Mini Cream Scones
Soft and buttery, these cream mini scones can be freshly baked in 45 minutes and freeze beautifully. Serve plain or with butter and jam.
Servings 25 mini scones
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup sugar plus some extra for sprinkling before baking
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 6 ounces unsalted butter cut into 1-inch cubes and almost frozen
- ¼ cup whole milk very cold
- ½ cup heavy or heavy whipping cream very cold, plus extra for brushing the tops of the scones
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC).
- Grease or line with parchment paper two baking sheets.
- In the bowl of a food processor, put 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, ⅓ cup sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder and ⅛ teaspoon salt. Process for a few seconds, just to mix.
- Scatter 6 ounces unsalted butter over this mixture and pulse a few times until the butter is the size of peas. If making by hand use a large bowl and cut the butter with your hands or a pastry cutter. Then follow the recipe below.
- Transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Pour ¼ cup whole milk and ½ cup heavy or heavy whipping cream and stir quickly with a fork, mixing everything until most of it is moistened.
- Dump it onto the kitchen counter and quickly give it a few turns to avoid very dry spots. Some dry parts will remain and that is OK. The more you touch it and mix it, the tougher the baked scones will be.
- Pat the mixture about 1 to 1.5-inches high.
- With a round, small cookie cutter cut scones (you might need to dip the cutter periodically in flour to aid with this) quickly and arrange them on the baking sheets.
- Brush the tops lightly with additional cream and sprinkle with sugar.
- Bake for about 20 minutes, until they're puffed, the tops are golden and the insides are fully baked. If in doubt, lift one with a fork and check that the crumb is dry and not still wet.
- Eat warm. Store leftovers in a tin or airtight container and warm briefly in the oven before eating.
Notes
Baking time: consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as possible, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend keeping track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
Baking powder: it's essential for them to rise, so make sure it's not expired.
Very cold ingredients: I’m not kidding when I say very cold butter. I cut it and put the pieces in the freezer for 5 minutes before using it. And don’t take the cream half an hour before you start mixing the scones. Butter, cream, and milk belong in the fridge until you need to scatter and pour them.
Don't work the dough much. It should come together but still have floury patches. You don’t need to work it until it’s smooth, like pie dough, for instance. It is uneven, with dry spots sometimes, and that’s good for flakiness later.
A rather high oven: they need that extra heat (and baking powder) to rise however they can despite all that butter and cream. And if by any chance you forgot to turn the oven on before you start mixing, please don’t leave the baking sheet with the cut scones waiting on the counter. Put them in the fridge or freezer for the ten or fifteen minutes it takes for the oven to reach its temperature.
Freezing scones: cut them and put them on a baking sheet. Freeze until solid and transfer to a freezer-safe container or bag for two months (so you liberate the tray and have more space in the freezer). When ready to bake, take as many as you want and bake directly as instructed in the recipe card below.
Citrus variation: add some lemon or orange zest to the dough before adding the liquid.