatures help to slow down the gluten's development, helping you achieve a delicious flaky texture," advises Vanessa. "Cut the cold fat into cubes and work it into the flour using your fingertips until the mixture turns sandy.
Traditionally scones with added fruit are served with butter only; plain scones with butter and jam or cream and jam.
Use a small amount of an acidic condiment such as lemon juice or vinegar to neutralise the soda. If the recipe has chocolate, simply add half a teaspoon of cocoa powder to it. Buttermilk can also be used to counter the pungent taste of baking soda.
Bake the scones for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown. To be absolutely sure they are completely cooked through use an instant read thermometer. The scones are ready when their internal temperature is at 200 degrees F.
Using buttermilk helps keep the scones ultra-tender. Freezing the scones before baking will ensure the butter is cold which is what creates the airy pockets within the scones. Adding an egg will keep them make rich and soft. You don't need to use the full amount of liquid.