Granny’s Scottish Scone Recipe is foolproof! – Must See Scotland (2024)

It’s been handed down through the family, using cold hands.

Here is a foolproof authentic Scottish scone recipe, handed down through generations of Johanna’s Highland forebears. To make the best scones you need cold hands – or is that a Scottish baking myth? Johanna’s granny made her scones with sour milk but buttermilk will work. And vanilla essence is a modern and faintly exotic addition!

Johanna’s Granny made the best scones

Granny’s Scottish Scone Recipe is foolproof! – Must See Scotland (1)
Granny’s Scottish Scone Recipe is foolproof! – Must See Scotland (2)
Granny’s Scottish Scone Recipe is foolproof! – Must See Scotland (3)

Scone Recipe below, but first here’s a suggestion:

Book a Vintage Bus Tour with Afternoon Tea and Scones (of course!)

Enjoy afternoon tea with warm scones as you go around the Scottish capital in a vintage bus tour of Edinburgh. You can also indulge in optional gin cocktails while admiring the beautiful sites of the Scotland’s capital city. Perfect! Click below to find out more and to make a booking.

Granny’s Scottish Scone Recipe

My granny, Johanna writes, was called Flora Macdonald (1904 – 1991). This recipe came from her mother Catherine (Kate) Gillies who was from Snizort on the Isle of Skye – born in 1879.

Before that, I reckon this recipe and method came from her mother, Flora Gillies, a crofter’s wife – who also lived on theIsle of Skye.

Easy Scottish Scone Recipe

Serving Size: 6-8 Scones

Time: 25 mins :

Ingredients

  • 16oz (450 g) self raising flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3oz (80g) caster sugar
  • a pinch of salt
  • 3.5 oz (100g) cold butter or margarine – chopped into small pieces
  • Milk, use whatever kind you have in the fridge. About 10fl oz / 284 mls Granny would use milk she had allowed to go sour – and her scones were always so light and soft – but I haven’t tried this.
  • Buttermilk works well – I use a standard carton (284 mls / about 10 fluid oz). Or use ordinary milk mixed with a small amount of lemon juice. wAE

Directions

  1. Turn the oven up to 220 C / 390 F (as long as it is hot!). Pre-heat a baking tray. (I like Tala bakeware – made from carbon steel that conducts the heat and gives great results.)
  2. Sift the flour, salt and sugar into a large bowl.
  3. Rub in the butter or margarine into the flour – until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Use a light touch.
  4. Or use a food processor. Blitz it! But not for too long – it’s quick but you don’t want to overwork the mixture. I have a Magimix food processor – it’s very good and will last for years.
  5. Gradually add the milk mixture – mix with a knife or a metal spoon as this means you don’t overwork the mixture. Do not make the mixture too wet. That’s why it is a good idea not to add all the milk at once.
  6. Remember! – Not too wet, not too dry…
  7. You will get a feel for when the dough has the right amount of milk. Not too wet, not too dry! Add more milk if you need to. It should all come together in a softish ball.
  8. Flatten the ball very gently with your hands on a floured surface. I usually have the ball of dough at least 1.5 inches (4 cm) thick. Too thin and your scones are thin! Remove the hot tray from oven and sprinkle with a little flour.
  9. Cut out your scones – be gentle, don’t over work the scones and don’t twist your cutter – just press down firmly and shake the scone out – and if the cutter gets sticky, dip it in the flour bag.
  10. Sprinkle the hot baking tray and the scones with flour ( this is another secret of light scones!) Bake for about 10/12 minutes, depending on your oven. I place the tray in the middle of my oven. You will know your oven and its foibles!

Granny had cold hands – this surely helped! (Her pastry was light as a feather too!)

Granny’s Scottish Scone Recipe is foolproof! – Must See Scotland (4)

These scones are nicest eaten the same day.

My Granny’s scones were wonderful – it may have been the sour milk or the knife or her cold hands!

I recall that her scones were always soft and tasty even two or three days later. Scones freeze well too of course. So its worth making a big batch for future scone-emergencies!

I have never quite managed to reproduce that texture. But they toast well – if a day or two old. Try them with marmalade or Scottish heather honey for breakfast!

However, while Granny might have been a great baker, she never entertained the Kaiser and other toffs with her scones. But Mrs MacNab near Balmoral Castle did. Read all about her after the commercial break here:

Eat Scones and Cruise the Forth Estuary!

Mrs MacNab’s Scones – A Traditional Scottish Recipe

As you have read above, lightness, coolness and quickness in the dough-making seems to be key in all of the many scone recipes. Mrs MacNab was a farmer’s wife near Ballater in Aberdeenshire.

That town, of course, is near Balmoral Castle, the royal family’s holiday hideaway in Scotland ever since Queen Victoria had it built.

So great was the reputation of Mrs MacNab’s scones that distinguished guests at Balmoral, including King Frederick of Prussia, used to pop in for tea regularly (or so the story goes.)

This Frederick was really Kaiser Frederick III – the one who married Queen Vikki’s eldest daughter, called after her mother.

