Traditional Irish Scones

From AIRE CASTLE INN & STAINED GLASS ART

Traditional Irish Scones are much like a dry version of a really good biscuit, but with added flavor, sometimes fruit and nuts.  Choose your favorite biscuit recipe, Bisquick, or our favorite for baking, General Mills Biscuit Mix and have fun with your family as you bake several varieties of scones. They keep very well in the refrigerator for several days.

Originally, scones were not seasoned with sugar because of the lack of sugar available, so dried fruit was the sweetener for scones.  Scones were intended to be more firm that our traditional country biscuits so they could be cooled, dropped into a clean cloth sack and carried to work by those who worked away from home.  Scone baking competition became quite a sport at Irish county fairs and festivals.

Ingredients

  • Some Biscuit Mix
  • Some Water, Milk or Buttermilk
  • Light amount of Cinnamon Powder
  • Just a little Granulated Sugar
  • Some Nuts; suggest pecans or walnuts- roughly chopped
  • Some Raisins; or cranberry raisins

Directions

Make up a generous portion of your biscuit batter, but make it stiff (not wet).

Gently fold in a handful or two of pecans or walnuts, raisins and cinnamon with a little sugar mixed in.  Do not over mix!  You should see streaks of the cinnamon/sugar with fruit & nuts scattered throughout the dough.  Roll out the dough on a flour dusted biscuit cutting board to be 5/8 inch to ¾ inch thick, then cut with a 2 ½ inch to 3 inch round biscuit cutter (Lady Anne likes smaller Scones).  (Coat your cutter with fresh flour before each cut.)  Place your scones on a flat greased baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees until they are golden brown (cook time varies with biscuit mixes).   

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