I like to imagine Mrs MacNab, passing the scones, desperate for a conversational gambit, saying in her fine Aberdeenshire accent‘An foo’s yer mither-in-laa?’(How is your mother-in-law.) To which Kaiser Fred would reply.‘Ach, still ze queen…’

Granny’s Scottish Scone Recipe is foolproof! – Must See Scotland (5)

Anyway, if you want to attract German nobility with one of the famous recipes from Scotland, this is how you should start:

Mix 16 oz / 454 g flour with a teaspoon of salt, a small tsp of bicarbonate of soda and 2 small tsp of cream of tartar.

Rub in 2 oz / 55g butter. Stir in a beaten egg and a half-pint / 284ml buttermilk.

On a floured board, knead by hand as lightly as possible.

Tear into big enough pieces of dough to enable you to cut them into ‘scone-size’ quarters, having pricked them with a fork.

(This is our interpretation of the original instructions.) But, basically, handle the mixture as little as possible.

It seems that both Mrs MacNab and Johanna’s granny had really cold hands. (So that’s where Johanna got her own cold hands from…trust me.)

Finally, bake in a very hot oven for 10-15 minutes.

Please note: these notes are not given with a guarantee that German nobility will turn up. But you friends will love the baking…

Fancy a shortbread, anyone? Part of theScottish high teaquite often…

Granny’s Scottish Scone Recipe is foolproof! – Must See Scotland (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between Scottish and English scones? ›

British scones are usually lightly sweetned and contain fruit like currants or berries. Scottish scones are often closer to a biscuit and are made with buttermilk, though some Scottish grandmothers will swear you should only use sour milk.

Did scones originate in Scotland? ›

Scones are thought to have originated in Scotland in the early 1500s and the first known print reference was made by a Scottish poet in 1513.

Why is the scone dough rest before baking? ›

This short rest relaxes the gluten, making scones more tender; and cold chills the fat, increasing flakiness. Make scone dough up to three days ahead. Shape into 3/4"-thick disks, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until ready to cut and bake.

What type of flour is best for scones? ›

The secret is using cake flour instead of all-purpose flour. It's lower in protein and makes for ultra-tender scones. If you don't have any on hand, you can easily make your own using all-purpose flour and cornstarch (see the FAQs below). For a kid-friendly twist, don't miss my chocolate chip scones.

What makes scones rise best? ›

How to make scones rise high? Once you've cut out your scone shapes, flip them over and place upside down on the baking tray. This will help them rise evenly and counteract any 'squashing' that happened when you cut out the dough. Perfect scones should rise to about 2 inches high.

How do the Scottish eat their scones? ›

Although the English eat scones mainly at teatime, the Scots eat them at almost any time: with midmorning coffee, with soup and salad at lunch, at afternoon tea or high tea, and even with a glass of wine at the cocktail hour.

What do Scots call scones? ›

In Scotland and Ulster, savoury varieties of scone include soda scones, also known as soda farls, sour dough scones known as soor dook scones made with sour milk, and potato scones, normally known as tattie scones, which resemble small, thin savoury pancakes made with potato flour.

How do the Scottish pronounce scone? ›

Scones
  1. What is a scone? Something you eat or something with which you are crowned.
  2. How do you pronounce SCONE? 99% of Scots pronounce “scone” to rhyme with “John” – see study. ...
  3. Jam on top or cream on top?

What is the Stone of Scone in Scotland? ›

The Stone of Scone (/ˈskuːn/; Scottish Gaelic: An Lia Fàil; Scots: Stane o Scone), also known as the Stone of Destiny, is an oblong block of red sandstone that was used in the coronation of Scottish monarchs until the 13th century, and thereafter in the coronation of English and later British monarchs.

What is a fun fact about scones? ›

Scones were originally much larger. Scones originate from the Scottish 'bannock', which is derived from the Gaelic for cake and made using a thin, round, flat combination of oats and wheat flour.

Are scones Irish or Scottish? ›

Scones are traditionally Irish, Scottish, and English foods. However, nobody knows which of these countries invented the baked food. As far as history can trace back, Scones probably originate from Scotland. Yes, the first print reference dates back to 1513 and is from a Scottish poet.

Should you chill scone dough before baking? ›

Not chilling the dough before baking: to really ace your scones, it helps to chill your dough again before it's baked. Using cold ingredients does help, but your hands will warm up the dough when you're working with it and the extra step of chilling will help you get the best result.

Should I refrigerate scone dough before baking? ›

Refrigerate your dough overnight for more symmetrical and attractive pastries. Recipes for scones sometimes provide a make-ahead option that involves refrigerating the dough overnight so it can simply be shaped and then popped into the oven the next day.

Why are my scones heavy and dense? ›

My scones have a dense, heavy texture and poor volume

You may have used too little raising agent or over handled the dough before it was baked. The oven may have been too cool.

How do I get my scones to rise more? ›

To ensure taller scones, start with a thicker dough disc and place the scones on a tray with sides, allowing them to slightly touch one another. This arrangement encourages the scones to push against the pan and each other, promoting height.

How do you make scones rise and not spread? ›

Try placing your scones closer together on the tray as this forces them to rise upwards and not outwards.

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